In the international society where sovereign states are the main international actors, and in the process of economic globalization, national sovereignty, a symbol or the highest interest that reflects the independent existence and development of each country, has been hit unprecedentedly. and challenges, especially for developing countries that are at a disadvantage in world competition. How to meet this challenge and make correct strategic choices is directly related to the fate of developing countries in the 21st century. This article attempts to make a preliminary discussion on this issue.
1. The sensitivity and fragility of national sovereignty in contemporary developing countries
National sovereignty is the most important attribute that distinguishes a country from other social groups. The supreme power to handle the country's internal and external affairs in accordance with the principles and provisions of national rights and international law. National sovereignty in the modern sense was formed during the emergence of modern capitalism and the emergence of bourgeois nation-states. The early sovereignty theory mainly solved the problem of power relations within the country. With the increasing number of exchanges between nation-states, external sovereignty has taken on more important significance. Bourgeois thinkers began to closely link sovereignty with nation-states. The theory of sovereignty was developed. The earliest international treaty in the history of modern international relations to recognize the principle of nation-state sovereignty was the 1648 Peace of Westphalia.
It was not until after World War II that the principle of national sovereignty was gradually widely recognized by the international community and became the basic norm of international relations and the cornerstone of the basic principles of modern international law. The Charter of the United Nations clearly stipulates the principles of "sovereign equality of all member states" and "non-interference in the internal affairs of any country". However, imperialism, hegemonism, old and new colonialism still exist, and they continue to use "protection of human rights" and "humanitarian intervention" as excuses to violate the sovereignty of other countries and interfere in their internal affairs.
Developing countries have been fighting to safeguard national sovereignty since their independence. Compared with developed countries, the national sovereignty of developing countries shows the following salient characteristics: first, sensitivity, and second, vulnerability.
The historical reason why developing countries are sensitive to national sovereignty lies in their colonial history of being enslaved, exploited and oppressed.
The sensitivity of the national sovereignty of developing countries also lies in the fact that the national liberation struggle of developing countries for national sovereignty and independence is difficult and tortuous. Their sovereignty and independence are hard-won, and the economic poverty of developing countries after independence Due to their backward, backward and dependent status, political independence is often threatened, sovereignty integrity is often destroyed, and hegemonism, power politics, and old and new colonialists often continue to interfere in the internal affairs of developing countries through various means.
The vulnerability of developing countries’ national sovereignty comes from internal system defects, institutional shortcomings, economic underdevelopment, and also from external dependence. The vast majority of developing countries in the world today implement a capitalist system. Although this kind of capitalism is also governed by the universal laws of capitalism, compared with the orthodox and native capitalism of the West, it has capitalist production relations and pre-capitalist relations. It has the characteristics of mixed production relations, intertwined state monopoly and bureaucracy, and coexistence of dependency and nationality. In other words, it was produced on the basis of the underdevelopment of the capitalist economy. It was mixed with pre-capitalist production relations such as feudal land relations and tribal economic relations, and the social and economic structure was extremely complex. It has implemented a state monopoly from the beginning, with the state regulating and intervening in economic life, and supporting the development of national private capital through state power, so it has a strong bureaucratic nature. Most of the private monopoly organizations in developing countries have close ties with the groups in power in their countries. In some developing countries, due to imperfect social supervision mechanisms, imperfect laws, and low levels of people's participation in political affairs, it is extremely easy to produce the adverse consequences of corruption and nepotism. After independence, in order to accelerate economic development, developing countries must develop economic relations with Western developed countries and absorb their capital, technology and management experience. On the one hand, Western developed countries provide funds and technology to developing countries and draw them into the world capitalist system. On the other hand, they are afraid that developing countries will become truly powerful and lose their own vested interests, so they do everything possible to control them. In fact, in the old unequal and unfair international economic order, it is difficult for developing countries to get rid of their exploited status. These characteristics of capitalism in developing countries have resulted in their economic dependence and the vulnerability of national sovereignty.
The complexity and fragility of national sovereignty in developing countries have increased the difficulty of safeguarding national sovereignty. However, with the development of economic globalization, developing countries are facing new challenges on the issue of national sovereignty.
