Diplomacy and Domestic Politics: The Logic of Two-Level Games §

Class: IS405 Created Time: January 21, 2022 4:17 PM Database: Class Notes Database Last Edited Time: January 28, 2022 12:24 PM Type: Lecture, Reading Notes

Introduction: the entanglements of domestic and international politics §

• the kind of negotiation that took place at the international level but also simultaneously engaging in negotiations at the domestic level

• the country’s negotiation position at the international level is often the result of domestic political contests between various actors

  💡 i.e. national legislature, bureaucracy, business interest, organized labor…

• the outcome of negotiations at the international level may be limited by the interests of domestic actors

  • domestic actor the one to ratify the negotiations of the domestic interests

only when there’s overlap between the agreement set and the win set/ratification set would it be possible to successfully conclude an international agreement

KEY TAKEAWAY:

• connecting domestic and international levels of analysis
  • break down black box of foreign policy decision making
• tactical benefits
  • understanding your own win-set → pressure domestic interests to limit their concessions
  • understanding your opponent’s win-set → whether should the state be more cautious or be willing to make more concessions
  • uncertainty
    • the size of win-set
    • provide the possibility of a more aggressive negotiating postures
• understanding negotiations failures