Kovalev, N. A. Political Architectonics of the System of International Relations: the Phenomenon of Polarity in the Modern World

Abstract: The author of the article analyzes some tendencies of development of the System of International Relations (SIR) during post-polarity epoch. The author empathizes dynamism and contradictory nature of transformation processes in the modern world order, the growth of crisis developments in the global policy and the ‘roughness’ of modern international relations. The author states the fact that geopolitical schemes of SIR polarity still do not lose their importance. The author offers a defi nition of the term ‘polarity’ and provides a classifi cation of traditional and new types of SIR polarity developed in modern political sciences (unipolarity, bipolarity, polypolarity, polarityness). The author reveals the main peculiarities of each type of polarity and describes possible development of international relations in the XXI century. It has been concluded that unipolar SIR will be impossible in the future due to growing complexity and diversity of the world view. Formation of bipolar SIR as represented by the USA and another actor of international relations is still under the question because there is no actor which potentials would compare to the USA. It is too early for a polar-free SIR which assumes the extreme point of decentralization of power and government at the XXI century because a changing multipolar world has a particular hierarchy, leaders, standards of the system functioning and a whole variety of all kinds of communication formats aimed at keeping the balance and stability of the SIR.

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