FEAS RESEARCH E-BULLETIN FEAS E-BULLETIN DECEMBER 2016 | Page 4

Author: Adıong, Nassef Title: Possibility of an Islamic Theory of International Relations Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Ahmet Nuri Yurdusev Department: International Relations Date: April 2016 Abstract: International Relations is dominated by Western's (Euro-American) enterprise on theories, methods, praxes and narratives. In order to have a more inclusive and truly globalized IR, it has to substantially acknowledge diversity of existence, stories, voices, realities, cosmologies, and locally produced knowledge systems particularly from non-Western or Global South societies. Calls for reexamination and rethinking of its traditions of thoughts so as to accommodate changes and new issues in the international system are highly needed. One of its explorations is the call for the possibility of doing an Islamic theorizing about IR. Four steps were provided. First is to set up the background for generally identifying relations among religion & IR, and of Islam & IR. Second is to analyze one of the unit of analyses of IR, i.e. the nation-state. Its elements and constitutional cases are explored and provided the counterpart understandings of Muslim governance. Third is a further discussion of the element on authority by selecting four distinct Muslim scholars and decipher their conceptions on ruling in Muslim thought. The last step is assessing a practical case of a contemporary Muslim society in congruence with the analyses of previous steps. It concluded that the prospects of doing Islamic theorizing about IR falls under the condition of 'pre-theory'. 1