ABSTRACT
This chapter identifies and discusses four major features of liberal world order. These are: (i) a high level of security interdependence that incentivizes interstate cooperation; (ii) a dense network of multilateral institutions that helps to socialize rising powers into the existing order; (iii) a globalized capitalist system that has a pacifying effect on world politics; and (iv) a near-universal appeal of liberal values and governance practices. The chapter finds that all of them, to varying degrees, are undermined by recent trends and developments in world politics. This does not mean, however, that we are on the verge of a total breakdown. Nor are we witnessing a radical transformation of world politics through the emergence of an alternative, illiberal international order. Rather, the chapter suggests that we are moving towards a more fragmented, more competitive, and more regionalized world that is shaped by multiple centres of power.
