Foreign policy strategies adopted by states are : Strategies for the supplementation of military and diplomatic capabilities. Under this set of strategies we have –
The Strategy of alliance formation:
An alliance is an agreement by state to support each other militarily in the event of an attack against any member or to advance their mutual interest. According to Plano and Olton, alliance may be bilateral or multilateral, secret or open, simply or highly organized, of short or long duration and may be directed at preventing or winning a war.
Alliance may also be directed at stemming internal insurrection. Example is the Anglo-Nigeria defender pact. Many contemporary alliances have been expanded into regional organization for cooperation in economic, social, administrative and dispute settlement as well as military matters.
Multi-functional alliance system includes the North Atlantic Treaty Organization formed in April 4, 1949 to provide peace and security in the North Atlantic Areas through joint defense. Another multi-functional alliance system that once moves the world was the Warsaw Treaty Organization.
Other multi-functional alliance system are the organization for African Unity established in 1963 to develop unity, end colonization, foster economic development and provide security for African states. the Arab league was formed to coordinate the members political activities, safeguard their independence and sovereignty and encourage cooperation in economic, social and cultural matters.
In spite of all the weakness of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) derive from African history and economic predicaments, African countries exert more influence than anyone of them possibly could, and it’s all thanks to the OAU
Strategy of diplomatic coalition:
The first point to be made about the strategy of diplomatic coalition is that it can easily pass for alliance. The assumption underlying the formation of diplomatic coalition is that the state in question shares some common characteristics.
For instance, they have the same value system, common problem and challenges and therefore in recognition of these shared value, common problem and challenges that form for them common denominator, common diplomatic structures are evolved.
Such diplomatic coalition includes the Commonwealth of Nations. The common wealth of nations is a voluntary association of independent state that were once part of the British Empire. The commonwealth is a unique political system in the sense that its members freely cooperate and assist each other without specific agreement or commitment.
During the World War 1 and 11, commonwealth states joined Britain in declaring war and volunteered large expeditionary forces to fight the common enemy. No formal treaty ties or permanent institution exist except for a secretariat.
Other diplomatic coalition arrangement include the Non-Aligned Movement (with membership numbering more than one hundred in 1987) By means of diplomatic coalition, the members of the Non-Aligned Movement set for themselves, the task of being third force in world affairs.
However, the more relevant thing to us is the emphasis on the need for joint action and concerted effort on the part of the non aligned countries as an essential requirement for the successful restructuring of the international system.
The Non-Aligned countries have come to recognize the need for and have adopted a trade union strategy, the application of collective pressure in the pursuit of their goal. The movement is turning into a sort of international trade union of the under developed countries in relation with the developed states. It is slowly transforming itself into a much more organized pressure group.
The international trade union strategy:
This strategy involves the coming together of states which play similar roles in the international division of labour. For instance, states that supply the same kind of primary product and which feels that their labour is exploited, in the sense that the price of their goods either are equitable or fluctuate erratically, they therefore apply collective pressure in the pursuit of their goals or for trade union to protect their common interests.
A prominent example regarding the international trade union strategy is Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
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