February 21
【Part 3】 The Future of the US-led International Order
The discussion looked at how to assess the international situation in the current post “post-Cold War” era and the future direction of the international order based on this assessment.
There was a shared recognition that the international community is becoming more divided, unstable, and complex, but a range of views were expressed regarding its characteristics. One was that the US continues to lead the international order in cooperation with its allies, despite its relative superiority in economic power being in decline. It was also stated that an international order based on values such as democracy is preferable. On the other hand, it was pointed out that multipolarity is making headway in the Indo-Pacific region, home to numerous competitive powers, and that US leadership would need redefinition. Among other views expressed were that the current situation marks a transition because the “hot war” in Ukraine had truly ended the Cold War, and that transitions are triggered by technical innovations and entail profound transformations, meaning the future order is not yet discernible while we are still at such an early stage of transformation.
It was opined that the US-led order is not global but western, and thus exclusive, in nature. On the other hand, the importance of upholding fundamental values shared by the world such as the rule of law and maintaining an open international community was emphasized. It was also argued that even imperfect democracy is preferable to authoritarianism. Regarding US-China relations, the significance of dialogue was stressed, as neither of the countries were seeking a conflict, but there were differing views about which side was contributing more to the heightened tensions.
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