THE old world is dying, we are told. The chaos, the uncertainty, the economic downturn and the rise of populists, are all signs of this coming end of the post-World War II order. Perhaps this is also why some of these signs and trends are so similar to what the world witnessed in the inter-war period, which too struggled with the end of one order and the beginning of a new one. Then too, there was recession, populists, wars and shifting alliances.

But a world order doesn’t weaken just on its own. It does so along with the hegemony of the power that underwrote the system. And the system that came into being at the end of World War II was built on US hegemony, an aspect of which was America’s military presence around the world. Now that the hegemon is weakening, it is reconsidering its global military commitments. In other words, it is not merely about a populist, whimsical president, as many would argue.

Take the recent friction with European allies over Ukraine and the continent’s security. The pressure from Washington as Europe is chided for not paying enough for its own defence and the insistence to end the war with Russia are the result of a world power now struggling with the burden of its global security commitments. It’s not without reason that there’s a strong lobby within the country that no longer supports involvement in conflicts around the globe. The instability in the Middle East can also be seen as part of this trend.

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