The New World Disorder

A coruscating analysis of current international relations, setting out the dangers the world will face if the West does not succeed in reinventing itself.

The West is under pressure, and it has only itself to blame. Over the past thirty years, through a mixture of naivety and arrogance, it has lost its global advantage. The challenges are profound: the rise of China, climate change, and the polarisation of society. It’s time for a new start: modernity must become sustainable if it is to survive. The triumph of the West had seemed unstoppable not that long ago.

After the end of the Cold War, the democratic market economy took hold in the former Eastern Bloc, Russia went from being an enemy to a partner, and even China turned to capitalism. Then came the terrorist attacks of 9/11 that shook the world. The War on Terror destabilised an entire region; the Arab Spring only brought forth new autocracies; and, following the annexation of Crimea, the confrontation with Russia intensified. Instead of a liberal world order, a new world disorder has emerged. 

Peter R. Neumann, an internationally acclaimed expert on terrorism and geopolitics, uncovers the mistakes that led to our present dire situation and outlines what must happen now.