The Reference Library
Diplomacy & Politics Glossary
Every term you need — from Model UN procedure to international law, economics, and political theory. Clear definitions, real examples, and cross-linked concepts.
- Terms
- 2,494 terms· showing letter T (124)
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- 15 categories
Showing 124 entries
T
124 entriesTabula Rasa
John Locke's concept that individuals are born without innate ideas, and…
Taiwan Strait Crisis
Periods of heightened military tension between China and Taiwan, raising…
Tallinn Manual
The leading non-binding expert analysis of how existing international law…
Tallinn Manual 2.0
The 2017 expert restatement of how international law applies to peacetime cyber…
Tariff
A tax imposed on imported goods to protect domestic industries or raise…
Technocracy
A system of governance where decision-makers are selected based on expertise in…
Terms of Trade
The ratio of export prices to import prices, indicating how many imports a…
Terms of Trade Index
Measures the ratio of export prices to import prices, indicating the purchasing…
Territorial Integrity
The principle that international borders of a state should not be violated or…
Territorial Sea
A belt of coastal waters extending up to 12 nautical miles from the baseline,…
Territorial Sea Baseline
The low-water line along the coast from which the breadth of the Territorial…
Territorial Sea Baselines
Lines from which the breadth of the Territorial Sea is measured according to…
Territorial Waters
A belt of coastal waters extending up to 12 nautical miles from a state's…
Thatcherism
The conservative political ideology associated with Margaret Thatcher,…
Thatcherite Economic Liberalism
Margaret Thatcher's policies promoting free markets, privatization, and reduced…
Thatcherite Monetarism
Margaret Thatcher's economic policy focusing on controlling inflation through…
Thatcherite Welfare Reform
Margaret Thatcher’s policies to reduce welfare dependency by promoting…
The Banality of Evil
Hannah Arendt's concept that ordinary people can commit horrific acts through…
The Birmingham Campaign
A series of protests in 1963 aimed at ending segregation in Birmingham,…
The Black Panther Party
A revolutionary socialist organization advocating for African American rights,…
The Civil Rights Act of 1964
A landmark legislation that outlawed discrimination based on race, color,…
The Cuban Missile Crisis
A 1962 Cold War confrontation between the U.S. and the Soviet Union over Soviet…
The Frankfurt School
A group of mid-20th century thinkers combining Marxist theory and critical…
The Freedom Rides
A series of bus trips in 1961 aimed at challenging segregation in interstate…
The Great Leap Forward
Mao Zedong's campaign aimed at rapidly transforming China from an agrarian…
The Great Society
A set of domestic programs launched by U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson aimed…
The Helsinki Accords
A 1975 agreement among Cold War powers aimed at improving relations and…
The Iron Curtain
A term popularized by Churchill to describe the ideological and physical…
The Iron Lady
A nickname for Margaret Thatcher symbolizing her strong-willed leadership style…
The Long Telegram
A 1946 diplomatic communication by George Kennan outlining the Soviet Union's…
The March on Washington
A massive civil rights rally held in 1963, where Martin Luther King Jr.…
The Marshall Plan
A U.S. program providing economic aid to Western Europe after World War II to…
The New Deal
A series of programs and reforms introduced by Franklin D. Roosevelt to combat…
The New International Economic Order
A set of proposals by developing countries in the 1970s to promote their…
The Non-Aligned Movement
An international organization of states that did not formally align with or…
The Pan-African Movement
A political and social movement aiming to unify African nations and people of…
The Prince
Niccolò Machiavelli's seminal work outlining pragmatic and often ruthless…
The Social Contract
The theory that individuals consent, either explicitly or implicitly, to…
The Social Market Economy
An economic system combining free-market capitalism with social policies that…
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference
An organization founded in 1957 to coordinate nonviolent protests for civil…
The Third Way
A centrist political ideology that seeks to reconcile right-wing and left-wing…
The Tragedy of the Commons
A concept illustrating how individuals acting in their own Self-Interest can…
The Veil of Ignorance
A method of determining the morality of issues by imagining decision-makers…
The Voting Rights Act of 1965
A landmark piece of legislation aimed at eliminating barriers to voting for…
The Wealth of Nations
Adam Smith's seminal work that laid the foundations of modern economics and…
Theory Argument
A theory argument challenges the rules or procedures of a debate round to gain…
Theory Debate
A debate focused on procedural arguments about rules, fairness, or judge…
Theory Shell
A structured argument that outlines a procedural or theoretical Claim with…
Theory Violation
An action or argument that breaks accepted rules or norms of debate theory,…
Think Tank
An organization that conducts research and provides advice on public policy…
Third Way
A centrist political ideology seeking to reconcile right-wing and left-wing…
Third-Party Intervention
The involvement of an external state or organization in an ongoing dispute or…
Third-Party Neutral
An impartial individual who facilitates dialogue or mediation without taking…
Third-Person Effect
Believing that others are more influenced by media messages than oneself.
Third-Person Perception
The belief that others are more influenced by media messages than oneself.
