Why do countries pursue a feminist foreign policy? a comparasion between developed and developing countries : the case of Sweden, Canada, Colombia, and Mexico

Abstract

This study seeks to examine the necessary conditions for countries to pursue a feminist foreign policy. By applying the method of agreement and focusing on the cases of Sweden, Canada, Mexico, and Colombia, which integrate a feminist foreign policy, this research aims to observe why countries with different socioeconomic development statutes chose to adopt this political strategy. Scholars have argued that domestic politics and international politics are strongly intertwined. What happens in national politics can often shape a country's foreign policy to a certain degree. With this as a background, this study recognizes that domestic forces and transnational forces are interdependent and interconnected. Thus, I argue that a strong feminist movement is a necessary condition for countries to pursue a feminist foreign policy. The interplay between pressure from domestic forces (feminist movements) and transnational forces results in a "pincers' effect" (Friedman, 2008), which leads states to put emphasize a gender- responsive foreign policy. In other words, the existence of a strong feminist movement is a required condition for countries to adopt a feminist foreign policy.