*Originally published pre-2020 and republished as part of our archive project. Get E-International Relations delivered to your inbox, free of charge. As you sign up, consider becoming a paid subscriber, or make a donation, to support our work

Geopolitics – the study of the interaction between geography, international politics, and international relations – has seemingly passed its heyday and critiques are now coming from several fronts. Geography in this regard includes both features that are 'fixed', such as location, topography, strategic chokepoints, climate, and natural resources, as well as elements of human and political geography, such as a country's size, national boundaries, and historical, religious, and cultural physical sites. In the 'digital age' that we live in, marked by instant connectivity and an unprecedented spread and use of communication technologies, the relevance of geography and territory appears falsely outdated. Not only are economic interdependence, multilateral institutions, technological change, or the rise of non-state actors considered to weigh decisively in global affairs, but the simple reference to geopolitics among liberals is often taken to mean something reactionary (even revisionist), outmoded, or sinister.

However, the discipline of geopolitics has attracted opprobrium much before the 'digital age'. Geopolitics has long been considered an avatar of imperialism due to its traditional association with social Darwinism and its preoccupation with the survival capacity of states and societies. In the late 19th century, the German writer Friedrich Ratzel put forward the infamous idea that states, like organisms, compete to increase their living space of Lebensraum. The “intellectual poison” imbued in the term 'geopolitics', as well as its association with imperialism, discredited the entire academic field for a long time.

A less combatant understanding of geopolitics existed in other schools of thought. The British geographer Halford Mackinder employed an understanding of geopolitics as 'grand strategy'. Looking at the wider interplay between resources, nature, and technology, Mackinder presented a strategic vision for the future of rivalries........

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