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The collapse of the Soviet Union has considerably changed the practice of international relations and has provoked ongoing theoretical debates. The Realistschool, dominant during the Cold War, has been reexamined by defenders of Transnationalism. Each theory allows, in its own way, an understanding of the world in which we live, and these theories must be seen more as tools of interpretation than as infallible dogma.Pierre de Senarclens, Professor in International Relations at the University of Lausanne, Former Director of the Division of Human Rights and Peace (1980-1983), is currently Vice-President of the Council of the Swiss Red-Cross. His last book, published with Y. Ariffin, is: La Politique internationale. Théories et enjeux contemporains (Paris, Armand Colin, 2006).