Kant+summary

Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch

SECTION I CONTAINING THE PRELIMINARY ARTICLES FOR PERPETUAL PEACE AMONG STATES 1. "No Treaty of Peace Shall Be Held Valid in Which There Is Tacitly Reserved Matter for a Future War"; • Treaties made with the intention restarting hostilities at a more opportune time in the future do not promote peace. 2. "No Independent States, Large or Small, Shall Come under the Dominion of Another State by Inheritance, Exchange, Purchase, or Donation" • A state is not property which can be sold or incorporated into another state. 3. "Standing Armies Shall in Time Be Totally Abolished"; • Standing armies promote aggression and competition between states • There is a difference between spending money to build an army during a time of peace and forming a volunteer army to defend against foreign aggression. 4. "National Debts Shall Not Be Contracted with a View to the External Friction of States"; • There should be no form of monetary credit between states 5. "No State Shall by Force Interfere with the Constitution or Government of Another State"; • So long as a state is not in civil war (with separate powers each laying claim to the state), a foreign power should not interfere 6. "No State Shall, during War, Permit Such Acts of Hostility Which Would Make Mutual Confidence in the Subsequent Peace Impossible: Such Are the Employment of Assassins, Poisoners, Breach of Capitulation, and Incitement to Treason in the Opposing State"; • These dishonourable strategies will only lead to a war of extermination SECTION II CONTAINING THE DEFINITIVE ARTICLES FOR PERPETUAL PEACE AMONG STATES • The natural state between men is one of war (or at least the threat of war)

1. "The Civil Constitution of Every State Should Be Republican"; • This is the only constitution established on the freedom of equal citizens 2. "The Law of Nations Shall be Founded on a Federation of Free States"; • This ‘league of peace’ should seek to end all wars forever. • The league maintains the security of the freedom of the states

3. "The Law of World Citizenship Shall Be Limited to Conditions of Universal Hospitality"; • Strangers should not be treated as enemies • One is not obligated to receive a stranger, but it must be done peacefully • The face of the earth belongs to all humans equally • The human race should be working to establish a world citizenship