Hello aspirants,
Today’s revision capsule of PSIR optional preparation covers Regionalization of World Politics .There are one 20-markers, fourteen 15-markers, and two 10-markers from this topic in the last 12 years.
- Why this matters now
From the supply‑chain shocks of the COVID‑19 years to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the weaponisation of tariffs & chips, states are hedging against a volatile global marketplace by deepening regional ties. 2024‑25 has therefore seen:
- the African Continental FTA’s (AfCFTA) first guided‑trade shipments and a $3.4 trillion common market ambition
- BRICS enlargement (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, UAE joined on 1 Jan 2024) to challenge G‑7 weight
- renewed EU–NATO synchronisation after two years of war on its eastern flank, and an internal debate on “strategic autonomy”.
Why Regions Matter in 2025
| Driver | Current Examples | Key Scholars / Concepts |
| Economic scale & resilience | US MCA’s $1.8 tn trilateral trade (2023) ; AfCFTA covering > 1.4 bn people; RCEP’s tariff cuts | Mattli’s demand & supply theory; “open regionalism” (Bergsten) |
| Peace & security | EU kept intra‑European war at bay since 1957*; ASEAN’s TAC & habit of consultation | Deutsch’s security community; Buzan‑Wæver regional security complexes |
| Identity & legitimacy | Timor‑Leste’s fast‑track into ASEAN to “belong”; Pan‑Africanism behind AU | Acharya’s norm‑localisation & subsidiarity; Constructivist takes |
| Geopolitical leverage | BRICS+ expansion (Saudi, UAE, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia in 2024) ; IPEF used by the US to shape Indo‑Pacific rules | Hurrell’s inter‑regionalism; Nye’s “complex interdependence” |
Note: Regionalization is therefore no longer a side‑show to globalization; it is one of its pillars.
*except 1974 ( Cyprus-Greece-Turkey) clashes and 1999 UK participation in MATO strikes on Yogoslavia.
- Key vocabulary
| Term | Short definition | Typical example |
| Region | Contiguous group of states with shared interdependence | “Indo‑Pacific” or “Southern Cone” |
| Regionalism | Ideology or political project that pushes cooperation | Pan‑Arabism, EU federalists |
| Regionalization | Process (top‑down or bottom‑up) that creates dense cross‑border flows | Intra‑ASEAN supply chains |
| Regional integration | Institutionalised deepening (FTA → customs union → common market → monetary/ political union) | EU’s progression 1951‑2024 |
- Why states integrate (2020‑25 examples)
| Driver | 2025 illustration |
| Economic scale & diversification | USMCA trade hit US $1.8 tn in 2023 |
| Security & conflict prevention | No EU member has fought another since 1945 (Nobel Prize 2012) |
| Connectivity corridors | ASEAN‑led BIMP–EAGA and BIMSTEC grids knit South/South‑East Asia |
| Collective agency | CARICOM’s single voice amplified SIDS demands at COP‑28 (UAE) |
| Geo‑political hedging | AfCFTA & BRICS+ dilute over‑dependence on USA/China dominated regimes |
- Theoretical lenses (then & now)
- Region / Regionalization / Regionalism – now widely include digital (data‑governance clubs) and green (EU CBAM, ASEAN Taxonomy) dimensions.
- Old New Regionalism – first wave (1945‑1990) security‑driven, often protectionist; second wave (post‑1990) market‑friendly, multi‑actor & overlapping (Hettne & Soderbaum).
- Deep Shallow Integration – EU‑style supranationalism v. ASEAN’s loose “ASEAN Way”.
- Spill‑over logic (Haas) still visible—e.g., EU’s single market → Banking Union; US MCA’s auto rules → electric‑vehicle supply‑chain talks.
| School | Core claim |
| Neofunctionalism (Ernst Haas) – spill‑over from one sector to others | EU Banking Union born from Euro‑crisis spill‑over |
| Security‑community (Karl Deutsch) | Dense transactions → war becomes “unthinkable” (EU, Nordics) |
| New Regionalism (Hettne) – multi‑actor, open, overlapping | CPTPP & RCEP memberships criss‑cross |
| Norm localisation / subsidiarity (Amitav Acharya) | ASEAN adapts liberal norms to “Asia‑centric” practice (Five‑Point Consensus on Myanmar shows both reach & limits) |
- Comparison of major blocs ( with mid‑2025 update )
| Bloc | Integration Level | 2025 Highlights | Existing Frictions |
| European Union (27) | Customs‑union, single‑market, partial fiscal & defence coop. GDP ≈ $18 tn | – Ukraine & Moldova accession talks formally opened (June 2024). – Green Deal Industrial Plan accelerates net‑zero supply chains. – First joint ammo procurement for Ukraine shows embryonic defence union. | Brexit after‑shocks; rule‑of‑law rows with Hungary; demographic ageing; farmer protests on Mercosur‑EU FTA |
| US‑Mexico‑Canada (US MCA) | Modern FTA with digital, labour & 6‑/16‑yr review clause | – Merchandise + services trade ≈ $1.8 tn 2023, highest ever. – First rapid‑response labour cases filed against Mexican plants. – Joint review due 2026 spurs talks on critical minerals & EVs. | Auto rules‑of‑origin disputes; US election cycle protectionism; migration pressures outside the pact’s scope |
| ASEAN‑10 (+ Timor‑Leste in accession) | Free‑trade area, blueprint for Economic–Political–Socio‑Cultural communities | – ASEAN GDP passes $4 tn (IMF, 2025) . – Timor‑Leste roadmap to full membership by end‑2025 . – ASEAN Digital Economy Framework negotiations launched 2023. | Myanmar coup stalemate; non‑tariff barriers keep intra‑trade ≈ 25%; navigating US‑China rivalry |
