In The Clash of Civilizations Huntington says:
In 1919 Woodrow Wilson, Lloyd George, and George Clemenceau together virtually controlled the world. Sitting in Paris, they determined what countries would exist and which would not, what new countries would be created, what their boundaries would be and who would rule them... [pg. 91, 2011 edition]
I have a few questions here.
To what meeting is he referring? I am not a smart man.
Is this a reasonable assertion to make or his he embellishing a little (or a lot)?
While I don't know much about it either, was this a similar event to the Scramble for Africa meeting of European nations (the name of which escapes me)?
Can their decisions be directly linked to geopolitical phenomena that occured as a result of said decisions?
What do we know about the decisions they made and if/how that differed from expert policymakers who foresaw problems with their plans (and what were those problems/did they come true)?
Any other analysis or input of any kind would be appreciated. I'm an IR student doing some pleasure reading and came across this interesting statement, so I figured I'd get some outside input as it seems a bit over the top.
"To what meeting is he referring?" [blink] The Paris Peace Conference to settle the effects of World War I, where the Allies (and the Associated Power) drew or moved many of the borders of Europe and (re)established lots of countries , determined the terms of the treaties imposed on the defeated Central Powers after World War I, created the League of Nations, awarded Allied "mandates" over former German and Ottoman possessions, ...
As Wikipedia's Paris Peace Conference, 1919 put it, "As the conference's decisions were enacted unilaterally, and largely on the whims of the Big Four, for its duration Paris was effectively the center of a world government, which deliberated over and implemented the sweeping changes to the political geography of Europe." The Big Four being the US (Wilson), UK (Lloyd George), France (Clemenceau), and Italy (Orlando), except I don't know that Italy was so "Big" in reality. And the treaties and decisions have often been blamed for sowing the seeds of World War II and other wars, though I don't know much about the period so I have little opinion myself.
With that as a starting point, you should be able to find a LOT more info to answer your questions.
Edited: So his assertion is certainly plausible, though I can't argue the point myself.
The Paris Peace conference was what is being referenced here. The US, France, and UK had the political, economic, and military clout to shape how the map of the world would be redrawn after WW1.
Amongst the issues being decided were the possible partition of Germany, and the extent of war payments owed to the victors, and requirement of Germany accepting blame for the war.
Also since Austria-Hungary, and the Ottomans had been defeated both empires were broken up. Most of the modern Middle East was drawn up during this time, and Eastern Europe as well.
The weak state of Germany, and many of the conflicts in the Middle East can be traced back to decisions originating in Paris and the League of Nations which grew out of it. An which might have been alleviated if Wilson had been able to get the US to join the League.
Neat fact is that Ho Chi Minh even approached Wilson seeking support for an independent Vietnam during the conference, showing the extent to which this event could and did redefine the world.