Balancing of Small and Medium-Sized Nations

Abstract

The article studies two traditional realist types of behavior ­ balancing and bandwagoning. Historically, the policy of balancing was typical to large states – the Great Powers who tried to restrain each other and thus maintain balance of power in the international system. Others – small and medium countries were more likely to bandwagon, because of their inability to resist external pressure from the Great Powers independently.

The collapse of the bipolar system introduced significant adjustments. In particular, small and medium countries now have new opportunities to balance external threats. Integration has become a process where it became very clear. On the one hand, integration gave some benefit to these countries, especially within close cooperation and removal of trade barriers with economically more successful and powerful states. However, on the other hand, such a disproportionate convergence created for small and medium countries certain threats. Lack of economic borders increased their dependence on the stronger partners, while creation of supranational branches of power moved this dependence on a political level, as supranational institutions, of course, took into account interests of major subjects of integration primarily.

Taking into account that processes of regional integration have been coming increasingly intensive during the last decade, the author targeted to study in this context new behavior of small and medium countries. It was found that balancing and bandwagoning are two components of their integration policy. The ratio of balancing and bandwagoning influences development of the integration process. When small and medium countries accumulate sufficient resources to build the balancing policy, integration slows down. It means that for the successful integration with small and medium countries needs a permanent dominance of bandwagoning over balancing in their integration policy.