History Main / Realpolitik

* In pre-[=WW2=] Germany, this is why the Communist Party inadvertently led to the rise of the Nazi Party. Rather than form alliances with other moderate or left-leaning parties like the Social Democrats, the Communists instead prioritized ideological purity and denounced all parties as fascist. Had the Communists formed a coalition with the Socialists, the moderates and leftists would've outnumbered the Nazis in the Reichstag parliament and prevented the appointment of a pro-Nazi Chancellor. Subsequently, the Communists's sectarian feuds weakened the opposition, thereby allowing the Nazis to seize control, who then promptly banned the Communist Party and either imprisoned or executed its members.

* [[SinisterMinister Cardinal Moldeen Ogus Gyunei]] from ''LightNovel/DancesWithTheDragons'' is the mastermind behind the series events. [[WellIntentionedExtremist All of it for the sake of]] ''[[WellIntentionedExtremist preventing]]'' [[WellIntentionedExtremist the disastrous Holy War from occurring by uniting the Alshok Territory with the Seven-Cities Alliance and to create a prosperous world]].

* ''Film/{{Downfall}}'': After failing to convince Hitler to negotiate with the Allies, [[StateSec Heinrich Himmler]] unilaterally reaches out to the British Army to offer his surrender. He seems to be operating under the assumption that the Allies would still prefer propping up the Nazi regime so they could use Germany as a counterweight to the communist Soviets. {{Subverted|Trope}} because [[EvilCannotComprehendGood Himmler Cannot Comprehend Good]] - despite the rest of the Allies having ideological differences with the Soviets (and recognizing that conflict with the Soviet Union is more or less inevitable after the war), nobody with a normal moral code would consider siding with the Nazis for a second. This is especially true as the war is nearly over and there is ample evidence for [[FinalSolution Nazi atrocities]] all across Europe.

* In ''Film/{{Hackers}}'', The Plague claims to espouse this worldview.
--> '''The Plague:''' Dade, I know how you might feel about narking on your friends, but, we're hackers. For us, there's no such thing as family and friends. We're each our own country, with temporary allies and enemies. I'd like to make a treaty with you.

* John 'Gentleman Johnny' Marcone, later Accorded Baron Marcone of Chicago in ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' is a typical example of the Kingpin type - he's the head of Chicago's underworld, and a ruthless criminal... but after his takeover of the Chicago underworld, he went about a ruthlessly efficient clean-up, doing what Dresden terms, "Putting the 'civil' back in 'civil offender'", cutting collateral damage to a minimum and personally executing anyone who tries to involve or victimise children. As Dresden notes, there's enough decency in him that, to Dresden's irritation, he can't just file him under pure villain and call it a day. However, this relative decency, tight control of Chicago's underworld, and considerable resultant power mean that Dresden winds up saving him on several occasions, and helping him expand his power by becoming an Accorded Baron under the Unseelie Accords, simply because he is far better than the alternative and, in the latter case, Dresden can't be everywhere and Marcone will defend Chicago out of pure pragmatism (it's ''his'' turf) if given the opportunity.

* This is what ''Literature/ThePrince'' is ''actually'' about -- not about tyranny and cruelty, but about unfettered pragmatism whereby the title character protects and advances his interests (and that of the princedom, of course, but they're basically the same).
* The T'au in the Literature/CiaphasCain novel ''For the Emperor'' use this as their justification for occupying sections of the planet. Cain (HERO OF THE IMPERIUM!) points out that the Imperium have used exactly the same rationale to then seize said planets soon after.
* In a Creator/RobertAHeinlein novel, ''Literature/HaveSpaceSuitWillTravel'', the Three Galaxies organization of many alien races puts HumanityOnTrial. Our hero Kip says this is unjust. The alien moderator responds that the Three Galaxies don't bother trying to understand "justice" but are a defence organization that destroys any race that will be a threat.

