A Commercial Society and the World OrderA Review of Adam Smith’s View of International Politics

Adam Smith's views of international politics were closely related to the rise of a commercial society in Western Europe in the 18th century. Standing at this historical height, Smith took individual freedom as the ultimate concern and regarded humanity as the logical starting point. He insisted that the state, rather than the international community, was the subject of individual concern; the world order required international laws, diplomacy, the balance of power, and alliance; war could not be eradicated, so national defense was more important than national opulence; trade could not only cause hatred between countries, but also achieve win-win interests and balance of power. By responding to the problems of the Americas at that time, he insisted that the traditional colonial oppression and rule by force must be abandoned by the times. In a word, Smith was neither a combative Hobbesian nor a Kantian who fancied perpetual peace, but a sober Grotiusian. His thoughts above provided a source of thought for the humanity realism and the state-centered realism in the international political theory, and provided beneficial enlightenment for mankind to understand the current international situation and the future international order.