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{{Short description|Approach in diplomacy and politics}}
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{{Politics}}
'''''Realpolitik''''' ({{IPAc-en|ɹ|eɪ|ˈ|ɑː|l|p|ɒ|l|ɪ|ˌ|t|iː|k}} {{respell|ray-AHL-po-lih-teek}} {{IPA|de|ʁeˈaːlpoliˌtiːk|lang|De-Realpolitik.ogg}}; {{etymology|de|real|realistic, practical, actual||Politik|politics}}) is the approach of conducting [[Diplomacy|diplomatic]] or [[Politics|political]] policies based primarily on considerations of given circumstances and factors, rather than strictly following ideological, moral, or ethical premises.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ikenberry |first=G. John |date=2017-04-14 |title=Realpolitik: A History |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/capsule-review/2017-04-14/realpolitik-history |access-date=2024-11-21 |work=Foreign Affairs |language=en-US |volume=96 |issue=3 |issn=0015-7120}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=realpolitik {{!}} Etymology of realpolitik by etymonline |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/realpolitik#etymonline_v_7335 |access-date=2024-11-21 |website=www.etymonline.com |language=en}}</ref> In this respect, it shares aspects of its philosophical approach with those of [[Realism (international relations)|realism]] and [[pragmatism]].<ref>Bew, J. (2016). Realpolitik: A History. pg. 8.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-10-12 |title=Realpolitik {{!}} Power, Pragmatism, Realism {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/realpolitik |access-date=2024-11-21 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

While generally used as a positive or neutral term, ''Realpolitik'' has been used pejoratively to imply policies that are perceived as being [[Coercion|coercive]], [[Amorality|amoral]], or [[Niccolò Machiavelli|Machiavellian]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Humphreys|first1=Adam R. C.|title=Realpolitik|pages=3151–3152|publisher=John Wiley & Sons, Ltd|language=en|doi=10.1002/9781118474396|date=2014|isbn=9781118474396|editor1-last=Gibbons|editor1-first=Michael T|editor2-last=Ellis|editor2-first=Elisabeth|editor3-last=Coole|editor3-first=Diana|editor4-last=Ferguson|editor4-first=Kennan}}</ref> Prominent proponents of ''Realpolitik'' include [[Otto von Bismarck]], [[Henry Kissinger]], [[George H. W. Bush]], [[George F. Kennan]], [[Zbigniew Brzezinski]], [[Hans-Dietrich Genscher]], [[Deng Xiaoping]], [[Charles de Gaulle]], and [[Lee Kuan Yew]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Hans-Dietrich Genscher: A Life of Longing for Stability|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/english/opinion/hans-dietrich-genscher-a-life-of-longing-for-stability/23536980.html|access-date=2022-02-02|website=www.handelsblatt.com|language=en}}</ref> The opposite of ''Realpolitik'' is ''[[Idealpolitik]]''.

==Etymology==
The term ''Realpolitik'' was coined by [[Ludwig von Rochau]], a German writer and politician in the 19th century.<ref name="haslam">{{cite book |title=No Virtue Like Necessity: Realist Thought in International Relations since Machiavelli |last=Haslam |first=Jonathan |year=2002 |publisher=Yale University Press |location=London |isbn=978-0-300-09150-2 |page=168}}</ref> His 1853 book ''Grundsätze der Realpolitik angewendet auf die staatlichen Zustände Deutschlands'' ("Principles of ''Realpolitik'' applied to the national state of affairs of Germany") describes the meaning of the term:<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AGVCAAAAYAAJ&q=Die+politischen+Organismus+der+menschlichen+Gesellschaft&pg=PA1|title=Grundsätze der Realpolitik angewendet auf die staatlichen Zustände Deutschlands|author=von Rochau, Ludwig|year=1859}}</ref> {{blockquote|The study of the forces that shape, maintain and alter the state is the basis of all political insight and leads to the understanding that the law of power governs the world of states just as the law of gravity governs the physical world. The older political science was fully aware of this truth but drew a wrong and detrimental conclusion—the right of the more powerful. The modern era has corrected this unethical fallacy, but while breaking with the alleged right of the more powerful one, the modern era was too much inclined to overlook the real might of the more powerful and the inevitability of its political influence.}}

Historian [[John Bew (historian)|John Bew]] suggests that much of what stands for modern ''Realpolitik'' today deviates from the original meaning of the term. ''Realpolitik'' emerged in mid-19th century Europe from the collision of the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] with state formation and power politics. The concept, Bew argues, was an early attempt at answering the conundrum of how to achieve [[Liberalism|liberal]] enlightened goals in a world that does not follow liberal enlightened rules.

