The Justification of Democratic Peace Theory in the 21st Century

Abstract

Dependent on liberal ideologies , the democratic peace theory assumes that democracies rarely wage war on one another than non- democracies. But critics argue that merely being democratic in nature may not be the main reason for peace between democracies. Throughout the 21st century, we have witnessed the “War on Terrorism” after 9/11, the rise of multipolarity, several buffer zones underpinning major powers’ divisive politics and reflection of national leaders’ decisions on regional cooperatives and international institutions, etc., which have had varying effects on international politics. Therefore, this study begs a question that whether the implications of democratic peace theory are justified in the 21st century or not. Answering this question required a thorough review of the arguments put forward by democratic peace theorists and detractors. This article examines the justification of democratic peace theory by focusing on the remarkable political phenomena in the 21st century. The method of this study is based on the thematic literature review and in-depth study of the documents and summaries comprised of articles and journals. This study found that authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, the rise of populism, contentious politics, border and regional conflicts, violent annexation, etc. have become critical issues in democracies where neither the values of democracy are protected, nor the liberal ideology is followed in the state mechanisms.

Social Science Review, Vol. 39(1), June 2022 Page 211-229