Third-Way Politics
A centrist political ideology blending traditional left-wing and right-wing…
Ticket Splitting
Voting for candidates from different political parties for different offices in…
Time Management in Negotiations
Strategically allocating and controlling time during negotiations to maximize…
Tone Policing
Criticizing the emotion or delivery of a message rather than its content to…
Top-Two Primary
An electoral system where all candidates compete in a single Primary Election…
TPNW (Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons)
A 2017 treaty prohibiting the development, testing, production, possession,…
Track Four Diplomacy
Informal activities by non-official actors like academics and artists to…
Track II Diplomacy
Unofficial dialogue between non-state actors (academics, retired officials,…
Track One and a Half Diplomacy
Track One and a Half Diplomacy involves semi-official dialogues between…
Track One Diplomacy
Official government-to-government negotiations conducted by diplomats or…
Track Three Diplomacy
Informal, grassroots-level efforts involving ordinary citizens to resolve…
Track Two Diplomacy
Informal and non-governmental dialogue between conflicting parties aimed at…
Track Zero Diplomacy
Informal, often secretive diplomatic efforts conducted outside official…
Trade Adjustment Assistance
Government programs that support workers and industries negatively affected by…
Trade Balance
The difference between the monetary value of a country's exports and imports…
Trade Complementarity
A measure of how well the export profile of one country matches the import…
Trade Complementarity Index
Quantifies how well the export profile of one country matches the import…
Trade Creation
The increase in trade resulting from the reduction of trade barriers between…
Trade Creation Effect
Increase in trade efficiency and welfare when a trade agreement causes imports…
Trade Dispute Settlement Body
The WTO entity responsible for resolving trade disagreements between member…
Trade Diversification
The process of expanding the variety of products and markets in a country’s…
Trade Diversion
Occurs when trade shifts from a more efficient exporter to a less efficient one…
Trade Diversion Effect
Occurs when trade shifts from a more efficient exporter to a less efficient one…
Trade Elasticity
A measure of how sensitive the quantity of traded goods is to changes in trade…
Trade Elasticity of Demand
The responsiveness of quantity demanded of traded goods to changes in their…
Trade Elasticity of Supply
The responsiveness of the quantity supplied of a good to changes in its price…
Trade Facilitation
Measures that simplify and streamline international trade procedures to reduce…
Trade Facilitation Agreement
A WTO agreement aiming to expedite the movement, release, and clearance of…
Trade Facilitation Costs
Expenses associated with complying with trade procedures, including…
Trade Facilitation Index
A composite measure evaluating countries on customs efficiency, infrastructure…
Trade Facilitation Measures
Policies and procedures that simplify and expedite the movement, release, and…
Trade in Services Agreement
An international treaty aimed at liberalizing trade and investment in services…
Trade in Value Added
An approach to measuring trade by accounting for the value added at each stage…
Trade Liberalization
The removal or reduction of trade barriers to encourage freer international…
Trade Liberalization Effects
Trade Liberalization effects describe changes in economic growth, employment,…
Trade Rounds
Negotiation sessions under the GATT/WTO Framework where multiple countries…
Trade War
Trade war occurs when countries impose retaliatory tariffs or barriers to…
Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights
WTO agreement setting minimum standards for protecting intellectual property…
Trade-Related Investment Measures
Policies that regulate foreign investment linked to trade, such as local…
Trade-Related Investment Measures Agreement
A WTO agreement setting rules on investment measures that affect trade in goods…
Transactional Analysis
A psychological theory analyzing social interactions to improve communication…
Transactional Leadership
Transactional leadership motivates followers through rewards and penalties to…
Transboundary Pollution
Environmental contamination that crosses national borders, requiring…
Transnational Advocacy Networks
These are networks of activists, NGOs, and international organizations…
Transnational Crime
Criminal activities that cross national borders, including trafficking,…
Treaty Body
A committee of independent experts monitoring implementation of core…
Treaty Interpretation
The process of determining the meaning and application of treaty provisions…
Treaty of Accession
An agreement by which a state becomes a party to an existing treaty, accepting…
Treaty of Tordesillas
A 1494 agreement dividing newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain…
Treaty of Versailles
The 1919 peace treaty that ended World War I and imposed heavy reparations and…
Treaty Regime
A set of principles, norms, rules, and decision-making procedures governing a…
Treaty Reservation
A unilateral statement by a state when signing a treaty, excluding or modifying…
Treaty Reservations
Declarations made by states to exclude or modify the legal effect of certain…
Treaty Reservations and Objections
Treaty Reservations are unilateral statements modifying treaty obligations,…
Treaty Succession
The process by which a newly formed state assumes the treaty obligations and…
Treaty Termination Clauses
Treaty termination clauses specify the conditions and procedures under which a…
Trickle-Down Economics
An economic theory positing that benefits provided to the wealthy or businesses…
Truman Doctrine
A U.S. policy announced in 1947 to provide economic and military aid to…
Trump Doctrine
Trump's 'America First' approach: transactional bilateralism, skepticism of…
Truth Decay
The diminishing role of facts and analysis in public life, leading to increased…
Truth Sandwich
A communication technique that presents the truth before and after repeating…
Turn
An argument that reverses the meaning or Impact of an opponent’s claim, showing…
Turnaround
An argument that reverses an opponent's claim or Impact to become an advantage…
Turnaround Argument
An argument that reverses the opponent's Claim to benefit one’s own side…
Turnout Gap
The difference in Voter Turnout rates between demographic groups, such as age,…
Two-Level Games
A framework analyzing international negotiations as the simultaneous…
Two-Party System
A party system dominated by two major political parties.
Two-Round System
An electoral system where a second round of voting is held if no candidate…
Two-Step Flow Model
A communication theory where media messages first reach opinion leaders who…