Rochau coined the term in 1853 and added a second volume in 1869 that further refined his earlier arguments. Rochau, exiled in Paris until the [[French Revolution of 1848|1848 uprising]], returned during the revolution and became a well-known figure in the [[National Liberal Party (Germany)|National Liberal Party]]. As the liberal gains of the 1848 revolutions fell victim to coercive governments or were swallowed by powerful social forces such as class, religion and nationalism, Rochau—according to Bew—began to think hard about how the work that had begun with such enthusiasm had failed to yield any lasting results.

He said that the great achievement of the Enlightenment had been to show that might is not necessarily right. The mistake liberals made was to assume that the law of the strong had suddenly evaporated simply because it had been shown to be unjust. Rochau wrote that "to bring down the walls of Jericho, the Realpolitiker knows the simple pickaxe is more useful than the mightiest trumpet". Rochau's concept was seized upon by German thinkers in the mid and late 19th century and became associated with [[Otto von Bismarck]]'s statecraft in [[unification of Germany|unifying Germany]] in the mid 19th century. By 1890, usage of the word ''Realpolitik'' was widespread, yet increasingly detached from its original meaning.<ref name="Bew">{{cite book |title=Real Realpolitik: A History |last=Bew |first=John |year=2014 |publisher=The Library of Congress |location=Washington, D.C.| url=https://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=6285}}</ref>

==History and branches==

===China===
{{Chinese Legalism}}

Even prior to the contemporary ''Realpolitik'' term, China has had a "realistic" tradition in its governance dating back thousands of years. Often referred to as [[Legalism (Chinese philosophy)|Chinese Legalism]], the spirit of its content may be most readily recognised by Western viewers through one of its kindred, ''The Art of War''.<ref name="Wealth and Power">Wealth and Power. Orville Schell</ref> Chinese administrative organisation significantly influenced other Asian nations as well as Western administrative practices not later than the 12th century, playing a significant role in the development of the modern state, including the usage of [[Civil service entrance examination|examination]]s<ref group="note">Known as the [[imperial examination]] ({{lang-zh|t={{linktext|科舉}}|s={{linktext|科举}}}}) in China.</ref> for entry to the [[civil service]].<ref name="Creel">{{cite journal|last1=Creel|first1=Herrlee G.|title=Shen Pu-Hai: A Secular Philosopher of Administration|journal=Journal of Chinese Philosophy|date=March 1974|volume=1|issue=2|pages=119–136|doi=10.1111/j.1540-6253.1974.tb00644.x}}</ref><ref name=":2">Van der Sprenkel</ref><ref name="Origins of Statecraft in China">Origins of Statecraft in China</ref><ref name="sjsu.edu">{{cite web|url=http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/legalism.htm|title=Legalism and the Legalists of Ancient China|work=sjsu.edu}}</ref>

Starting in the [[Spring and Autumn period]] (771–476/403 BC), a trend of "realistic" reformers were taken on to advance the material interest of their respective [[Seven Warring States|states]], with the [[Qin (state)|Qin state]] founding the first Chinese Empire, [[Qin dynasty]] in 221 BCE, ending China's [[Warring States period]]. The political theory developed during the era, including that of [[Confucianism]] would influence every dynasty thereafter.

