Introduction

Abstract

The last 30 years have witnessed a momentous shift in our thinking about international justice. Since the end of the Cold War, humanitarian law has become a prominent tool in the struggle against genocide and other human rights violations. The dislodging of international relations from state-centric concerns regarding the balance of power and maintenance of international peace brought in its train a further departure from the old paradigm of realpolitik. Thanks to growing awareness of the impact of heightened economic globalization on the world’s poor, underdevelopment has emerged alongside social justice and human rights as a pressing matter of deep concern. The study I propose in World Crisis and Underdevelopment aims to develop a critical theory that draws together these normative concerns within a critique of contemporary global capitalism.