The end of the Cold War and globalization processes have led to renewed interest in the study of transnational relations and the impact of non-state actors on world politics. Some authors praise the emergence of a global transnational civil society (Boli and Thomas, 1999; Florini, 2000; Held et al., 1999), while others denounce an increasing transnational capitalist hegemony (Gill, 1995). Both positions ascribe to non-state actors quite an extraordinary influence on outcomes in international politics. It is certainly true that transnational actors–from multinational corporations (MNCs) to International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs)–have left their mark on the international system and that we cannot even start theorizing about the contemporary world system without taking their influence into account. But there ...