Those termed Legalist are more purely "Realpolitikal"<ref group="note">''Civilization and Realpolitik'', by Prasenjit Duara, India International Centre Quarterly, Vol. 36, No. 3/4, INDIACHINA Neighbours Strangers (WINTER 2009 SPRING 2010), pp. 20-33.</ref> in contrast to Confucianism and include non-legal [[Shen Buhai|Shen Pu-hai]] derived political technique, which charges the ruler engage in [[Wu wei|passive observation]] to determine facts rather than take on too much himself. [[Sinology|Sinologist]] [[Herrlee G. Creel]] writes: "If one wishes to exaggerate, it would no doubt be possible to translate (foundational Realist) Shen Buhai's term Shu, or technique, as '[[Scientific method|science]]', and argue that Pu-hai was the first political scientist," though Creel does "not care to go this far".<ref name="Creel"/>

During the Spring and Autumn period,<ref name="Origins of Statecraft in China"/> the prevalent philosophy had dictated war as a gentleman's activity; military commanders were instructed to respect what they perceived to be Heaven's laws in battle.<ref name="morton26">Morton 1995, p. 26</ref> For example, when [[Duke Xiang of Song]]<ref group="note">Not to be confused with any Duke of the [[Song dynasty]] of a later period.</ref> was at war with the state of Chu during the Warring States period, he declined an opportunity to attack the enemy force (commanded by Zhu) while they were crossing a river.

===Germany===
{{Further|Politique}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-2005-0057, Otto von Bismarck (cropped).jpg|thumb|254x254px|[[Otto von Bismarck]], a German statesman often associated with ''Realpolitik'']]

In the United States, the term is often analogous to [[power politics]] while in Germany ''Realpolitik'' has a somewhat less negative connotation, referring to realistic politics in opposition to [[Idealism in international relations|idealistic]] (or unrealistic) politics. It is particularly associated with the era of 19th century [[nationalism]]. ''Realpolitik'' policies were employed in response to the failed [[Revolutions of 1848]] as means to strengthen states and tighten social order.

{{quote box|align=left|width=25%|fontsize=100%|quote="Politics is the art of the possible."<br />
<small>&ndash; Bismarck, 1867 interview</small>}}

The most famous German advocate of ''Realpolitik'', what was uniquely possible and the applied means to achieve it, was [[Otto von Bismarck]], the first Chancellor (1862–1890) to [[William I, German Emperor|Wilhelm I]] of the [[Kingdom of Prussia]]. Bismarck used ''Realpolitik'' in his quest to achieve Prussian dominance in Germany. He manipulated political issues such as the [[Schleswig–Holstein question|Schleswig-Holstein question]] and the Hohenzollern candidature to antagonise other countries and cause wars if necessary to attain his goals. Such policies were characteristic of Bismarck, demonstrating a pragmatic view of the "real" political world.{{cn|date=November 2025}}

Another example was his willingness to adopt some social policies of the socialists such as employee insurance and pensions; in doing so, he used small changes from the top down to avoid the possibility of major change from the bottom up. Likewise, Prussia's seemingly illogical move of not demanding territory from a defeated [[Austrian Empire|Austria]], a move that later led to the unification of Germany, is an oft-cited example of ''Realpolitik''.<ref name=":3">{{cite journal |last1=Pflanze |first1=Otto |title=Bismarck's "Realpolitik" |journal=The Review of Politics |date=1958 |volume=20 |issue=4 |pages=492–514 |doi=10.1017/S0034670500034185 |jstor=1404857 |s2cid=144663704 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1404857 |issn=0034-6705|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

===Singapore===
[[File:Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore Making a Toast at a State Dinner Held in His Honor, 1975.jpg|thumb|240x240px|[[Lee Kuan Yew]], first [[Prime Minister of Singapore]] and one of the founders of the [[People's Action Party]]]]

