The bismarckian roots of restraint realism and its implications

This paper argues that the present debate between restraint and primacy realists is to a large degree a function of differing theories on the balance of power. At the heart of the debate is disagreement regarding the consequences of hegemony and counterbalancing behaviour. Restraint realists hold that power inexorably leads to its counterbalancing whereas primacy realists argue that a causal relationship between hegemony and counterbalancing may not hold in some cases. This paper avers that lessons from European diplomacy have been applied in the wrong context, leading to unfavourable consequences. In this regard, it elucidates the impact of continental Bismarckian thought on modern American realism, especially restraint realism and presents reasons why Bismarckian precepts have little relevance in the American grand strategic context.