* In Literature/OperationMassacre, that is the excuse for the political violence of Aramburu's regime. This book, too, [[PoeticJustice was used as a proof for Aramburu's execution]] by the left-wing guerrilla [[YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters Montoneros]].
* {{Doorstopper}} MedievalEuropeanFantasy and Realpolitik met one night, both got seriously drunk on History... and ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' is their surprise baby. Yes, you get dragons, magic, kings, queens, assassins, guards, [[TheFairFolk "faeries"]], taverns and bards: but, what you mainly get is a whole zoo full of [[GambitPileUp political shenanigans]] (national, international, personal and interpersonal) played out quite cynically, pragmatically and violently. People find themselves working together when they hate each other's guts, refuse to work with others they personally admire because of differing goals; they'll support, set up or kill off ''anybody'' in the way to get ahead, shift alliances and target swap all to keep their group's heads above water or to get ahead themselves... the whole enchilada. Consequences for the smallest actions produce massive, unpredicted (not necessarily unpredictable) repercussions. Agendas and counter-agendas tighten around each other in the [[TitleDrop Game of Thrones.]] The best players play with cleverness and pragmatism (which often works for quite some time, barring the odd SpannerInTheWorks), some try to use it with a dash of cruelty (newsflash: it tends to work... until it very seriously doesn't), some try to mix in ''some'' idealism (iffy: often backfires when they get the mix wrong, or other players misread the moves): but, ultimately, luck has the final say on how the game plays out thanks to the ''sheer number'' of factors involved -- some quite [[OutsideContextProblem outside the known board layout]].
* Herhor in ''Literature/{{Pharaoh}}'' is completely ruthless. Pentuer, his understudy, gives up politics in disgust.
* ''Literature/NewDealCoalitionRetained'':
** Somalia defects from the African Socialist Alliance to the Entebbe Pact in order to nab territory from Ethiopia.
** Iraq switches its allegiances from the Soviets to the Americans after Iran goes Communist, and the Americans eagerly accept them as a strong ally in the region.
** China is allied to the Soviets, but stays neutral in WorldWarIII in order to maintain the security of its own sphere of influence in Asia. They only get directly involved when Japan enters the war on NATO's behalf and invades Siberia, and even then it's just because a Soviet collapse would allow Japan to claim massive territory claims; China makes sure everyone knows it's only fighting Japan, to avoid getting dragged into the larger war. [[spoiler: And they sue for a separate peace as soon as it becomes clear the Soviets are losing.]]
** Libya sits out most of WWIII, but keeps a neutrality that is clearly communist-friendly, no doubt because the Soviets and their allies seem to have the upper hand. Near the end of the war, however, when it becomes clear that the Allies are winning, they declare war on the Warsaw Pact and help defeat the last remaining communist countries in Africa.
** Slobodan Milošević is placed in charge of Yugoslavia by the Soviets to try and shore up Communist control of what territories they still have. However, unlike the increasingly delusional hardliners in the Politburo, Milošević realizes that the Allies are going to win, so abandons communism in favor of Serbian nationalism, reaching out with an offer of working with the Allies in exchange for control of a Greater Serbia carved out of Yugoslavia post-war. And while the Allies are hesitant (due to wanting to divide Yugoslavia along ethnic lines) they're more desperate to weaken Warsaw Pact forces in the Balkans, so they accept Milošević's proposal.
*** And when NATO realizes post-war what a horrible mistake was and start putting sanctions on Serbia in response to its human rights violations, Milošević responds by forming close ties with various former Allied or neutral nations (primarily the Entebbe Pact, Iraq, India and China) which are seeking increased influence to counter that of the major powers.
** In the 90s, the CIA backs coups of narco-friendly regimes in South America that are fueling the drug crisis in America. They specifically state that they don't care if the new rulers they install become dictators, as long as they don't continue that trend.
** During the Great Southern War, the Entebbe Pact finances separatist militant groups in Freyist and Concordat nations, with them doing the same to such groups in Pact nations, to weaken their enemies' war efforts.

* ''Literature/TheTravelersGate'': Enosh is an apocalypse cult that controls a small city-state, and is dedicated to destroying the Damasca Kingdom. Damasca could easily have conquered Enosh centuries ago, but having a powerful nation of Travelers nearby, even an enemy one, had its advantages. Enosh helped keep the Territories in check, they occasionally shared knowledge, and even had a few trade treaties.