[[Singapore]]an statesman [[Lee Kuan Yew]], who served as the country's first prime minister, has been considered by many political analysts as a pragmatist for his erudite policies in his governance of Singapore. He believed that the only way Singapore could survive as a relatively small nation as compared to its neighbours was to contrast itself from them, by building up a highly effective and non-corrupt government, in addition to a civil service, under a meritocratic system.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Allison |first=Graham |date=2015-03-30 |title=Lee Kuan Yew's Troubling Legacy for Americans |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/03/lee-kuan-yew-conundrum-democracy-singapore/388955/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201117024407/https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/03/lee-kuan-yew-conundrum-democracy-singapore/388955/ |archive-date=2020-11-17 |access-date=2020-11-14 |website=The Atlantic |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Lee Kuan Yew's hard truths |url=https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/lee-kuan-yews-hard-truths/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115231233/https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/lee-kuan-yews-hard-truths/ |archive-date=2020-11-15 |access-date=2020-11-14 |website=openDemocracy |language=en}}</ref> He also believed that Singapore was to stay neutral but also possess a strong military capability, believing that it serves as a guarantor of the country's independence due to its strategic position. A strong advocate for [[Asian values]], he argued that Asian societies had different values from [[Western world|Western societies]] and that practicing such values was vital to succeed as a nation, especially as an Asian country, which includes [[Collectivism and individualism|collectivism]] and [[communitarianism]].<ref name="AV">{{cite book |last=Todd |first=Eric Myers |editor-first1=Deen K |editor-last1=Chatterjee |date=2011 |chapter=Asian Values Debate |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9160-5_164 |url-status=live |title=Encyclopedia of Global Justice |doi=10.1007/978-1-4020-9160-5 |isbn=978-1-4020-9159-9 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102201923/https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007%2F978-1-4020-9160-5_164 |archive-date=2 January 2021 |access-date=30 December 2020}}</ref>

Lee described Singapore's only natural resources as being the grit of its people as well as their strong work ethic, propelling this mindset to all ethnic groups of the country.<ref name="SEAP">{{Cite book |last=Suryadinata |first=Leo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v9QEBAAAQBAJ |title=Southeast Asian Personalities of Chinese Descent, Vol. 1: A Biographical Dictionary |date=2012 |publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies |isbn=978-981-4414-14-2 |location=Singapore |page=525 |access-date=28 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160511032830/https://books.google.com/books?id=v9QEBAAAQBAJ |archive-date=11 May 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Roger Kerr |date=9 December 1999 |title=Optimism for the New Millennium. |url=http://www.nzbr.org.nz/documents/speeches/speeches-99/optimism_for_the_new-millennium.doc.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060307184005/http://www.nzbr.org.nz/documents/speeches/speeches-99/optimism_for_the_new-millennium.doc.htm |archive-date=7 March 2006 |access-date=10 May 2006 |publisher=Rotary Club of Wellington North}}</ref> Although Lee supported [[Left-wing politics|left-wing]] ideas in his young adulthood, he was largely [[Conservatism|conservative]] as a leader, concluding that extensive state welfare and subsidies blunted the individual's drive to succeed.<ref name="SEAP" /> Nevertheless, his government still enacted [[Social policy|social policies]], which included free [[Education in Singapore|public education]] up until at least [[secondary school]], state housing, a [[Central Provident Fund|compulsory comprehensive savings and pension plan]], as well as [[Healthcare in Singapore|universal healthcare]], in addition to a [[Civic nationalism|civic nationalist]] stance.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Kuan Yew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9m5PBAAAQBAJ |title=The Singapore Story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew |date=15 September 2012 |publisher=Marshall Cavendish International Asia Pte Ltd |isbn=9789814561761}}</ref>

In 1975, [[Chan Heng Chee]] described Singapore as a depoliticised "administrative state", where ideology and politics had triumphantly been replaced by "rational and scientific modes of public administration". It is suggested that by doggedly describing itself as pragmatic, the Singaporean state is actually disguising its ideological work and political nature through an assertion of the absence of ideology and politics.<ref name="Pragmatism 2012">{{cite journal|last1=Tan|first1=Kenneth Paul|title=The Ideology of Pragmatism: Neo-liberal Globalisation and Political Authoritarianism in Singapore|journal=Journal of Contemporary Asia|date=February 2012|volume=42|issue=1|pages=67–92|doi=10.1080/00472336.2012.634644|s2cid=56236985}}</ref> [[Chua Beng Huat]] argued in 1995 that the rhetoric of pragmatism in Singapore is ideological and hegemonic in nature, adopted and disseminated in the public sphere by the [[People's Action Party]] government and institutionalised throughout the state in all its administrative, planning, and policy-making functions.<ref name=":6">{{cite book|last1=Chua|first1=Beng-Huat|title=Communitarian ideology and democracy in Singapore|date=1995|publisher=Routledge|location=London [u.a.]|isbn=9780415120548|edition=Repr. 1996.|url=https://archive.org/details/communitarianide0000chua}}</ref>

