Critical geopolitics challenges traditional geopolitical theories by emphasizing the role of discourse, power dynamics, and the social construction of space in international relations. Traditional geopolitics, on the other hand, often relies on material factors such as geographical features and resources. To what extent does critical geopolitics provide a more comprehensive understanding of global politics compared to traditional geopolitics?

Critical

geopolitics

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emerged in the 1980s and 1990s, shifting from classical

geopolitics

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’ emphasis on

geography

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as an objective reality to a focus on the role of

language

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and

discourse

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in shaping political perceptions.

This

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approach recognizes that geographical

knowledge

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influences how we define "us," "them," and "the enemy," and highlights how geopolitical discourses construct reality (Dittmer, 2014: 5). Critical

geopolitics

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is divided into formal, practical, and popular branches, each contributing to our understanding of how geopolitical

knowledge

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serves the

state

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and its political agenda. Mahan’s focus on sea

power

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and Mackinder’s broader vision of the geopolitical

world

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(e.g., the "Heartland") contributed to

geopolitics

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’ historical development, but their work,

while

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significant,

also

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reflects their desire to inform

state

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policies (Dittmer, 2014: 15). Geopolitical writing was a deeply politicised form of analysis and was never objective or free of bias.

Tuathail

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and Agnew argue that the writings of earlier influential figures

such

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as Ratzel, Mackinder, Haushofer, Bowman, Spykman and Kissinger have a common theme of producing

knowledge

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to aid the practice of statecraft and enforce the

power

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of the

state

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they served

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. ''

Geography

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is a social and historical

discourse

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which is always intimately bound up with questions of politics and ideology'' (O

Tuathail

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1989 p.130) Scholars like Peter Kropotkin, Gandhi, and later Lacoste contested the imperialist approach of

geopolitics

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, challenging the notion that only

geography

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shapes global

power

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structures. Lacoste argued that

geography

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has been always used as a tool for

state

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power

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,

for example

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in warfare, when

the

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geographical

knowledge

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used the strategist’s advantages (Dittmer, 2014:97). The scholars O’

Tuathail

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and Agnew focused on

geopolitics

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as a

discourse

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, emphasizing the role of

language

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in shaping international relations (O’

Tuathail

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and Agnew, 1992: 130-132). Gearóid Ó

Tuathail

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offers a re-conceptualization of

geopolitics

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as a discursive practice, emphasizing the role of

language

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and representation in shaping geopolitical realities. Ó

Tuathail

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challenges traditional

geopolitics

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for its focus on material

power

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and

state

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-centric perspectives. He highlighted how geopolitical actions and strategies are mediated through

discourse

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. The

world

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is understood and acted upon through socially constructed narratives, which are embedded in

language

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and

power

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relations. By employing the concept of

discourse

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, Ó

Tuathail

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sketches a theory of

geopolitics

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that reveals how dominant narratives legitimize certain actions

while

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marginalizing alternative perspectives (Ó

Tuathail

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,1192:129).

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approach underscores the importance of examining how geopolitical actors construct and deploy narratives to justify their policies and actions. Simon Dalby critiques established

geopolitics

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of polar

world

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division: wealthy, urbanized Western societies and the rest of the

world

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.

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binary perspective fails to capture the complexities and diversities inherent in global societies, which reflects an “Orientalist geographical imagination”. Edward Said describes the concept of Orientalism, that supports the binary and struggle between civilized "us" and uncivilized "them" (Dalby, p. 172). Simon Dalby’s critical

geopolitics

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connects poverty to environmental degradation fueled by the geopolitical ambitions of imperial powers (Dalby, p. 172). Feminist

geopolitics

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,

on the other hand

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, highlights how women—particularly in marginalized regions—are disproportionately impacted by environmental crises, resource exploitation, and global policy decisions.

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perspective calls for a rethinking of conventional political frameworks, emphasizing that issues like climate change and energy transition are not merely political but

also

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deeply social and gendered.