Individual

To discredit the impact of the individual in international relations is a severe misstep. When looking at the different levels on analysis there is an individual level for a reason. The individual is what makes up International Relations. Individuals set borders, individuals control resources, individuals make laws and polices and individuals are ones interacting with each other. From a hand shake to a signature, individuals are shaping international relations every day. It is through actions of an jihadist bomber or a Secretary of State, these such individuals make a decision that will affect international relations.

Past and Present there are individuals who are or have contributed to international relations, Hitler, Joseph Kony, Woodrow Wilson, Osama Bin Laden, Bashar al-Assad, and Iranian President Ahmadinejad are just a few examples. Sadly, it seems as though history remembers those who had a negative effect on International Relations (or those who had a fix a negative situation as in the case of Woodrow Wilson). But these negative people have had profound impact on international relations. They have set the stage for world wars, civil wars, genocide and some are still in progress of leaving their mark on international relations (a potential threat of nuclear war). However their decisions have engaged the rest of the world and affected everything from the economy to every day life. They have set new protocol, changed international norms and one could argue have helped set up international institutions such as the United Nations.

But as demonstrated by the picture below, international relations is like a puzzle, there are many pieces to this puzzle. These pieces consist of individuals, institutions, and states but they all fit together to make up the larger picture of international relations.

picture credit:
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http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1517&bih=714&tbm=isch&tbnid=yCGp-Q-48Zie-M:&imgrefurl=http://www.farmequip.org/committees/international_relations&docid=n4wh_Gj5_NQrXM&imgurl=http://www.farmequip.org/imgupload/international.jpg&w=283&h=424&ei=fxWSUMbpGdPV0gH8iYCoBg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=366&vpy=150&dur=1&hovh=275&hovw=183&tx=86&ty=104&sig=116686464983634084211&page=1&tbnh=145&tbnw=96&start=0&ndsp=27&ved=1t:429,i:89