Many world leaders affirmed Lee's political knowledge as being pragmatist and "insightful".<ref name=":7">{{cite web |last1=Brennan |first1=Elliot |title=Lee Kuan Yew: Singapore's great pragmatist |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-23/brennan-lee-kuan-yew:-singapores-great-pragmatist/6340834 |website=ABC News |access-date=24 February 2022 |language=en-AU |date=23 March 2015}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{cite web |last1=Cecilia |first1=Tortajada |last2=K. Biswas |first2=Asit |title=Lee Kuan Yew: A Tribute to a Visionary Pragmatist |url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/03/lee-kuan-yew-a-tribute-to-a-visionary-pragmatist/ |website=thediplomat.com |access-date=24 February 2022 |date=27 March 2015}}</ref> Former [[President of the United States]], [[Barack Obama]], stated that he "personally appreciated [Lee's] wisdom." Former [[Prime Minister of Japan]], [[Shinzo Abe]], who had also championed for Asian values, stated that Lee was "one of the greatest leaders of modern times that Asia has ever produced" and a "great Asian leader who laid the foundation for the prosperity of Singapore today."<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=Tributes from around the world pour in for Mr Lee Kuan Yew |url=https://www.todayonline.com/rememberinglky/international-tributes-pour-mr-lee-kuan-yew |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115211516/https://www.todayonline.com/rememberinglky/international-tributes-pour-mr-lee-kuan-yew |archive-date=15 November 2020 |access-date=14 November 2020 |website=TODAYonline}}</ref> Former [[Prime Minister of Australia]], [[Tony Abbott]], mentioned that Lee was a "giant of our region" and that "thanks to his vision and determination, Singapore is one of the world's most successful countries."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Abott |first=Tony |date=23 March 2015 |title=Lee Kuan Yew - Message from PM Tony Abbott |url=https://singapore.embassy.gov.au/sing/ahcsg_150325_LKY.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160617164152/http://singapore.embassy.gov.au/sing/ahcsg_150325_LKY.html |archive-date=17 June 2016 |access-date=30 December 2020 |website=singapore.embassy.gov.au |publisher=[[Government of Australia]] |quote="''Here in Australia and beyond, leaders sought and learned from his wise counsel''."}}</ref> [[Henry Kissinger]] described Lee as one of the "world's most successful pragmatists".<ref>{{cite news |author1=Henry A. Kissinger |author1-link=Henry Kissinger |title=Kissinger: The world will miss Lee Kuan Yew |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-world-will-miss-lee-kuan-yew/2015/03/23/80867914-d172-11e4-8fce-3941fc548f1c_story.html |newspaper=Washington Post |access-date=24 February 2022 |date=23 March 2015}}</ref> Today, his ideologies and views are now taught at the [[Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy]], an autonomous postgraduate school of the [[National University of Singapore]] {{citation needed|date=December 2023}}.

===United Kingdom===
[[E. H. Carr]] was a liberal realist and left-wing British historian and international relations theorist who argued for realistic international over utopian policies. Carr described realism as the acceptance that what exists is right; he thus argued that in politics, realism meant that there is no moral dimension and that what is successful is right and what is unsuccessful is wrong. Carr was convinced that the [[Bolsheviks]] were destined to win the [[Russian Civil War]] and, under the grounds of ''Realpolitik'', approved of [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|British Prime Minister]] [[David Lloyd George]]'s opposition to [[Secretary of State for War|War Secretary]] [[Winston Churchill]]'s support for military aid to the anti-Bolshevik [[White movement]].<ref>Davies, Robert William "Edward Hallett Carr, 1892–1982" pages 473–511 from ''Proceedings of the British Academy'', Volume 69, 1983 page 477.</ref> In Carr's opinion, Churchill's support of the anti-Bolsheviks was folly, as Russia was likely to be a great power once more under the leadership of the Bolsheviks.

