Geopolitics

Geopolitics is the study of how a country's geography (location, terrain, land size, climate, soil and raw materials) affect its foreign, economic, military policy and strategy. The word geopolitics comes from the words "geography" and "politics".^[1]

Examples

Russia is a large country. Its land is mostly flat. This makes defending its borders (where no mountains or natural obstructions exist) a difficult task. It is expensive to build infrastructure in Russia. Its extreme climate makes poorly built roads break more often.
The United Kingdom is a small island with a mild climate and access to warm water ports. It is easy to defend because any foreign country has to cross a body of water to attack. In addition, since it is small and warm the cost of construction is cheaper than in Russia.

↑ Osterud, Oyvind 1988. The uses and abuses of geopolitics. Journal of Peace Research. #2, p. 192.

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