** Both the US and Israel cut deals for material support with [[CurseOfThePharaoh Ramses XI's]] takeover of Egypt — for the Americans, it's the standard "as long as he's not communist" philosophy, while for the Israelis it's because he only wants to rule Egypt as it existed in his time (which doesn't include the Sinai territories Israel took from modern Egypt), and also because he doesn't care either way about Jews and is outright hostile towards the surrounding Muslim countries.

* ''Literature/KentuckyFriedPolitics'':
** When the US intervenes against the Soviet-backed MilitaryCoup in Ethiopia, President Mondale convinces the Soviets to back off from further involvement by offering to sell them millions of tons of wheat at a discount. Facing a potentially starving population due to poor agricultural resources, the Soviets begrudgingly accept the deal.
** After Syria invades Israel on a quite thin pretext (a rogue Israeli national assassinating a Lebanese official with Syrian business ties), the rest of the Arab nations side with Israel in order to preserve the prosperous economic connections that have come from twenty-or-so years of peace in the Middle East.

* In ''Series/StargateAtlantis'' the MainCharacters are ''put on trial'' for [[WhatTheHellHero their previous actions]]. Shepard basically argues that they aren't fighting for right or wrong, but rather they are fighting for ''themselves''.

* On ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'', in the episode "Wolf In the Fold", Kirk explicitly refuses the suggestion that he help Scotty escape the planet on which he had been charged with murder. While he does his best to, and eventually does, get Scotty cleared of murder, Kirk says that he'll allow Scotty to be jailed and executed if he's found guilty—even if Kirk believes him innocent. Why? Because the planet is a strategically vital port, and helping Scotty escape its justice would sour them against the Federation.
* Characteristic of Romulan foreign policy in ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' and beyond. For example, the Klingons and Romulans are old enemies, and so the Romulans are quite happy to provide support to the House of Duras when they rebel against Chancellor Gowron because it means they get to DivideAndConquer the Klingons ''and'' screw over the Klingons' allies the Federation in the bargain.
* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' treats this trope as the order of the day, with some very underhanded episodes such as "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges" and "In the Pale Moonlight". Many of these episodes involve [[NoSuchAgency Section 31]], which [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans does whatever's necessary to protect]] TheFederation.
* ''Series/StarTrekPicard'' has Picard angry with Starfleet for refusing to help the Romulans when their star was going nova which killed millions of their people. He does a televised interview on how the Federation betrayed its principles by not helping their long-time enemies. Admiral Clancy then chastises Picard for not grasping how several major Federation members threatened to pull out if they went ahead to aid the Romulans, especially after a synthetic rebellion destroyed much of their fleet.
-->'''Clancy''': Even before the synthetics attacked Mars, fourteen species within the Federation said "cut the Romulans loose or we'll pull out". It was a choice between letting the Federation implode, and letting the Romulans go.
-->'''Picard''': The Federation does not get to decide if a species lives or dies.
-->'''Clancy''': Yes, we do. We absolutely do. Thousands of species depend upon us for unity. We didn’t have enough ships left. We had to make choices.
* A friendlier version than most is seen in relations between the Russian Federation and the United States in ''Series/StargateSG1''. The two are officially allies and by later seasons the Russians operate their own SG team under the auspices of Stargate Command. In "Disclosure," though, Col. Chekov notes that part of the reason Russia is willing to take a backseat to America is because that way, the United States foots most of the bill for adapting ImportedAlienPhlebotinum, then Russia can turn around and build from American blueprints for a fraction of the cost.
** In "Crusade", when the Russian Federation briefly supports the People's Republic of China bid for control of the Stargate, Chekov later admits that it was simply a ploy by his government to leverage plans to build their own ''Daedalus-class'' [[CoolStarship battlecruiser]]. While the Russians have long-desired to run the Stargate program, they're content (for now) with the arrangement to simply loan the Gate to the Americans and make them pay through the nose to use it. Both Landry and Chekov admit that their governments would rather maintain the deal than let [[EnemyMine another]] [[BetterTheDevilYouKnow nation]] take control of offworld affairs, ''especially'' not the Chinese.[[note]]For those unfamiliar with world politics, the Russians and Chinese have been regional rivals, though not exactly enemies, since TheFifties.[[/note]]
** In "48 Hours", it's made even more clear by Major Davis, when he coldly tells Colonel Chekov that the U.S. would consider any attempt by another nation to start their own Stargate Program to be an act of war.

