Der polit-ökonomische Ansatz der Kritischen Friedensforschung von Ekkehart Krippendorff

Ekkehart Krippendorff was the central representative of the political-economic approach in critical peace research until the 1980s. His central thesis is that states in the form of their governments pursue objective interests in their (foreign) policy, the content of which must be worked out by analyzing the economic conditions of reproduction of the state-based society. Only by knowing these interests one can understand why states also rely on violence if necessary. At the same time, Krippendorff also points out that the abolition of violent politics can only succeed if the objective interests and thus the conditions of reproduction are changed. Many left-wing analyses of violent foreign policy much too often focus on one single interest (e. g. “No blood for oil”). This simplification not only does not meet the approach, but also obstructs the way in complex conflicts to recognize one’s own way of life as a problem.