There was a time not so long ago when in most parts of the non-Western world,
IR began and ended with area specialization. One interesting feature, and potential
danger of the recent conversations about IRT beyond the West, is that most
of them occur without reference to, or serious engagement with, the area studies
tradition. Although area studies, or “international studies,” lurk beneath these
conversations, there seems to be a zealous effort and undue haste to move beyond
area studies and differentiate it from IR. Somehow, area studies seem outdated,
unfashionable. To some extent, the a-theoretical nature of area studies generates
the need to distinguish IR from it, especially those who focus on theory. Another