Exploring a range of issues from foreign policy, arms, and terrorism, to the environment and world poverty, Paul Wilkinson covers the topics essential to an understanding of modern international relations. Examining the role of superpowers, and the influence of organizations such as the UN and EU, as well as ethnic and religious movements around the world, he shows how they all variously shape the way states and governments interact. This up-to-date book is required reading for those seeking a new perspective to help untangle and decipher events in a world of growing political tension and unease.