2. The challenge of economic globalization to the national sovereignty of developing countries
(1) Economic globalization is the result of the scientific and technological revolution and the internationalization of production, and the scientific and technological revolution changes national sovereignty scope and space for exercise. The development of information technology "gives sovereign countries an invisible but objectively existing "information frontier" that is difficult to defend. With the development of remote sensing technology, satellite communications, network technology, multimedia and other technologies, human society will become "An economy and society based on the transformation and distribution of information." Information will be a key factor in a country's economic development, political lifeline, and military strength. Control of the content and method of transnational information flow will become an important part of national sovereignty." .
However, the level of scientific and technological development in developing countries limits the scope and space for them to exercise sovereignty. They are unable to control the content and method of transnational information flow, and the scope of their national sovereignty is inevitably limited. What is even more serious is that developed countries that are in a leading position in science and technology can use information networks to carry out political propaganda, cultural infiltration and cultural invasion into developing countries, and spread Western values; they can also launch attacks on developing countries that they are not "satisfied" with. Psychological warfare stirs up anti-government sentiment in these countries, affects the decision-making of the government of that country, and even promotes the collapse of the government.
(2) Economic globalization has changed the past concept of countries enjoying supreme sovereignty in domestic affairs, diplomacy, and military affairs. The interdependence of the economies of various countries restricts the economic sovereignty of countries. For developing countries, especially those that are in a purely dependent relationship with developed countries, national sovereignty is even more constrained and restricted. In order to adapt to the development needs of economic globalization, economic alliances between countries have emerged, leading to the development of regional grouping and economic integration. In the process of regional grouping and economic integration, the country needs to transfer some rights to exercise economic sovereignty, establish supranational institutions, and achieve common economic development. This is an inevitable trend in world economic development. For developing countries, this trend has given rise to two types of regional groups: one is a regional group whose members are all developing countries, and the other is a regional group that includes both developing countries and developed countries. For developing countries with similar levels of economic development, economic systems, and economic policies, on the basis of sovereign equality, the same economic interests can be achieved by formulating a common code of conduct and transferring part of the exercise of economic sovereignty. It is relatively easy; for developing countries in the same regional group as developed countries, how to transfer the right to exercise economic sovereignty on the basis of sovereign equality and realize their own economic interests is a big problem. problem.
(3) In the process of economic globalization, countries around the world are facing increasingly acute common problems, including energy issues, environmental issues, resource shortages, food issues, debt issues, trade protectionism issues, Problems arising from polar deep sea and space development, population problems, refugee problems, drug problems, nuclear proliferation problems, international terrorism problems, etc. have long spread beyond national borders and are getting worse. They have become major issues affecting global development. question. Their solution is no longer within the capabilities of one or a few countries. It must rely on the joint efforts, mutual cooperation and cooperation of all countries in the world to solve them. For example, a country has natural sovereignty over the natural world and its resources within its territory, and environmental protection and resource utilization are completely within the scope of sovereignty. However, the diffusion and cross-territoriality of environmental pollution have eroded the environment of other countries; and some When developed countries protect their natural environment and resources, they use their financial advantages to abuse the resources of developing countries; another example is that developed countries transfer polluting industries to developing countries or transfer pollutants (industrial waste, nuclear waste) to developing countries for a fee Countries bury and destroy the environment of these countries. These global issues have broken through the boundaries of sovereign states and blurred the boundaries between internal and external affairs.
(4) The erosion of the sovereignty of developing countries by international economic organizations led by developed countries. Due to the shortage of funds in developing countries, in order to adapt to the needs of economic globalization and integrate into the world economic system, these countries have to request assistance from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The assistance provided by these organizations to developing countries is not unconditional, but has various conditions attached. These conditions directly interfere with the economic sovereignty and even political sovereignty of these countries.
(5) The constraints of multinational corporations on the national sovereignty of developing countries. There are at least 35,000 multinational companies in the world. Transnational companies in developed countries account for the vast majority of global multinational companies and dominate the development process of globalization. Multinational corporations in developed countries use their strong economic strength to control many economic sectors in developing countries through their monopoly on capital and technology, and even control the economic lifeline of these countries, thereby eroding the economic sovereignty of developing countries. Not only that, relying on their strong economic strength, they interfere in the internal affairs of developing countries by bribing votes, funding anti-government activities and coups, and creating economic chaos. They also propose investment and construction of factories, provide loans, and provide technology as conditions. Various demands trample on the sovereignty of developing countries. Multinational companies with developing countries as their home countries also use their economic strength as their backing to influence the formulation of their own government policies and influence the country's political and economic situation.
