Classifying states: instrumental rhetoric or a compelling normative theory?

Many states use a classificatory approach to foreign policy: they put other states into particular categories and structure their engagement and relations partly as a result. There is one prominent modern international political theory-Rawls’ Law of Peoples-that seems to adopt this approach as an account of justified state behaviour. But should we expect this type of theory ultimately to prove attractive, justified and philosophically distinct compared to more instrumentalist rivals? This paper explores the challenges generic to any such account, notmerely those relating to Rawls’ specific version, and surveys possible responses and their shortcomings.