Abstract
The election of Donald Trump as 45th President of the United States
has been associated by many observers to a threat to the liberal order and to the
sunset of US hegemony. To some extent, both perspectives seem exaggerated, or
at least premature. Nevertheless, a reflection on the “health status” of the liberal
order, and on the role that the United States has had in its construction and its
maintenance – and in what emerges as a likely disinvestment – seems particularly
appropriate. The paper thus focuses on two fundamental characteristics of the
order emerged in the West after the Second World War: its multilateral structure,
on the one hand, and the liberal approach (in the peculiar form of the “embedded
liberalism”), on the other. Both aspects, though still characterizing this order,
have in fact undergone significant transformations due to changes in the systemic
structure and the relative power position of the hegemonic State, and to the
concrete policies it implemented. In light of these considerations, the apparent
breakthrough embodied by Trump presidency could prove far more continuity
with previous US administrations than initially believed. Moreover, structural
changes of international politics that alter the nature of the actors involved might
contribute to add further complexity to the current uncertain picture.
Titolo tradotto del contributo | [Autom. eng. transl.] The end of the Western order? Liberalism and multilateralism under the test of the Trump "earthquake" |
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Lingua originale | Italian |
pagine (da-a) | 13-35 |
Numero di pagine | 23 |
Rivista | QUADERNI DI SCIENZE POLITICHE |
Volume | 7 |
Stato di pubblicazione | Pubblicato - 2017 |
Keywords
- ordine, liberalismo, multilateralismo, egemonia, Trump