** His ArchEnemy, Tywin Lannister, is the embodiment of Realpolitik and it is extended to the rest of his family, whether they like it or not. To wit, the continued success of the Lannisters — beyond military might, and the sheer amount of gold the family rests upon — is due largely to Tywin's cold, critical knack for impersonal politicking.

* In "3:00 P.M.-4:00 P.M." from the fifth season of ''Series/TwentyFour'', Jack Bauer argues with James Nathanson, who is trying to justify the killing of former president David Palmer, whom Jack greatly admires and has personally saved the life of more than once. Nathanson spins a story about how Palmer's death was a necessity, but Jack's not buying it.
-->'''Jack''': I've heard your reasoning from Walt Cummings. It's still treason.
-->'''Nathanson''': No. It's a realpolitik.

* In ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' this is the basic approach the Imperium of Man takes in regards to the [[TheAlliance T'au Empire]] and vice versa. For example, in the wake of the Damocles Crusade, many Imperial worlds were stripped of their defenders in order to make a stand at Macragge against the tyranids of [[HordeOfAlienLocusts Hive Fleet Behemoth]]. The T'au expanded their empire in the wake of the Imperial muster, going into now-defenseless systems and offering to protect them in exchange for annexation rights. Those who would not accept the deal were simply {{curb stomp|Battle}}ed as most of their defenses were already removed. The T'au defend their aggressive actions by saying that if they had not "expanded defensive interests" to those Imperial worlds, then other, less {{benevolent|AlienInvasion}} powers would have taken them anyway before the Imperium could build its forces back up to keep them.\\
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On the other side, while the Imperium of course wants to be rid of the T'au eventually, they generally refrain from taking direct offensive action against them, except to try and liberate Imperial worlds that the T'au have annexed, preferring instead a policy of trying to contain the T'au Empire's expansion. This is in part because of the huge drain of military resources that would be required to completely rout the T'au, but it is also because the T'au Empire functions as a bulwark against Tyranid hive fleets, Orks, and other local powers around the Eastern Fringe where the Imperium's power is limited. As long as the T'au Empire exists, it will distract other potential threats away from Imperial worlds, and the Imperium is only too happy to let that happen. On the flip side, both nations are more than willing to [[EnemyMine cooperate in the face of major regional threats]], such as when Hive Fleet Kraken invaded in 992.M41.
* The trope name would be an entirely legitimate alternate title for the ''TabletopGame/{{Spycraft}}'' D20 system. While not necessarily a spy in the literal sense, every player is an agent, tasked with achieving an objective with few restrictions on methods and many restrictions on exposure.
** All major forms of diplomacy, negotiation, and some forms of combat can be replaced by a large wallet and a highly-developed "bribe" mechanic.
** Combat is intentionally designed to favor people that play dirty, set up traps, and hit weak points. Unlike other d20 games, it's almost unheard of for combat to move past 5 or 6 rounds-- someone will have found a weak point and exploited an instant-kill long before then. You also mostly use combat to remove troublesome civilians and diplomats, so that you can replace them in a disguise.

** The nation of Breland is probably least interested in it - King Boranel is an old ChaoticGood adventurer at heart - and can get away with it thanks to the riches of Xen'drik that funnel through their land, but the laid-back attitude and fantastic wealth leave the nation rife with corruption and plagued by political factions lead by people who do not shy away from realpolitik.

* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'' runs off this trope. Multiple star empires fighting for control of Terra and each other. WordOfGod is that the setting will never see sentient alien life because a hostile non-human force would break the dynamic too much.

