
The Pax Americana---the global order established after the collapse of the Soviet Empire---is increasingly being challenged especially by former imperial behemoths China and Russia. There is a growing chorus questioning the so-called 'Washington Consensus' in favour of a 'Beijing Consensus' in economic policy. As the US ceases to be the sole superpower willing and able to maintain a global PAX, today there is an increasing global 'disorder'. This book is a study of the causes and consequences for this disorder, examining alternative claims for a desirable future economic policy.The book argues that the origin of this increasing disorder lie, in part, in the great economic recession of 2008 in the US, which has tarnished the free market based capitalism of the West. It goes on to debate that there are four major imperial systems which are and will be involved in the new 'Great Game' in Eurasia---the US and its European outpost---the EU, China, Russia and India and, potentially, Japan as it seeks to alter its post-war pacifist constitution to act like Britain did for many centuries, as the offshore balancer in the struggle for the mastery of Asia, either as a partner or independent of the US. Their strategic decisions will determine whether we will see a repeat of the past, with another completely unnecessary world war like the First World War, or if they will succeed in eschewing this atavism.
This work investigates whether the decline of the Pax Americana and the rise of competing imperial powers will lead to a new era of global conflict or a stable international order. Deepak Lal, a noted economist, utilizes historical analysis and contemporary economic data to evaluate the shifting power dynamics between the United States, China, Russia, India, and the European Union. The author argues that the 2008 financial crisis weakened the appeal of Western free-market capitalism, thereby creating a vacuum that invites systemic disorder and potential military confrontation.
What You Will Find
Experts recognize this text as a dense, realist interpretation of modern international relations that prioritizes economic causality. Readers frequently note the author's provocative stance on the necessity of strategic balancing to prevent large-scale conflict.
Page Count:
464
Publication Date:
2018-08-18
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0199482128
ISBN-13:
9780199482122
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