===United States===
[[File:Zbigniew Brzezinski, 1977.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Zbigniew Brzezinski]]]]

American ''Realpolitik'' began in the 1960s with the influence of Polish-American [[Zbigniew Brzezinski]], later [[National Security Advisor (United States)|National Security Advisor]] to [[Jimmy Carter]]. Contrary to [[McCarthyism|McCarthy]]-era hostility and [[John Foster Dulles]]'s talk of the military "liberation" of the [[Eastern Bloc]], Brzezinski proposed "peaceful engagement" with the [[Soviet Union]] while he advised Presidents [[John F. Kennedy]] and [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]. Brzezinski, uninterested in promoting anti-Soviet propaganda for the benefit of the United States, felt the country would be more successful through frequent interactions with regimes and people under communist rule. Brzezinski knew the tough economic realities of those living in the Eastern Bloc, particularly the permanent shortage of goods, and that their attachment to the Soviet Union was born of historic necessity, rather than common ideology. Brzezinski suggested enticing these countries economically and through educational and cultural exchanges, which would appeal to intellectuals, followed by favouritism for regimes showing signs of liberalisation or less reliance on Moscow. Through that approach, Brzezinski "offered a realistic, evolutionary alternative to empty political rhetoric."<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gati|first1=Charles|title=Zbig: The Strategy and Statecraft of Zbigniew Brzezinski|date=2013|publisher=JHU Press|isbn=9781421409771|pages=23–24|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GU4DAAAAQBAJ&pg=PT24|access-date=1 June 2017|language=en}}</ref>

Henry Kissinger has been credited with formally introducing the policy of ''Realpolitik'' to the [[White House]] as [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]] to [[Richard Nixon]].<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Byrnes|first=Sholto|title=Time to Rethink Realpolitik|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/north-america/2009/02/obama-kissinger-world-russia|magazine=New Statesman|access-date=25 June 2011}}</ref> In that context, the policy meant dealing with other powerful nations in a practical manner, rather than on the basis of political doctrine or ethics such as Nixon's diplomacy with the [[China|People's Republic of China]] despite U.S. opposition to [[communism]] and the previous doctrine of [[containment]]. Another example is Kissinger's use of [[shuttle diplomacy]] after the [[Yom Kippur War]] in 1973, when he persuaded the Israelis to withdraw partially from the [[Sinai Peninsula|Sinai]] in deference to the political realities created by the oil crisis.{{citation needed|date=June 2025}}

Kissinger himself said that he had never used the term ''Realpolitik'' and stated that it is used by both liberal and realist foreign policy thinkers to label, criticise, and facilitate a choosing of sides.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = The Limits of Universalism|last = Kissinger|first = Henry|date = June 2012|journal = New Criterion}}</ref> Kissinger had looked at what he implemented while he served as Secretary of State and National Security Advisor not in the confines of making ''Realpolitik'' a standard policy, but within the terms of being a statesman. That political mindset can be seen in Kissinger's book ''[[A World Restored]]'' and was pointed out by historian [[John Bew (historian)|John Bew]] in his book ''Realpolitik''. Kissinger went on to say that the role of the statesman is "the ability to recognize the real relationship of forces and to make this knowledge serve his ends."<ref>{{Cite book|title = A World Restored: Metternich, Castlereagh and the Problems of Peace, 1812–1822|last = Kissinger|first = Henry|publisher = Weidenfeld & Nicolson|year = 1999|location = London|pages = 312–322}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title = Realpolitik: A History|last = Bew|first = John|publisher = Oxford University Press|year = 2015|location = New York|pages = 258}}</ref>

