The Multinational Corporation and the Future International System

It has been asserted that the multinational corporation is an instrument for peace and will spur an era of international government. These claims must be viewed in the light of other changes taking place in the international system, particularly tendencies toward regionalism and increasing conflict between rich and poor nations. Multinational corporations, with headquarters in a few rich countries and directed by nationals of these countries, will increasingly be perceived as neo-colonial activities. Response to the multinational corporation, and other tendencies in the international system, make it likely that the future international system will be composed of large regional states, with increasing bipolarization between rich and poor regions. The major countervailing force, global, functional, intergovernmental organizations, will probably not be able to prevent this trend because of the unwillingness of the rich superpowers to permit these organizations to be responsive to the demands of the less developed countries. The greatest contribution of the multinational corporations may be their demonstration of the potential of nongovernmental international activity as a challenge to the intergovernmental system. Might new nongovernmental international movements be formed that cut across the widening rich-poor gap? If this bipolarization is to be checked, these new nongovernmental movements, intergovernmental agencies, and multinational corporations must build more symmetric organizations that permit full participation by interests in the less developed nations and are responsive to their needs.