Structural specialization: Canada-United States relations and Canada's place in the world

The study of international relations generally presupposes that the structural context within which states interact is 'anarchic;' meaning, without an overarching authority to preside over a common, comprehensive body of law. Systemic theorists have accordingly been content to assume that only the anarchic context is of relevance when hypothesizing about the predominant patterns of state behaviour. This study breaks with tradition and investigates the implications of hierarchical structures forming within the broader international anarchy. In so doing, it opens two unexplored areas of international relations to systemic theorizing: (1) the high political interactions between super- and subordinate states; and (2) the behaviour of subordinate states in the international system. The predominant patterns of these seemingly distinct, though fundamentally related areas of international relations are revealed and explained through the analysis of six case studies in Canada-U.S. relations: the Vietnam War (1954-1973); the Cuban Missile Crisis (1961-1962); Nuclear Weapons (1954-present); Missile Defence (1984-present); The War on Terror (2001-present); and Transnational Security After 9/11. These cases affirm two counterintuitive hypotheses. The first is that high political interactions between super- and subordinate states follow a non-linear (as opposed to straightforward) pattern towards contradictory (as opposed to mutually beneficial) policy outcomes. This is due to the fact that in intra-hierarchical high political interactions, the dual structural contexts of anarchy and hierarchy combine to push and pull super- and subordinate states in contrasting directions, ultimately leaving a contradictory imprint on their policy outcomes. The second is that subordinate states carry out specialized roles in the international system not fitted for great powers as an alternative to traditional means (balancing against superordinate power through alliance formation or arms build-up) of ensuring their sovereign survival. Like individuals in domestic society, subordinate states must specialize in order to survive as independent sovereign units in the international system. The study concludes by drawing out further areas in which structural specialization is likely to matter, before setting down the grand strategic implications of the findings for Canada-U.S. relations and Canada's place in the world.