* The example right above applies to any FourX and Grand Strategy games, regardless of settings or degree of realism. Why would you ally with a power that decimated your people or offends your sensibilities? Because there are bigger, nastier powers out there gunning on both of you.
* In ''Franchise/MassEffect'', most of the major galactic powers engage in this, especially the [[NotSoOmniscientCouncilOfBickering Citadel Council]]. In ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', Humanity is left to fight the invasion of Earth alone because their fellow Council Races would rather concentrate on the Reapers encroaching on ''their'' borders first. This is also the reason why [[spoiler: the Asari refused to share their intact Prothean Beacon with the rest of the galaxy, despite writing the laws that made sharing Beacon knowledge mandatory for all other races, as data-mining it was the only way they maintained their position as the dominant race in the galaxy]].
* Not well-followed by Lord Regent Burrows in ''VideoGame/{{Dishonored}}''. The Empire of the Isles wanes in power under his rule because his decision making is based mostly on his severely neurotic need for order, rather than on making decisions that will strengthen the country. This is largely his motivation for staging the coup that gets him into power in the first place. He later blames his ineffectiveness on the inability of everyone else to do as they're told.
* Downplayed in ''VideoGame/JustCause 1'' and ''2'', and comes to a head in ''VideoGame/JustCause3''. The protagonist, Rico Rodriguez, is a "dictator removal specialist" working for [[GovernmentAgencyOfFiction The Agency]], which is basically a parody of the CIA that destabilizes countries mainly through [[OutsideRide car-surfing]] and StuffBlowingUp. In the first game, Rico deposes a bloodthirsty nuclear-armed dictator by helping mostly-decent rebels as well as a not-so-decent drug cartel. In the second game, he again deposes a bloodthirsty nuclear-armed dictator, but the three factions he helps are [[TheMafia the local crime syndicate]], hypocritical {{Dirty Communist|s}} rebels, and ultra-nationalist thugs. And in the third game, The Agency outright refuses to let Rico go to his homeland and depose yet another bloodthirsty nuclear-armed dictator, because he possesses a very powerful new type of {{Unobtanium}}, and that makes him The Agency's best goddamn friend - prompting Rico to strike out on his own and work with the local rebels to free his homeland.
* The main quest of ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' features a quest that involves complex negotiations between the two CivilWar factions (unless the PlayerCharacter has already resolved the war in Skyrim). Tullius was seen ready to behead Ulfric at the beginning of the game, but then is seen negotiating with him because the dragon threat is too large for either side to ignore anymore. Elisif and Galmar are both miffed at the idea of just freely giving away territory, but Tullius and Ulfric both see the value. The player can influence these negotiations, though favoring one side too heavily will make the other side dislike you more.

* In ''Webcomic/WeAreTheWyrecats'', the BigBad is trying to keep humanity in a cycle of constant engineered wars to control the population.

* UsefulNotes/RichardNixon made his political career being a stalwart anticommunist, yet he and Henry Kissinger (his Secretary of State) were the ones who started the push for greater diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China starting with "ping-pong diplomacy" in 1971 and kicked off on a government level with Nixon's visit to China in 1972 - both held mutual distrust and suspicion of the Soviet Union at the time. Formal diplomatic relations were established in 1979, when the US ended official diplomatic recognition of the Republic of China (i.e., Taiwan).

** Not coincidentally, Nixon's strong anticommunist reputation was a big reason his administration was able to initiate the move to establish ties with China in the first place - said record helped to shield him from accusations that he was coddling to DirtyCommunists (something a more moderate president wouldn't have had). This legitimacy-by-previous-enmity is what is meant when it is said that "only Nixon could go to China" (regardless of how much [[Film/StarTrekVITheUndiscoveredCountry the Vulcans]] may claim is theirs).

* One example of this was the Western Allies allying with the Soviet Union during World War II. On one side, you had a group of largely democratic countries (most of which, admittedly, had large, distinctly un-democratically-run Empires) who had a strong history of anti-Communism. On the other, you had a totalitarian Communist state which had killed nearly a million of its own people as ideological enemies and imprisoned a few million more. What brought them together-- the ''only'' thing, even --was a common EnemyMine in the form of ThoseWackyNazis and Italian fascism. While this did lead to beneficial co-operation between the two powers, it also led to things such as what some have termed [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_betrayal the Western Betrayal.]] Winston Churchill, a vehement anti-Communist, rather famously summed it up as:

