Three Frameworks, One Paralysis: What IR Theory Reveals About Gaza
geopoliticalmonitor.com
Three competing IR frameworks all describe the Gaza conflict differently — and their inability to agree on a verdict exposes a deep flaw in how theory claims to explain war.
RealismLiberal InstitutionalismConstructivismIR Theory
Theory Briefing
- Realism frames Gaza as raw power competition, stripping out moral claims and reducing the conflict to survival logic.
- Liberal institutionalism highlights how international bodies like the UN fail to enforce norms, revealing the limits of rules-based order.
- Constructivism shows that clashing identities and narratives — not just interests — drive the conflict in ways realism cannot capture.