The Changing Liberal World Order : Transatlantic Relations, Europe and Central Europe

Rada, Péter (2026) The Changing Liberal World Order : Transatlantic Relations, Europe and Central Europe. Budapest Metropolitan University, Budapest. ISBN 9786155459665; 9786155459672

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Abstract

Is the liberal world order coming to an end, or are we witnessing its transformation into something new? The Changing Liberal World Order: Transatlantic Relations, Europe and Central Europe examines this question at a time of renewed great-power competition, the rise of China, Russia’s threat to European security, growing geopolitical fragmentation, and mounting uncertainty about the future of American leadership. Bringing realism, liberalism, and constructivism into conversation, the book argues that contemporary international order cannot be understood through power, institutions, or ideas alone. Its SurRealist perspective instead reveals an order in transition: liberal institutions and norms remain influential, but they increasingly operate alongside geopolitical rivalry, national sovereignty, competing identities, and shifting distributions of power.Moving from the global transformation of the international system to the European Union, transatlantic relations, Central Europe, and the Visegrád Group, the book explores how these changes are experienced at different levels of world politics. Particular attention is given to the strategic dilemmas facing the Europe and smaller Central European states as they navigate relations with the United States, China, and Russia while remaining deeply embedded in the EU and NATO. Rather than predicting either the collapse or the inevitable survival of the liberal world order, SurRealism offers a framework for understanding how power, institutions, interests, identities, and regional dynamics interact in shaping what comes next – and why the emerging world order is likely to be more contested and complex than any of the theoretical narratives alone would suggest.

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