John Eikenberry: The End of the Liberal International Order

Summary

The study, published by the International Affairs Journal, Volume 94, Issue 1, in January 2018, by the American thinker G. John Ikenberry, titled “The end of liberal international order?”, stated that over seven decades the world has been dominated by a western liberal order. After the Second World War, the United States and its partners built a multifaceted and sprawling international order, organized around economic openness, multilateral institutions, security cooperation and democratic solidarity.

The study that was translated into Arabic by Jalal Khusheib and published by Egypt Institute Journal, states that along the way, the United States became the ‘first citizen’ of this order, providing hegemonic leadership—anchoring the alliances, stabilizing the world economy, fostering cooperation and championing ‘free world’ values. Western Europe and Japan emerged as key partners, tying their security and economic fortunes to this extended liberal order.

According to the paper, this order spread outwards after the end of the Cold War. Countries in east Asia, eastern Europe and Latin America made democratic transitions and became integrated into the world economy. As the postwar order expanded, so too did its governance institutions. NATO expanded, the WTO was launched and the G20 took center stage. Looking at the world at the end of the twentieth century, one could be excused for thinking that history was moving in a progressive and liberal internationalist direction.