Question

liberalism challenge to economic nationalism ? this is a question of international political economy.

Answer 1

Nationalism is viewed as the enemy of liberal democracy. The view is that Europe’s wars of the 20th century originated in nationalism, along with the belief that nationalism gave rise to fascism, and that the preservation of liberal democracy required nationalism’s suppression.

Liberal democracy arose in the 18th century as a challenge to monarchy and the idea that kings and emperors had a divine right to rule. Maps of 18th century Europe, and even before, show the outcomes of this approach. The holdings of a monarch or lesser nobility were built by war, money and marriage, and the subjects likely consisted of many nations. Many nations, in turn, were divided between the different monarchies. Therefore, kingdoms and nations did not necessarily coincide, and regimes were not connected to the people, neither in theory nor in practice.

Liberal democracy makes two core assertions. First, there is a right to national self-determination. Second, this self-determination must manifest in a type of popular rule, and the people, in ruling themselves, have the right to select and approve the form of government. The important point is democracy is comprehensible only through the fundamental beliefs of a nation.