Relations between countries can follow a curve. This curve can be shaped by the domestic conditions and policies of the countries and international conditions. An appropriate conjuncture may facilitate decision-making and action, while inappropriate international conditions may create great difficulties and even impede international action.http://www.foreignpolicy.org.tr/documents/books/equality.pdf The word conjuncture is derived from the Italian "congiuntura". An extensive usage of the word is found in French as "conjoncture". The ''Dictionnaire des Dictionnaires'' defines it as "the meeting, by coincidence, of different things at the same place". The ''Dictionnaire Encyclopédique Quillet'' characterises it as a situation created as a result of some events or interests meeting at the same time and place".

Kathleen Christison Kathleen (McGrath) Christison (born 1941) is an American political analyst and author whose primary area of focus is the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. For sixteen years, Christison worked as a political analyst for the Central Intelligence Age ...

, in her book on

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, interprets this term as a "unique constellation of forces".

Recent examples

The current international system is affected by

the Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising ...

the Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

and the end of the Cold War. These are three major events shaping the international conjuncture today. Relations between countries take on a different shape when they are situated in the Cold War period or during the end of the Cold War. The countries in Europe have clearly shown us that they have been affected by the international conjuncture. The

Reunification of Germany German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the German Democratic Republic and the integration of i ...

is certainly a result of the end of the Cold War. It could not have been achieved had the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

not disintegrated. As of today, it can be said that a new international conjuncture was created as a result of the

9/11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

on the United States thereby leading to the invasion of

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

References

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External links

Foreign Policy Institute
International relations