By A. Gaffar Peang-Meth
Pacific Daily News
Nation-states' international relationships have as primary purpose to serve the state's national interest -- which actually means, what benefits the nation -- as defined by the state's national political leaders. These leaders devise and undertake courses of action to achieve short-term objectives and long-term goals and maximize what they believe is of benefit to the citizens.During this process, leaders have at their disposition national institutions, endowed, constitutionally, with specific roles and functions. Institutions are tools and the state is the agent of the nation -- which means the people. How well these institutions and the state serve the people's interests are measures of the effectiveness of the institutions and the state.
In general, the world's nation-states aspire to common ultimate goals by giving government the task of maintaining independence (free from foreign invasion and outside control), order and stability (domestic peace and tranquility, and justice to the people, conforming to the constitution), and of promoting economic and social well-being of all citizens.
One school of thought teaches that nothing is possible without man, and nothing is lasting without institutions.
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