The Rise of China and the Future of the West: Can the Liberal System Survive?

China’s rise does not present inevitable battle between east and west. Global powers can accommodate a changing order and thrive. “Today's Western order, in short, is hard to overturn and easy to join,” writes G. John Ikenberry, professor of politics and international affairs. After World War II, the US led in establishing institutions that welcomed victors and defeated, established powers and newly independent states. The value of such global institutions is in safeguarding member interests regardless of status; thus, all member states have good reason to cooperate and preserve the system. Ikenberry points out that all nations in a crowded world, including the most powerful, have good reason to cooperate within global democratic institutions – and not splinter off into a series of competing and contradictory bilateral pacts. He concludes: “The more security and economic relations are multilateral and all-encompassing, the more the global system retains its coherence.” – YaleGlobal