The end of liberal international order?

The Nature of the Current CrisisPage 7

The liberal international order, once thought to be a progressive inevitability, is in crisis. Unlike expected threats from revisionist powers, the most profound challenges originate from within the West: rising political polarization, far-right populism, and a decoupling of liberal internationalism from the economic well-being of the working and middle classes.

Defining Liberal InternationalismPage 9

Liberal internationalism is not merely a product of American hegemony; it is a long-standing tradition of organizing international space to manage the challenges of modernity. It is built on five pillars: commitment to openness, a rules-based order, security cooperation, the belief that the international system is reformable, and a progressive orientation toward liberal democracy.

The Rise and Globalization of the OrderPage 14

Following WWII, the US led the creation of an order defined by 'embedded liberalism,' which balanced economic openness with domestic social stability. The post-Cold War expansion transformed this Western-centric 'security community' into a global platform, which inadvertently sowed the seeds of current instability by undermining the order's governance and shared social purpose.

Pathways for SurvivalPage 22

The author argues that liberal internationalism can survive if it is reinvented. This requires two major shifts: first, Western democracies must reconnect their internationalist agendas with progressive domestic policies that address inequality; and second, the order must be broadened to include and empower the wider world of developing democracies, moving beyond the legacy of Cold War-era Western dominance.