Neo-Colonialism : Although Classical (European) Colonialism, which persisted until the end of World War II, has diminished, it has reemerged in a new guise known as “neo-colonialism.” A few colonies were able to gain independence and were accepted as sovereign states in the UN during the post-World War II era. These states, however, were unable to achieve economic independence. Neo-colonialism was a result of this situation. Neocolonialism is the practise of directing a state’s political system and economic system from without.
In neo-colonialism, the former imperial power that ruled over the dependant country or a newly developed imperial power like the USA exercises power over it by establishing economic control over the neo-colonial territory.
Meaning – Neocolonization is a process in which there is dominance but no overt political authority.
For instance, if a rich country lends money to a poor country because the latter needs the money, the former country will lose its share of the latter’s resources, labour, and land as a result of the debt. When African nations were emerging from colonisation, Kwame Nkrumah, the former president of Ghana, made the first observation of it.
Reasons of Emergence of Neo-Colonialism
(1) The Position of European Powers Has Weaken:
The European imperial powers suffered extremely severe losses as a result of the two World Wars that broke out so quickly. It was challenging for them to maintain their vast colonial empires given their weakened position. It became even more challenging for them to maintain their historical empires as powerful national liberation movements arose in the colonies.
The strongest movement in post-war international relations, decolonization and anti-imperialism, pushed for the abolition of colonial empires, which in turn paved the way for the emergence of a number of new sovereign states.
(2) Rise of Consciousness against Imperialism:
Due to the growth of political consciousness and the UN Charter’s recognition of the right to self-determination, the imperial powers found it challenging to defend the continuation of their rule over colonies.
Additionally, the expansion of national liberation movements in a number of significant nations forced the imperial powers to grant their colonies independence. The wealthy and powerful states quickly adopted new strategies for sustaining a system of economic exploitation of their former colonies after experiencing the loss of their empires.
(3) The requirements of developed countries:
The former imperial powers were forced to find a way to continue to dominate the economies of new sovereign states due to their ongoing need for raw materials and markets to sell their products. This compelled them to protect their interests through innovative, cunning, and indirect economic strategies. The old imperial states chose to pursue neo-colonialism—a systematic but covert and deceptive economic and political dominance of their former colonies—after being forced to abandon the old colonial system.
Breaking up “the former large united colonial territories into a number of small non-viable states, which were incapable of independent economic development,” was the strategy they most frequently used for this purpose.
(4) The New States’ Ongoing Dependence on Developed States:
Neo-colonialism was also created as a result of the new states’ reliance on the former colonial states for both the sale of raw materials and the purchase of industrial goods from them. Even after gaining independence, they remained economically dependent on the colonial powers.
Their increased needs as a result of the new goal of advancing the welfare of all people further forced them to consent to the former colonial powers’ economic dominance. India’s relationship with and membership in the Commonwealth were both influenced by her reliance on Britain and other European and Western nations.
(5) The Cold War’s effects
Things got worse for the new states as a result of the post-war cold war and the subsequent emergence of two competing blocs in international relations. A number of new states felt pressured to join one of the two blocs in order to obtain critically needed economic aid and military supplies. Such membership in a bloc served as a means of external oversight of their policies.
(6) The USA’s and the (previous) Soviet Union’s Foreign Policies
Both the USA and the (then) USSR desired to increase the scope of their respective spheres of influence during the Cold War (1945–90). They chose to take advantage of the economic requirements of the new states for this. The super powers were successful in establishing their economic dependencies and satellites through such means as foreign aid, loans, the provision of arms, control over the international economy and economic institutions, multinational corporations, etc.
A sovereign state that is an economic dependant is one whose economic interests are managed by a wealthy and powerful developed state. A satellite state is a sovereign nation whose politics and economy are intertwined with and dependent upon a wealthy or powerful nation.
American and other western powers created their economic dependencies and the (erstwhile) Soviet Union created its satellites as a means for operationalizing neo-colonialism in international relations. All these factors were responsible for the transformation of Colonialism into Neocolonialism.
Methods of Neo-Colonialism
Neo-colonialism appeared in different shapes and adopted different methods.
They are:
(1) One extreme example of neo-colonialism was when the imperial power’s soldiers occupied the Neo-Colonial state’s territory and held political power. There was no political freedom in these areas. In the majority of these situations, the interests of the governing or administering state took precedence over the social, economic, and educational activities of the populace.
(2) The Neo-Colonial Powers used economic or monetary means as their primary means of control. When providing aid, the donor nation imposed a number of conditions, including consent to economic cooperation, the right to meddle in internal affairs, the lowering of trade barriers in favour of the donor nation’s goods and capital, the choice of how the funds will be used to compel the recipient to create counter funds to purchase goods from the donor-nation, etc.
As a result, they were able to take control of these areas and turn them into economic colonies. Economic imperialism is the name given to this arrangement. Through international organisations like the IMF, 1BRD, and others, the Neo-Colonial power occasionally provided “multilateral aid” to these underdeveloped regions.
(3) The Neo-Colonial power used multinational corporations as another means of exploitation. The multinational corporations were established by investors from various nations as joint stock companies. These multinational corporations have a significant impact on governmental policy and are not afraid to use force when necessary. These corporations also undermine technological advancements, and by forcing developing nations to use indigenous resources, they continue to be technologically behind. the presence and dominance of the economies in the nations where they did business Corporations take advantage of developing nations by sending their profits back to their home nations.
(4) The newly independent countries became satellite states as a result of their reliance on one of the two superpowers in both the political and economic spheres. The satellite states were completely under the control of the superpower states—the USA and the USSR—which also exerted complete economic and political dominance over them. To avoid the wrath of the Super Powers, the dependant states merely adopt their policies.
Insofar as it grants the Neo-colonial powers all the advantages they enjoyed under the previous system without entrusting them with any responsibility, neo-colonialism is worse than old colonialism. The majority of the victims of this type of colonialism are Asian and African nations, which are constantly seeking independence from neo-colonial powers.
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Meaning of Neocolonization ?
Neocolonization is a process in which there is dominance but no overt political authority.
Reasons of Emergence of Neo-Colonialism ?
(1) The Position of European Powers Has Weaken:
The European imperial powers suffered extremely severe losses as a result of the two World Wars that broke out so quickly. It was challenging for them to maintain their vast colonial empires given their weakened position. It became even more challenging for them to maintain their historical empires as powerful national liberation movements arose in the colonies……
Methods of Neo-Colonialism ?
(1) One extreme example of neo-colonialism was when the imperial power’s soldiers occupied the Neo-Colonial state’s territory and held political power. There was no political freedom in these areas. In the majority of these situations, the interests of the governing or administering state took precedence over the social, economic, and educational activities of the populace…..
Reference Books
- J.C. Johari – International Politics
- H.J. Morgantheau – Politics among Nations
- International Relations in the 21st Century by Pant
- Raymond Aron – Peace and war a theory of International Relations
- Prem Arora – International Relations and foreign policy
- An Introduction to International Relations by John Baylis, Steve Smith and Patricia Owens.
