One of the most important observable facts about world
politics is that some states define their foreign policy
interests more broadly than others and pursue them
more aggressively. International relations theorists refer
to the most successful of these states as ‘major powers’,
or ‘great powers’, in more literary parlance. These states
are especially important in realist thought. Indeed, realist
writers sometimes focus on these states to the exclusion
of lesser powers (e.g. Waltz, 1979; Mearsheimer,
2001). Even empirical research that does not share realist
assumptions commonly finds that major powers behave
differently. For example, Russett & Oneal (2001) found
that dyads containing a major power were significantly
more conflict-prone than others, a result shared by many
other researchers.
Why do some states expand their foreign policy ambitions
and adopt what might be called a major-power foreign
policy? Attempting to rise in status requires a policy
choice. Levy (1983) is among themost explicit in recognizing
this fact. In addition to having substantial military
power, he argues that great powers ‘think of their interests