Smart Power; the Modern Development of Power in the Era of Globalization

The emergence of non-state actors, economic interdependence, super technology and development of intelligent communication networks represent a new era of world politics which is the result of the effects of globalization. In such a situation, force-based capabilities as the main element of power in accordance with realist thought - affected by globalization - has been seriously criticized and led to the development in the way power is conceived and applied. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the concept of smart power with respect to the change in international politics and to develop a conceptual framework that shows the dimensions of this transformation. This elaborate development features a new concept of power in which the norms of soft power have been combined with the resources of hard power to create smart power, which has a more influential role in the exercising of power. The objectives of this power is to obtain optimum outcomes, legitimacy in the use of power and preventing the waste of resources.