One state-one nation: the naturalisation of nation–state congruency in IR theory

• Published in: Journal of international relations and development 2013-10, Vol.16 (4), p.514-538
• Main Author: Mandelbaum, Moran M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Area Studies; Bias; Cold War; Democracy; Development Studies; Discursive Practices; Genealogy; International Relations; International relations theory; Liberal democracy; Modernity; Nation state; National identity; Nationalism; Political Science and International Relations; Political Science and International Studies; Politics; Post Cold War Period; Power; Security; Social sciences; State; Studies; Theory
• ISSN: 1408-6980; 1581-1980
• DOI: 10.1057/jird.2012.22

This paper suggests that the notion of nation–state congruency has become a ‘leitmotif’ in International Relations (IR) theory, especially since the end of the Cold War. Congruent states are often constructed as the precursor of liberal democracy, peace, and modernity, while security in particular is discursively intertwined with nation–state congruency. This paper asks: how has this congruency discourse become so embedded in IR theory and, consequently, what can we learn about the nexus between IR and the states/international system? These questions are of a ‘how-possible’ and critical nature that engage with the power dynamics and thus the effects that emerge from this ‘congruency bias’. To answer these, I deploy the ‘discursive practices approach’ and show the various practices/strategies through which congruency is constituted and established, naturalised and legitimated. Finally, I conclude by proposing to inquire genealogically into the conditions of emergence of nation–state congruency in IR and modernity.