** UsefulNotes/JosephStalin was also one hell of a pragmatist - firstly, he [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapallo_Treaty organized]] mutual aid with Weimar Germany, as they were both troubled pariah states, despite Germany being a capitalist republic. He also abandoned Lenin's ideas of world revolution, focusing on "Building socialism in one country", and hijacked Trotsky's ideas of hyper-industrialisation. After Hitler's takeover, he still traded with Germany; then he tried to ally with the Entente against Hitler; after seeing their reluctance to stop him, he [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov%E2%80%93Ribbentrop_Pact negotiated]] with Hitler, despite his rabid anti-communism, while re-arming and organizing the army. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarII he united Russians with ideas of succession between UsefulNotes/TsaristRussia and the USSR, glorifying old-time heroes like Alexander Nevsky or Admiral Ushakov, painting old invaders like UsefulNotes/NapoleonBonaparte or Teutonic Knights as ANaziByAnyOtherName. After the war, despite anti-Semitic politics, he lobbied the UN for the creation of Israel.

** [[UsefulNotes/NoMoreEmperors Nationalist China]], the fourth major Allied power, is an interesting case. The regime was a military dictatorship under Generalissimo UsefulNotes/ChiangKaiShek, controlling China as a single-party state. The Kuomintang ruling party encompassed various bickering wings, from socialists to traditionalists. However, each wing was kept united under Chiang, who settled on a centrist position and prided himself on it. This let China get foreign aid from Nazi Germany, the USSR, and America throughout the 1930s, especially once the devastating war with Japan began in 1937 proper. When China joined the Allies in 1941, it was ultimately America that took the most interest. America had plenty of business and missionary interests in China, and FDR believed that the nation deserved to become a world power (with American guidance). So Chiang decided to convince Roosevelt that China could potentially become a liberal democracy. This had some basis in fact - the KMT under Chiang was in the "People's Tutelage" stage theorized by its left-leaning founder, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, which prepared the people for democracy through single-party rule. Although the Americans initially believed this, it soon became abundantly clear that Chiang's government was a ''very'' corrupt authoritarian regime with no interest in transforming into a democracy anytime soon. Said corruption and the KMT's terrible policy record on domestic issues disillusioned many American personnel. Yet China's contribution - tying down half of the IJA in China to stop them from re-inforcing Japan's Pacific territories - was invaluable to the Allied war effort. Roosevelt also maintained good relations with Chiang (it helped both men had much in common, such as being staunch anti-imperialists). As a result, the U.S. did provide China with military aid and tried their best to prop up Chiang's government. By 1945, China had regained several territories (including Taiwan) from Japan, ended most of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unequal_treaty unequal treaties]] and was a permanent member of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council UN Security Council]]. However, corruption had worsened and the regime was struggling to hold itself up after eight years of destructive fighting. The U.S. eventually got frustrated with Chiang and withdrew aid during the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Civil_War Chinese Civil War]], which was one of the decisive factors in the eventual communist victory. Chiang, realizing that he had lost, fled to Taiwan in 1949 and set up shop there, pushing out crucial reforms but also establishing an even harsher military dictatorship than the one on the mainland. The U.S. and Chiang re-established relations, with Truman realizing the importance of an anti-communist bulwark in East Asia. It wasn't until 1973 that the U.S. (and most Western nations) finally acknowledged the PRC as the "real" China, in no small part due to the increasingly influential Chinese economy.

** In Canada, prior to the 2015 federal election, there were open discussions among voters about strategic voting between the NDP and the Liberals in order to knock the Conservatives--who had been in power for 10 years, never with an absolute majority of the vote--out of office. What they suggested was that, in ridings where it was quite clear that either the Liberal candidate or NDP candidate would probably be in third place, said third-place candidate's potential voters should instead vote for the candidate (Liberal or NDP) who would be in ''second'' place, which would, theoretically, allow them to beat the Conservative who would otherwise win a three-way (or more) race by a plurality.

