New England Journal of Public Policy

Article Title

Reinventing Multilateral Order

Authors

Sundeep Waslekar, Strategic Foresight Group

Abstract

The multiple crises of our time result from the breakdown of the multilateral order. Some of these crises may intensify between now and 2030. Multilateral organizations have been eroded to the extent that they are unable to manage catastrophic risk, including a military confrontation between superpowers. The weakening of multilateralism is mirrored in the strengthening of hypernationalism in many countries. It will not be sufficient to mend the multilateral system. It is necessary, instead, to envisage new principles for creating a global governance grid superseding the United Nations Security Council that serves the interests of human civilization and not the nation-states. The new grid can be grounded in the philosophy that the world should be treated as a family. It is utopian to expect the nation-states to accept a multilateral order that does not serve their narrow interests. But the alternative is the annihilation of the human race.

Recommended Citation

Waslekar, Sundeep (2021) "Reinventing Multilateral Order," New England Journal of Public Policy: Vol. 33: Iss. 2, Article 3.
Available at: https://scholarworks.umb.edu/nejpp/vol33/iss2/3