| MERCOSUR (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay + Bolivia 2024) | Customs union, limited policy coordination | – Bolivia became full member July 2024, giving bloc Pacific access. – Technical terms of EU‑MERCOSUR deal done 2019, but ratification frozen amid EU farm & Amazon concerns. | Intra‑trade < 12%; Uruguay pushes solo FTA with China; macro‑volatility |
| CARICOM (15) | Common Market & Economy (CSME) in slow‑motion | – Agreed Single ICT Space (2024) & mutual recognition of additional professional categories. – Joint climate‑finance lobby secured loss‑and‑damage funding pledges at COP‑28. | Economic asymmetry; migration (“brain drain”); fiscal space for regional bodies |
| BRICS → BRICS+ (10) | Loose inter‑regional coalition; NDB financing | – New members from West Asia & Africa join Jan 2024; bloc now ~45 % of world population. – Talks on cross‑border payment platform using local currencies. | Internal geopolitical rifts (India‑China); varying economic outlooks |
| IPEF (14 Asia‑Pacific members) | “Menu‑of‑pillars” framework, no tariffs | – Supply‑Chain Agreement entered into force Feb 2024; Clean‑Economy & Fair‑Economy texts signed but await ratification. | Critics call it “TPP‑lite” without market‑access carrot; China’s exclusion |
- Key lessons across cases
- Depth vs breadth trade‑off – EU’s supranational reach delivers single‑currency clout but suffers from veto politics; ASEAN’s consensus model preserves unity but slows crisis response.
- Hegemonic reassurance matters – USMCA works because rules help keep U.S. market access and constrain its unilateralism; SAARC falters where India‑Pakistan rivalry persists.
- Issue‑linkage drives resilience – blocs that move beyond tariffs to climate, digital and health (EU, AU, Pacific Islands Forum) adapt better to 21st‑century shocks.
- Open regionalism avoids “fortress” critique – RCEP’s WTO‑plus rules and AfCFTA’s coordination with global norms show complementarity, not conflict, with multilateralism.
- India’s multi‑layered appraoch
- Neighbourhood‑first: From SAARC stalemate to BIMSTEC energy grid and BBIN motor‑vehicle pact.
- Act East: Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreements with ASEAN members (Singapore, Malaysia, etc.) feed into IPEF supply‑chain pillar with US, Japan, Australia.
- South‑South leadership: BRICS presidency 2026 will let India steer reform of global financial architecture and push Digital Public Infrastructure project.
- Indo‑Pacific Minilaterals – QUAD & I2U2 complement formal regionalism with security‑tech agendas.
- Regionalization & Globalization – a symbiotic future
Global shocks require nested governance:
| Layer | Example post‑2022 action |
| Global | G‑20 debt‑relief framework; WTO e‑commerce talks |
| Inter‑regional | BRICS Vaccine R&D hub; Quad critical‑minerals partnership |
| Regional | EU REPowerEU (energy); ASEAN Pandemic Fund |
| Sub‑regional / corridors | IMEC (India‑Middle‑East‑Europe Corridor); BRI economic belts |
- Synthesis and Concluding remarks
The trend is towards a multiplex order: overlapping circles where states hedge, leverage and sometimes leapfrog global deadlock via tighter neighbourhood coalitions.
- Layered governance is today’s norm: states try to manage different global institutions, region‑wide treaties, and purpose‑built minilaterals.
- Open, overlapping regionalism usually adds to – not crowds out – globalization by piloting rules (digital, green, labour) that later scale up.
- Quality of institutions matters more than geography: SAARC’s inertia compared with ASEAN’s adaptable norms; EU shows depth costs political capital.
- Future fault‑lines: managing just transitions (farmers, miners), aligning industrial policy (subsidies war), and bridging Global North‑South financing gaps.
Practice Questions
Question 1. Evaluate the role of BIMSTEC in multi-sectoral technical and economic cooperation. [2019/10 m]
Question 2. What were the limitations of NAFTA? How did its replacement by the United States Mexico-Canada Agreement counter them? Explain. [2024/15 m]
Question 3. How does regionalism shape world politics? Explain with examples. [2016/15m]
📌 Model answers available on the Telegram channel: https://t.me/psirbyamitpratap – keep notifications on.
See you tomorrow on Day 37. Keep practicing!
—Amit Pratap Singh & Team
A quick note on submissions of copies and mentorship
- 2025 Mains writers: Cohort 4 of ATS starts on 27th July. The above practice set will serve as your revision tool, just do not miss booking your mentorship sessions for personalised feedback especially for starting tests. Come with your evaluated test copies.
- 2026 Mains writers – Cohort 4 of PSIR O-AWFG & ATS starts on 24th July 2025. keep uploading through your usual dashboard. Act on the feedback and improve consistently.
- Alternate between mini-tests (O-AWFG) and full mocks (ATS) has been designed to tackle speed, content depth, and structured revision—line-by-line evaluation pinpoints your weaknesses and errors. Follow your PSIR O-AWFG & ATS schedule and use the model answers to enrich your content, as rankers recommended based on their own success.
