ABSTRACT
The traditional view in international relations, the so-called realist view, emphasizes the importance of the hard power of states in the anarchical setting of international relations. For those who believe in anarchic international politics in which states only pursue self-help, it is still baffling to observe that states commit to certain legal arrangements and often abide by them. Unlike other international relations theories, as Moravcsik argues, the liberal theory endeavors to furnish a systemic account of international cooperation, which includes the dynamics of domestic politics. International arbitrators should follow international norms pertaining to arbitration, as opposed to the Westphalian approach which binds arbitrators to consider different national laws. The transnationalist approach aims to foster an autonomous or semi-autonomous legal order for arbitration. In the American school of international arbitration there are some who would propound further discretion for arbitral tribunals to enter into matters of public policy.
