The Americans are still slow to recognise how revolutionary,  the changes sweeping the globe are. Will the United States remain the “indispensable nation” in global affairs under these conditions? Though America acts as a catalyst, it is not indispensable. Only Washington knows what needs to be done for the entire human race, and that the rest of the world can either join or oppose it.

Iran provides an excellent example. As long as Washington maintained that the only solution to Tehran’s desire for a nuclear-weapons capacity was regime change, nothing happened. As the US has begun to back away from that stance, they have seen progress.

One reason the Americans have had difficulty in assembling coalitions, and why some have begun to talk about the emergence of a “new world order” is because they are not a different sort of great power anymore. They are treated as a self-interested power. This comes when forces of change unleashed by the end of the Cold War and globalisation make it difficult for nation-states to cope with the new-world threats.

There are several benefits of fast paced globalisation. Cheaper goods will be available to the middle class but it will also make it harder to seal off one’s country from the effects of global pandemics.

A league of the world’s democratic states is proposed to be a solution. Hopefully, this body will promote democratic norms and not act as a new bloc in world affairs. Dividing the world into good and the evil will not be useful since most countries at this point in time are motivated by a variety of interests. However, the Atlantic community must regroup.

This underscores the American need for a new paradigm in international affairs. Today’s UN is grappling with contradictory principles of how to reconcile with the sovereign independence of the nation-state with the “responsibility to protect”. The US must also come to terms with its own post-Cold War euphoria. Some hoped that by acting unilaterally, the Americans could achieve results that other nations approved of. Part of the problem is that the nature of power has been changing. All the pillars of American ability to project power — aren’t of much use. The world is not susceptible to US domination — but without US leadership not much can be achieved.

IHT