In that context, one can see how ''Realpolitik'' principles can influence U.S. policy but not as standard policy. The reach and influence of ''Realpolitik'' is found instead in pragmatic and flexible policy that changes to the needs of the situation. That type of policymaking could be seen as recently as in the administration of Barack Obama. Bew made note of that direction in the [[Presidency of Barack Obama|Obama administration]], when Obama's chief of staff, [[Rahm Emanuel]], remarked in an article in ''[[The New York Times]]'' that everyone wanted to break it down into contrasts of idealist and realist, but "if you had to put him in a category, he's probably more realpolitik, like [[George H. W. Bush|Bush 41]] [...] You’ve got to be cold-blooded about the self-interests of your nation."<ref>{{Cite book|title = Realpolitik: A History|last = Bew|first = John|publisher = Oxford University Press|year = 2015|location = New York|pages = 4–5}}</ref>

''Realpolitik'' is distinct from ideological politics in that it is not dictated by a fixed set of rules but instead tends to be goal-oriented, limited only by practical exigencies. Since ''Realpolitik'' is ordered toward the most practical means of securing national interests, it can often entail compromising on ideological principles. For example, during the [[Cold War]], the United States often supported authoritarian regimes that were human rights violators to secure theoretically the greater national interest of regional stability.<ref name="DeConde Encyclopedia">{{cite book|editor=DeConde, Alexander|display-editors=etal|chapter=Dictatorships|title=Encyclopedia of American Foreign Policy, Volume 1|publisher=Simon & Schuster|year=2001|isbn=9780684806570|page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofam03deco/page/499 499]|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h7dG-pVarDAC&pg=PA499|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofam03deco/page/499}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Adams, Francis|title=Deepening democracy: global governance and political reform in Latin America|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2003|isbn=9780275979713|page=31|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CXZCdsSlRLcC&pg=PA31}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=McMahon, Robert J.|title=The limits of empire: the United States and Southeast Asia since World War II|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=1999|isbn=9780231108805|page=205|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7a2WMyTc7YUC&pg=PA205}}</ref><ref name="Grandin & Joseph">{{cite book|last=Grandin & Joseph|first=Greg & Gilbert|title=A Century of Revolution|year=2010|publisher=Duke University Press|location=Durham, NC|pages=397–414}}</ref> After the end of the Cold War, this practice continued.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Chick|first1=Kristen|title=US resumes arms sales to Bahrain. Activists feel abandoned|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/0514/US-resumes-arms-sales-to-Bahrain.-Activists-feel-abandoned|access-date=13 August 2014|work=The Christian Science Monitor|date=14 May 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Josh Rogin |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/14/america-s-allies-are-funding-isis.html |title=America's Allies Are Funding ISIS |newspaper=The Daily Beast |date= 2014-06-14|access-date=2014-08-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Security-Watch/Backchannels/2014/0128/US-support-for-human-rights-abroad-The-case-of-Saudi-Arabia |title=US support for human rights abroad: The case of Saudi Arabia |publisher=CSMonitor.com |date=2014-01-28 |access-date=2014-08-10}}</ref><ref name="TheWeek">{{cite magazine|url=http://theweek.com/article/index/211722/5-dictators-the-us-still-supports |title=5 dictators the U.S. still supports |magazine=The Week |date= 2011-02-03|access-date=2014-08-10}}</ref>

Most recently, former Ambassador [[Dennis Ross]] advocated that approach to foreign policy in his 2007 book ''Statecraft: And How to Restore America's Standing in the World''. For the purposes of contrast and speaking in [[ideal type]]s, political [[Ideology|ideologues]] would tend to favor principle over other considerations. Such individuals or groups can reject compromises that they see as the abandonment of their ideals and so may sacrifice political gain, in favor of adhering to principles that they believe to be constitutive of long-term goals.

