International Organization in the Modern World

In this book the development of international organization at two levels is discussed - the regional and the global. The conclusion is drawn that regional organization is continuing to develop whilst global arrangements reached a plateau in the early 1980s. This pattern of development is described and explained and its implications for international society analyzed. In Part 1, the growth of regional integration in the global context is discussed, the factors which support it analyzed, and the data concerning its development presented. In Part 2, close attention is given to one example of regional integration, the European Community, in order to deduce lessons from regionalization which may be more widely relevant. In Part 3, specific patterns in the growth of global organizations are discussed and compared with those at the regional one. And in Part 4, the work of global international organizations in two important contexts is considered in order to highlight its impact upon the state compared with that at the regional level.