Ignition failure and the adjustment failure of the balance of power mechanism: Case study of the warring states era practices

The concept of the Balance of Power theory in the international relations paradigms is full of theoretical defaults in terms of the concept’s definition. The hegemonic transition in the international community exhibits the phenomenon of the failure of the Balance of Power mechanism. The power shifting arguments also constitute theoretical challenges of continuous failure to the Balance of Power mechanism. After reviewing questions related to the Balance of Power theory in International Relations studies, this paper intends to first go beyond the Euro-American conceptual constraints that have haunted IR studies to understand the dynamics and the images of the Balance of Power mechanism based on a different approach. It furthermore attempts to explore the phenomenon of the Balance of Power failure after observing the formation of alliances in China’s Warring States Era and the fact that the Chinese empire had been repeatedly founded in the East Asia region. The article concludes by stating that there has been both an ignition failure as well as an adjustment failure in relation to the Balance of Power mechanism in the international system. Further exploring this Balance of Power failure will enhance our understanding of the shifting of international power.