A nation must think before it acts.
The two fundamental principles of modern international relations, writes noted historian Paul Schroeder, are ‘‘the recognition of state independence and the willing acceptance by most international actors of the necessity and benefits of international associations and their requirements and rules.’’ Schroeder well expresses an idea that lay at the core of twentieth-century conceptions of internationalism: that states come together in order to stay apart, joining in union for the purpose of protecting their independence.