ABSTRACT
The multinational corporation (MNC) exemplifies the era of trans-nationalism and the increasingly complex problems nearly all national governments face in devising effective, coherent international economic policies. The relative importance of the MNC has grown steadily over most of the postwar period. This chapter deals with a general description of various kinds of political reactions and policy responses that receiving countries generate toward MNCs, comparing and contrasting therein the experiences of developed countries (DCs) and less developed countries (LDCs). The MNC generates politically relevant stimuli in the host country when the home country is seen to safeguard the MNC's interests. The potential threat to national security perceived from the connections of MNCs with their host governments has led both DCs and LDCs to block foreign firms from defense-related industries. Although the MNC as conduit encompasses political phenomena generated by the MNC largely unintentionally, as a result of its pursuit of profit, the MNC as government rival encompasses certain intentional activities.
