The Gulf Crisis and the Transformations of Power Politics: A Systemic Crisis in a Political Context Marked by Weakness

Abstract

This study sheds light on the transformations of the concept of "power" in the field of international relations. It begins with the Peace of Westphalia (1648), when the "paradigm of power" took hold and international stability became dependent on the balance of power: the "international game" was limited to competition between powers, with war representing the final stage. The study highlights that power has begun to lose its prominence with the advent of globalization, whether at the level of control or reconfiguration. This is illustrated by the failure of global powers, which are marginalized if not excluded from the Gulf, as well as of emerging regional powers such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. On the other hand, through the "Gulf Crisis", the study anticipates transformations in the structure of international relations, as the "policy of weakness" begins to produce a dynamic of its own which favours small powers such as the State of Qatar.