Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The liberal order is dying. This has brought us into an era of revolutionary transformation. Since the end of World War II, the global order has transitioned from the onset to the end of the Cold War, through the so-called "unipolar" moment to the current collapse of US liberal hegemony. Now, global power is moving decisively from the West toward the east and especially to China. Meanwhile, the institutions of the old world – from the WTO to NATO – are being rendered irrelevant or torn apart by a rising tide of nationalism. Faced with this revolutionary transformation and an internal backlash against liberal cooperation, Europe confronts a stark choice: unify or be dismantled. To navigate this new era, European actors must abandon outworn attachments and construct new partnerships, while remaining anchored in their core values.
Martin Wolf is Chief Economics Commentator, Financial Times, London.
The liberal order is dying. This has brought us into an era of revolutionary transformation. Since the end of World War II, the global order has transitioned from the onset to the end of the Cold War, through the so-called "unipolar" moment to the current collapse of US liberal hegemony. Now, global power is moving decisively from the West toward the east and especially to China. Meanwhile, the institutions of the old world – from the WTO to NATO – are being rendered irrelevant or torn apart by a rising tide of nationalism. Faced with this revolutionary transformation and an internal backlash against liberal cooperation, Europe confronts a stark choice: unify or be dismantled. To navigate this new era, European actors must abandon outworn attachments and construct new partnerships, while remaining anchored in their core values.
Martin Wolf is Chief Economics Commentator, Financial Times, London.
