Western Hegemony’s Unravelling |
The Western-led international order, after the end of the Second World War, defined by governance structure, trade relations, human rights, and multilateral alliances, had reshaped the superstructure of global politics and the security framework. This order was predominantly driven by Western countries, i.e., the United States and its cross-Atlantic partners, that encapsulated sufficient economic, military, and ideological power and influence. However, the era of uncontested global hegemony relished by the Western hemisphere is receding in both the material and non-material domains.
The basis of Western hegemony, from the traditional framework of international politics, was manufactured through the help of international institutions, alliances, and economic restructuring. Organisations such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and military alliances allowed Western countries to set the rules of engagement in the global ecosystem of politics. Although these structures of power promoted liberalism, democracy, and international legal rights, the invisible hand also provided avenues through which Western powers projected both hard and soft power across the Global North and Global South.
Yet the international system of governance is no longer shaped by the hegemonic discourse anchored in a Western lens. The rise of Asian economies, hubs of manufacturing powerhouses with strong demographic potential, can be argued as an indicator of the relative decline of Western politico-economic influence. In the last two decades, countries in the Eastern hemisphere have........