What/who is "The West"?

[FarCenter]

Current new stories often use the term "the west", as in "if Russia doesn't respond to the demand of 'the west', sanctions will be further escalated".

Who/what is "the west"?

What person or body speaks for "the west"?

Where can I find a good reference about "the west"?

Or are they just referring to some coterie of neo-Con foreign policy wonks in Washington?

[ManiacJoe]

1. The West is normally Europe + North America.

[FarCenter]

2. So that would include Russia, which is in Europe?

At least the part that is West of the Urals.

It would also include Byelorussia, Ukraine and maybe Georgia and Armenia?

I doubt that all of Europe is meant. I'm not sure where the line currently is, but it used to be west of the Iron Curtain. Even now, some may include Catholic Poland, but not Orthodox Bulgaria. Is orthodox Greece part of the West?

[ManiacJoe]

4. No. Think USSR-era NATO.

The "west bloc" link to Wikipedia is a good one.

[Tx4obama]

3. Western Bloc

Western Bloc: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Bloc

[Spider Jerusalem]

5. That would be...

US + UK + Germany + France + Italy + Austria + Belgium + Netherlands + Denmark + Norway + Sweden + Australia + New Zealand. "The West" in terms of foreign policy and such generally refers to COld War era NATO countries and allies; it also refers to "Western" culture (Protestant and Catholic Europe and by extension former British colonies in North America and Oceania vs Orthodox Christian Eastern Europe). As for "who speaks for the West" that would probably be NATO.

[FarCenter]

9. I'm not sure Austria and Sweden fit -- they were both formally neutral and neither is a NATO member

But you left off Spain and Portugal, which have been NATO members of long standing.

On the cultural split, Greece and Cyprus would not be part of the west, although classical Greece is part of the western tradition.

If Australia and New Zealand are part of the west, what about Japan and South Korea?

"The West" is plainly a vague, bullshit term used by commentators to imply that all of the most important countries of the world agree with the US, whether they actually do or not.

[Spider Jerusalem]

10. Austria and Sweden are "Western", though.

In the sense of "Western European"; in its original sense the "West" refers to Western Christian countries vs Orthodox (and the split between "East" and "West" that goes back to the Middle Ages has remained fairly consistent since). Japan is not "Western" culturally. Neither is South Korea. They are in terms of alliances (with the US/NATO) in the post-WWII era. And no, there are clear divisions in international alignment, in history and culture, in conceptions of things like democracy and human rights, that make "the West" a useful term (in contrast to "the East" of Russia and aligned former Soviet republics in Central Asia).

[Comrade Grumpy]

6. AKA "the international community." Usually means Washington, Paris, London...

...and maybe Bonn, if they have some money.

[bigwillq]

7. Kayne

[eShirl]

8. guessing the cultural heirs/descendants/whatever of the Western Roman Empire??

[Nuclear Unicorn]

11. "The West"

The well-spring of all earthly travails without which the world would be an economic, ecological and ecumenical Paradise.

[TransitJohn]

12. Euro-derived Western Civilization minus the former soviet bloc. eom

n/t