* Alluded to in ''Film/{{Downfall}}''. Heinrich Himmler surrenders to the British Army operating under the assumption that the Allies would still prefer propping up the Nazi regime so they could use Germany as a counterweight to the communist Soviets. {{Subverted|Trope}} because [[EvilCannotComprehendGood Himmler Cannot Comprehend Good]] - despite the rest of the Allies having ideological differences with the Soviets (and recognizing that conflict with the Soviet Union is more or less inevitable after the war), nobody with a normal moral code would consider siding with the Nazis for a second. This is especially true as the war is nearly over and there is ample evidence for [[FinalSolution Nazi atrocities]] all across Europe.

** [[UsefulNotes/NoMoreEmperors Nationalist China]], the fourth major Allied power, is an interesting case. The regime was a military dictatorship under Generalissimo UsefulNotes/ChiangKaiShek, controlling China as a single-party state. The Kuomintang ruling party encompassed various bickering wings, from socialists to traditionalists. However, each wing was kept united under Chiang, who settled on a centrist position. This let China get foreign aid from Nazi Germany and the USSR throughout the 1930s. When China joined the Allies in 1941, it was America that took the most interest. America had plenty of business and missionary interests in China, and FDR believed that the nation deserved to become a world power (with American guidance). So Chiang decided to convince Roosevelt that China could potentially become a liberal democracy. This had some basis in fact - the KMT under Chiang was in the "People's Tutelage" stage theorized by its founder, democratic socialist Dr. Sun Yat-sen, which prepared the people for democracy through single-party rule. Although the Americans initially believed this, it soon became abundantly clear that Chiang's government was a ''very'' corrupt authoritarian regime with no interest in transforming into a democracy anytime soon. Said corruption and the KMT's terrible policy record on domestic issues disillusioned many American personnel. Yet China's contribution - tying down half of the IJA in China to stop them from re-inforcing Japan's Pacific territories - was invaluable to the Allied war effort. Roosevelt also maintained good relations with Chiang (it helped both men had much in common, such as being staunch anti-imperialists). As a result, the U.S. did provide China with military aid and tried their best to prop up Chiang's government. By 1945, China had regained several territories (including Taiwan) from Japan, ended most of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unequal_treaty unequal treaties]] and was a permanent member of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council UN Security Council]]. However, corruption had worsened and the regime was struggling to hold itself up after eight years of destructive fighting. The U.S. eventually got frustrated with Chiang and withdrew aid during the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Civil_War Chinese Civil War]], which was one of the decisive factors in the eventual communist victory. Chiang, realizing that he had lost, fled to Taiwan in 1949 and set up shop there. The U.S. and Chiang re-established relations, with Truman realizing the importance of an anti-communist bulwark in East Asia. It wasn't until 1973 that the U.S. (and most Western nations) finally acknowledged the PRC as the "real" China, in no small part due to the increasingly influential Chinese economy.

** The U.S. protected the majority of war criminals from the infamous Unit 731 in the Imperial Japanese Army and gave them political and legal immunity from prosecution in exchange for their cooperation in American bioweapons research. Almost all the core members of Unit 731 were notorious for conducting truly horrific experimentation on unwilling ''live'' subjects (mostly Chinese, White Russians and Koreans, although a few American, British and New Zealand POWs were also subjected to the experiments), such as vivisecting people while they were unconscious, forcing prisoners into pressure chambers to watch how they died and herding entire village populations into huge chambers to be killed by the full effects of bubonic plague, anthrax or frostbite. By securing cooperation from the war criminals, the U.S. demanded that they shared the data obtained through those experiments with them. It should be noted, though, that the members didn't tell the Americans ''how'' they got the data, but simply the results. When the U.S. Government actually discovered [[PlayingWithSyringes just how the Unit conducted their so-called research]], many were so horrified that a number of ex-Unit members were pulled from U.S. bioweapons projects and handed over to the Soviets, who either executed or imprisoned them. It's worth noting that many in the West, including the U.S. government, dismissed witness reports about the activities of Unit 731 as "communist propaganda".

Compare HobbesWasRight, WellIntentionedExtremist, TheEmpire, MyCountryRightOrWrong, GambitPileup. Contrast MachiavelliWasWrong, as well as EnlightenedSelfInterest, where countries act to ''benefit'' each other in order to advance their own interests. {{Proxy War}}s are a specific execution of realpolitik.

