Discuss arguments for and against national self determination.

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Discuss arguments for and against national self determination.

National self determination in politics is seen as freedom of the people of a given territory or national grouping to be in control of their own political status and the procedure in which they are governed without any influence from any other country. There are on going conflicts determining which groups have the legitimate right to be self determining. National self determination has been a disputed issue for decades ranging from the time of empires to colonial empires where nations under influence fought for independence and self determination. However there exists a mass argument on whether certain nations should be self determining or not.

The revolt of British colonists in North America during the mid 1770s has been regarded as the first claim for the right of national self determination. The revolts brought forth the ideas of natural rights for man as well as sovereignty to lie by the people governed. Thomas Jefferson ignited the idea that the will of the people was supreme particularly through the 'Declaration of independence' which sent shockwaves through Europe in the 19th centaury. The French revolution was motivated by the moves in the Americas and acquired the ideas of self determination.

In the 1800's most of Latin America successful achieved independence from Spanish rule a move supported by the United States. The US also supported similar movements such as the Greek war of Independence however National determination never officially became government policy for the US. With capabilities increasing the US ignored the basis of self determination with its purchase of Alaska and the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands. 1

Woodrow Wilson then revived the American commitment to National self determination introducing the fourteen points that called for colonial powers interests to be equal with the claims of the subjected people.1 Once in power the Bolsheviks view on self determination was much more extreme than Woodrow Wilson as they supported the right of all nations even colonies to be self determine. The Communist regime signed the Treaty of Brest-Litvosk ending Russia involvement in World War 1 and brought independence to Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine, Finland and Lithuania.
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This would be the beginning of a string of countries becoming independent as the Austria-Hungry Empire was defeated and split into Czechoslovakia and the Kingdom of Serbia. Furthermore the Ottoman empire was dissolved forming the nations of Turkey and numerous Middle Eastern Allied mandates such as Syria, Iraq,Lebanon, Jordan etc. 2

National self determination increased in the years of 1920's and 1930's as the UK granted independence to Australia, Canada, New Zealand as well as the Middle Eastern Mandates of Egypt, Iraq, Afghanistan. By this time national self determination was certainly recognised and the decline in ...

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