er inherent in every state in the system and it pushes each of them to strive for supremacy." Of course, this is a fundamental tenet in realist theory. Where Mearsheimer (2001, p. 21) says that traditional realists emphasize survival as a primary goal of most nation-states, offensive realists "believe that status quo powers are rarely found in world politics, because the international system creates powerful incentives for states to look for opportunities to gain power at the expense of rivals and to take advantage of those situations where the benefits outweigh the costs."
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