Multilateralism: Critique and Appraisal

Abstract

International relations since 1989 has been devoid of any conceptual framework, structuring device or organizing principle. Although the Bush administration’s enunciation of the New World Order was an attempt to fill both the intellectual void and the policy vacuum, this proved too elusive a concept. The New World Order rhetoric helped to mobilize support for the war against Saddam Hussein, but the notion had little enduring significance as the Bush administration became increasingly preoccupied with domestic political needs and failed to provide either adequate details of the long-term shape of the New World Order or guidance as to how it might be established and subsequently maintained. One idea implicit in the New World Order, however, was that of multilateralism: the United States would act in cooperation with other states in efforts to sustain or restore order. Indeed, this is a concept that is increasingly seen by analysts as one of the keys to managing international relations in the post-Cold War era. It is regarded as of particular importance in Atlantic relations. As Michael Brenner argues in Chapter 1, new forms of multilateralism have to be developed and implemented if the United States and Western Europe are to have any chance of constructing an effective and sustainable security order in — and for — post-Cold War Europe.