* ''VideoGame/RuinaFairyTaleOfTheForgottenRuins'': [[spoiler:Duke Kamur didn't want to execute Paris's mother, but the government forced him to do so because she adopted a baby that West Siwa wanted dead. If he refused, West Siwa would have declared war on the Kness Dukedom. However, he spares her adopted children and refuses to kill them even when they later try to go after him for revenge.]]

* This also happens in US elections, where (most) candidates, if they're losing in the primaries, will graciously bow out so as not to "fracture the party" and allow someone who they'd vehemently disagree with win over someone they only partially disagree with. Not doing so is what led to UsefulNotes/TheodoreRoosevelt causing Taft's defeat to UsefulNotes/WoodrowWilson, and is largely credited as being a main factor in the 2000 US election, where Ralph Nader split the vote from UsefulNotes/AlGore.
** This also contributed to the defeat of UsefulNotes/HillaryClinton in 2016. UsefulNotes/BernieSanders' supporters were disillusioned with Clinton's primary victory, especially in light of tactics used by the DNC that favored Clinton over Bernie. In the lead up and initial follow up, many feared that defeat would happen if enough of the Sanders' supporters were ticked off enough to vote for third-party candidates. As it turns out, they [[TookAThirdOption took a fourth option and didn't vote at all]]. It should be noted that this isn't the first time Hillary's primary support caused trouble. In 2008, she stayed in the primary for far longer than most Obama supporters wanted and turned to some tactics that turned off many independent voters. While the party still managed to win in the general election, a Democratic victory wasn't nearly as assured as it had been in the beginning of the primary season.

* UsefulNotes/OttoVonBismarck, a 19th century Prussian statesman who served as theFirst Chancellor to King Wilhelm I, advocated realpolitik as a means of uniting Germany. Specifically, this was in opposition to the democratic nationalist movements which attempted to unite Germany as a confederation in the 1830s and 1840s, whereas Bismarck's plan was to unite the German states under Prussian hegemony by uniting them against various external threats. Bismarck would utilize realpolitik again during the Franco-Prussian War, where

** A staggering example of this occured during TheSeventies, when the Soviet Union asked Finland to help them find a way to invade Norway (one of only two UsfulNotes/{{NATO}} allies of the day[[note]]The other being Turkey[[/note]] with a land border with the USSR). Finland obliged, but decided to work so slowly that the whole thing was stalled, and the Soviets eventually abandoned the idea.

** A staggering example of this occured during TheSeventies, when the Soviet Union asked Finland to help them find a way to invade Norway. Finland obliged, but decided to work so slowly that the whole thing was stalled, and the Soviets eventually abandoned the idea.

* This also happens in domestic elections, where (most) candidates, if they're losing in the primaries, will graciously bow out so as not to "fracture the party" and allow someone who they'd vehemently disagree with win over someone they only partially disagree with. Not doing so is what led to UsefulNotes/TheodoreRoosevelt causing Taft's defeat to UsefulNotes/WoodrowWilson, and is largely credited as being a main factor in the 2000 US election, where Ralph Nader split the vote from UsefulNotes/AlGore.

* ''Literature/KentuckyFriedPolitics'': When the US intervenes against the Soviet-backed MilitaryCoup in Ethiopia, President Mondale convinces the Soviets to back off from further involvement by offering to sell them millions of tons of wheat at a discount. Facing a potentially starving population due to poor agricultural resources, the Soviets begrudgingly accept the deal.

* {{Realpolitik}}: "The Room Where it Happens" is an ode to political scheming and backroom deals. And Burr wants in on it.

* In pre-WW2 Germany, this is why the Communist Party inadvertently led to the rise of Nazism. Rather than form alliances with other moderate or left-leaning parties like the Social Democrats, the Communists instead prioritized ideological purity and denounced all parties as fascistic. Had the Communists formed a coalition with the Socialists, they would've outnumbered the Nazis in the Reichstag and appointed an anti-Nazi Chancellor. Subsequently, the Communists's sectarian feuds weakened the opposition, thereby allowing the Nazis to seize control, who then promptly banned the Communist Party and either imprisoned or executed its members.