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Multilateralisms: Survival or Revival?

Politique étrangère Issues from Politique Etrangère
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The organized multilateralism born out of the Second World War and the Cold War, and revived in the 1990s with the dream of a world of peaceful “global governance,” has fizzled out. The erosion of the large universal frameworks (United Nations, World Trade Organization, arms control and disarmament, international criminal justice, and so on) did not give way to a void but to an excess: a multitude of agreements and schemes that bore witness to the accelerated rebuilding of international relationships. Will institutional anarchy and the open competition of interests visible in uninhibited struggles for power be able to organize themselves around common fundamental interests in the future?

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Today, Lebanon symbolizes all the ambiguity resulting from almost two years of war in Gaza. Once again, the question relates to political and institutional recomposition, the reconstitution of a Lebanese army in charge of guarding its borders. But it is common knowledge that beyond its internal complexity, Lebanon’s future depends on the general fate of the region: Will Israel accept a political solution to Gaza, downgrading the aggressiveness of Hezbollah? Can Syria and Jordan retain a degree of stability? Can relations with Iran be normalized to an extent through a nuclear agreement?

Whether we focus on the complex issues of the Middle East or choose to observe the international system as a whole, the era has all the hallmarks of a time of change, with no certainty on what lies ahead.

 

MULTILATERALISMS: SURVIVAL OU REVIVAL?

Saving the UN, Saving Multilateralism, by Bernard Miyet

Navigating the Multilateral Seas: Lost in Decomposition?, by Frédéric Ramel

Preparing for and Responding to Pandemics, by Michel Kazatchkine

The Faces of Multilateralism: Arms Control and Disarmament, by Serge Sur

Digital Challenges: Fragmented Governance, by Benjamin Pajot

 

WHAT WILL POSTWAR LEBANON LOOK LIKE?

Lebanon 2025: Where Wars Intersect, by Joseph Maïla

Lebanon: How Much has Changed?, by Nabil el Khoury
 

CURRENT AFFAIRS

Syria: Post Assad, the Trap of Permanent Conflict, by Fabrice Balanche

The Baltic Sea and the War in Ukraine, by Philippe Perchoc

 

BAROMETERS

The “Europe of Internal Security”: An Unknown Quantity, by Jean Mafart

France and Chad: One Crisis after Another, by Nathaniel Powell

South Caucasus: History, Europeanness and Geostrategy, by Pierre Andrieu

 

REFLECTIONS

The IMEC: Trade Routes in a Multipolar World, by Simon Savary

 

 

Other information:

224 pages. 23 euros.

June 6th, 2025.

Diffusion : Pollen/Dif'Pop.

Subscription: Armand Colin.

To buy an issue: leslibraires.fr.

To buy the Epub (in French): Immatériel.fr.

Have a look on Politique étrangère's blog: Politique étrangère.

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979-10-373-0956-3

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Date de publication
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This special issue of Politique étrangère focuses on the proceedings of the Conference organized by the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri) for its 40th anniversary, held on April 10th, 2019, in Sorbonne University's Grand Amphithéâtre.

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During the 19th century, Westerners provided ideological justifications for their colonization, namely spreading the Enlightenment across the globe. This project was received favorably until the second half of the 20th century. Over the last 20 years, it has met new hostility. The “universal values” promoted by the West are viewed today as a form of imperialism to be opposed – especially by China, Russia and Turkey.

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Following the collapse of the Bretton Woods system, the international community sought new stability in the financial system and the assurance of sustained growth. The crisis that began in 2007-2008 has revealed weaknesses that affected advanced economies first and foremost. Efforts have since been made to consolidate the international financial architecture, to coordinate macroeconomic policy, and to improve foreign exchange relations, even if this latter objective has proven complex.

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International trade disagreements: Beyond Trump

Date de publication
20 March 2019
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The trade war between the United States and China is not only due to Donald Trump’s impulsiveness. Its roots are in fact profound and follow three structural changes in the multilateral trading system: the reversal of comparative advantages, the now central role of certain developing countries, and the re-balancing of power that makes coordination between states difficult. In this context, the future of world trade has yet to be written.

Sébastien JEAN

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Multilateralisms: Survival or Revival?