3. Countermeasures for developing countries to safeguard national sovereignty
(1) Developing countries must actively participate in the process of globalization, seize opportunities and meet challenges. The biggest benefit of economic globalization is that it achieves the optimal allocation of the world's resources and provides conditions for countries to get rid of the constraints of resources and markets to the greatest extent. Economic globalization has brought about the development of the international division of labor, the transfer of industries, and the flow of production factors such as capital and technology. This has enabled developing countries to make up for the gap in their own capital and production factors, take advantage of almost free late-mover advantages, and quickly realize Industrial evolution, technological progress, institutional innovation and economic development are all very beneficial. Only by actively participating in the development process of economic globalization and economic integration can developing countries fully enjoy the benefits of economic globalization.
(2) Update concepts, study countermeasures, master theoretical weapons, and adopt flexible and practical ways to safeguard national sovereignty and interests in order to adapt to the development trend of globalization and integration. In the process of globalization, the sovereignty of developing countries will be challenged to varying degrees, and the independence and autonomy of countries will be restricted to varying degrees. The highest authority to exercise domestic and foreign affairs will inevitably be eroded. However, such challenges, restrictions and erosion do not mean that "national sovereignty is obsolete", nor does it mean that developed countries can unreasonably interfere and infringe on the national sovereignty of developing countries. Developing countries must clearly understand what are the objective and inevitable erosions and restrictions brought about by globalization, and what are the artificial interference and infringements of developed countries, in order to reasonably solve various difficulties related to national sovereignty issues; they must Strengthen research on national sovereignty issues, establish new concepts that national sovereignty has multiple forms of realization, and adopt different forms of sovereignty realization, thereby safeguarding the sovereignty independence and integrity of developing countries; in the process of participating in globalization and economic integration, The principle of reciprocity in transfers of sovereignty must be adhered to. Free enjoyment is the prerequisite for transfer. Without free right, there can be no transfer.
(3) Opposing hegemonism, power politics and neo-interventionism and establishing a new international political and economic order remain the primary tasks for developing countries to safeguard sovereignty, independence and equality. In the process of globalization, hegemonism, power politics and neo-interventionism remain the biggest threats to the sovereignty, independence, integrity and equality of developing countries. The experience of developing countries in the 20th century in their struggle to establish a new international political and economic order shows that only through struggle can the rules of the new order be established and gradually realized.
(4) It is a wise choice for developing countries to strengthen South-South cooperation, adhere to the collective self-reliance of developing countries, and adopt effective forms to achieve regional grouping and regional economic integration. The experience of economic integration in developed countries in Western Europe in the 20th century is worth learning from. In order to increase the ability of Western European countries to compete in the capitalist world economic system while aligning with the United States, Western European countries united and began the process of economic integration. From the European Community to the European Union, from customs unions, common agricultural policies to economic integration, Western European countries have made painful choices on the transfer of the right to exercise national sovereignty. However, their combination has enhanced their ability to compete internationally, enhanced their independence in international affairs, and will become a powerful pole in the future multipolar world. Developing countries also have this experience. If the five Southeast Asian countries had not united, their economies would not have been able to develop so fast. If today's 10 ASEAN countries did not rely on ASEAN as a carrier, their role in the Asia-Pacific region would not be as great as it is today.
(5) Strengthen cooperation with developed countries, learn from all civilizational achievements of human society, strive to improve the economic development level of developing countries, and enhance the strength to safeguard national sovereignty. In the development process of economic globalization, North-South relations have both sides of antagonism and struggle, as well as sides of dependence and cooperation. The development of North-South relations will form four major economic sectors in the early 21st century: the North American Free Trade Area, the EU-Mediterranean Free Trade Area, the Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area and the Indian Ocean Rim Free Trade Area. There are both developed and developing countries in each sector, and the global North-South relations will become intra-regional or intra-group North-South relations, which marks that the development of North-South relations will enter a new stage. In the foreseeable future, regional North-South relations will continue to develop in the direction of dialogue and cooperation. Developing countries should seize this opportunity, develop themselves, gradually change the dependence or unilateral dependence with developed countries, and gradually change the unequal sovereign status of developing countries in cooperation with developed countries.
It should be pointed out that when developing countries participate in the process of economic globalization and regional grouping, they must proceed from their own national conditions and formulate policies based on their actual conditions. They must not blindly advance regardless of their national conditions. Only in this way can we gain a firm foothold in the fierce world economic competition, develop steadily, maintain our characteristics, and better safeguard the independence, integrity and equality of our national sovereignty.