Geopolitics and State Sovereignty: Power Structures Examined

Geopolitics: Space and State Organization

Geopolitics studies how society is organized in relation to geographic space. It focuses on how states exercise their sovereignty, their relations with other states, and their interactions with supranational organizations.

The State's Right to Power

The fundamental powers of the state include:

• Establishing and ensuring compliance with laws.
• Protecting the territory.
• Collecting taxes.
• Regulating public services and infrastructures.
• Running and regulating the economy.
• Establishing international relations with other states.

Types of State Governance

Democratic Systems

• Constitutional Monarchy: The highest authority is the King or Queen, usually hereditary. The monarch's power is limited by the constitution, and they hold little direct authority; the government is typically in the hands of a president or prime minister.
• Republic: The head of state is an elected official who changes periodically through elections, often serving mainly a representative post.

Non-Democratic Systems

• Autocracy: Government by a single person with unlimited power. Citizens have no say in the government.
• Absolute Monarchy: The highest authority is the King or Queen, usually hereditary, who possesses absolute power. Citizens have little to no political voice.
• Oligarchy: Government is in the hands of a small, powerful group of people.
• Dictatorship: Government is in the hands of a single leader who uses force to maintain control, usually supported by the army. Citizen rights are very limited.
• Totalitarianism: One political party holds all the power. The party supports a leader who acts as a dictator. People have few rights, and the army is used to maintain power. They often celebrate fake elections.

Other Governance Structures

• Anarchy: A situation in which there is no government at all; people organize their own lives.
• Revolutionary Government: A temporary government established by a group after overthrowing a previous regime, intended to change to another type of government after a short period.

Territorial Power Distribution

• Centralized: All decisions made by the government affect the entire country uniformly.
• Decentralized: The central government shares power with regional and local governments. The central government establishes the principal structure, and local governments introduce changes or modifications.