===Pakistan===
[[File:General Muhammad Zia-Ul-Haq.jpg|thumb|212x212px|[[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq]]]]

Relations between Pakistan and the U.S. were strained during the 1970s due to [[Project-706|Pakistan's nuclear program]]<ref name=":2" /> and the controversial execution of President [[Zulfikar Ali Bhutto]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Niesewand |first=Peter |date=2016-04-05 |title=Pakistan's Zulfikar Ali Bhutto executed - archive |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/05/pakistan-zulfikar-ali-bhutto-executed-1979 |access-date=2023-09-14 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

In the context of the [[Iranian Revolution]], President [[Jimmy Carter]] desired to improve relations with Pakistan. General [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq]] came into power in 1977 after [[1977 Pakistani military coup|martial law]] was imposed in the country due to political turmoil.<ref name=":9" /> Zia recognised the immediate strategic interests that Pakistan may obtain by aligning with the U.S. amidst the [[Soviet–Afghan War]].<ref name=":3" />

Pakistan due to its strategic geopolitical location made it a subject of grave interest to the U.S., which supported Pakistan with financial and military assistance including [[General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon]] and financial aid during the Soviet–Afghan War.<ref name=":5" />

Zia initially declined the 400 million [[United States dollar|USD]] aid offered by the U.S. (under the Carter administration) dismissing it as "peanuts". However, when [[Ronald Reagan]] entered office and sought to increment the funding for [[Operation Cyclone]] and aid for Pakistan, the U.S. and Pakistan agreed on a 3.2 billion USD military and economic aid package.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" />

Under Zia's leadership, Pakistan played a pivotal role in training the [[Afghan mujahidin]], in conjunction with Operation Cyclone to oppose the Soviet-backed government in Afghanistan.<ref name=":6" />

While Pakistan was aligned with the United States, it did maintain diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union during the Afghan war which was primarily based upon pragmatic diplomacy rather than genuine partnership.

One of the major ''Realpolitik'' decision of Zia's presidency was his role in the nuclear program of Pakistan. Amidst international pressure, he ignored threats of sanctions<ref name=":7" /> and prioritised the national interest over non-proliferation international norms. The development of nuclear weapons was seen as crucial for [[Deterrence theory|deterrence]] against Pakistan's historical rival, [[India]], which had successfully conducted nuclear tests in 1974.<ref name=":8" />

==See also==
{{Portal|Politics}}
* [[Consequentialism]]
* [[Deterrence theory]]
* [[Monopoly on violence|Monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force]]
* [[Noopolitik]]
* [[Power politics]]
* ''[[Weltpolitik]]''

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Works cited==
* John Bew: [http://nationalinterest.org/article/the-real-origins-realpolitik-9933 "The Real Origins of Realpolitik"], [[The National Interest]], 2014
* John Bew: [https://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=6285 "Real Realpolitik: A History"], The [[John W. Kluge Center]] at the [[Library of Congress]], April 10, 2014. Accessed July 29, 2014.
* David Robertson: ''The Routledge Dictionary of Politics''. Routledge 2004. {{ISBN|978-0-415-32377-2}}, p.&nbsp;420 ({{Google books|vrnzsJhPbuMC|restricted online copy|page=420}})
* Hajo Holborn: ''History of Modern Germany: 1840–1945''. Princeton University Press 1982, {{ISBN|978-0-691-00797-7}}, p.&nbsp;117 ({{Google books|Y4pLQ1jC1JIC|restricted online copy|page=117}})
* Ruth Weissbourd Grant: ''Hypocrisy and integrity: Machiavelli, Rousseau, and the ethics of politics''. University of Chicago Press 1997, {{ISBN|978-0-226-30582-0}}, p.&nbsp;40–41 ({{Google books|uWUQM_4IW14C|restricted online copy|page=40}})
* Frank Whelon Wayman (ed.), Paul Francis Diehl (ed.): ''Reconstructing Realpolitik''. University of Michigan Press 1994, {{ISBN|978-0-472-08268-1}} ({{Google books|DcG9KoU-wO0C|restricted online copy|page=}})
* Federico Trocini: ''L’invenzione della «Realpolitik» e la scoperta della «legge del potere». August Ludwig von Rochau tra radicalismo e nazional-liberalismo'', il Mulino, Bologna 2009

{{Political philosophy}}
{{International power}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:International relations]]
[[Category:Political realism]]
[[Category:German words and phrases]]
[[Category:Foreign policy doctrines]]