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The Collapse Of International Order Under World War I

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US President Woodrow Wilson encouraged the creation of the League of Nations in 1920, under the principle of collective security. Following the collapse of international order under World War I, the League attempted to use the power of a number of states to counteract aggression. Jones and Sherman indicated the common belief that the more the nations, ‘worked together to address humanitarian, social and economic issues, the more likely they were to establish mutual interests.’ thus a strong deterrent against future conflict. (Jones and Sherman, 1927, p.140) War was to be prevented by encouraging disarmament and defusing conflict between states through moral pressure and economic sanctions. Despite defusing minor conflicts and helping advance human rights; the League of Nations ultimately failed to achieve its key objective, to prevent the outbreak of war on the same scale as World War I. Carr’s ’20 years crisis’ implies that it was the events of post-world war I including the impact of the League that subsequently led to World War II. (Carr, 1939 cited by Jorensen, p.60) However, the organization was an improvement from the traditional balance of power and congressional system, it left a legacy in upholding human rights through the United Nations.

One of the main objectives in establishing the League of Nations was to ensure that the Treaty of Versaille was upheld. Not only did the League fail to hinder Germany militarily, but it increased the threat it posed in continuing

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