Globalisation and the Alleged Demise of the Sovereign State

While this article is a contribution to a topical debate about the limits of the sovereign state that draws on examples from a range of countries, including some references to the Pacific, it is not primarily a comparative discussion of states in the Pacific. However, the topics discussed are vitally important to all the states in the Pacific region. The claims made for political sovereignty by small states, and their responses to the expectations and demands of larger and more powerful states, have intense and ubiquitous political impacts.