It is important therefore to emphasize that any subsisting international order is not a subject of international consensus. And it is not a question of morality or finer sensibilities. All negotiations at all levels, including within multilateral forums, are undertaken in the context of the stark realities of the configuration of systemic power. The use of coercion always lurks in the background. The elite powers of the world are elite because they are allowed or unilaterally appropriate certain privileges, recognizing them as special powers unilterally held by the club of the most powerful states. The United States as the post WWII hegemon leads this pack of states. Jones noted three traditional functions of international order: to manage stable relations of great powers; maintaining the systems for international prosperity; and defend democracy and spread freedom, which Jones noted is “not a matter of consensus internationally.”
So, the bulwark against Trump’s policies against Muslim states or against a wall on the southern border with Mexico would have to be through domestic and internal contestations around the meaning of American exceptionalism. The policy on the former is perceived as a truly extreme response and a new dimension to the War on terror that exploits xenophobic proclivities of white American nationalism. Given the rapidity of the evolution of the situation, it seems clear that the next moments ahead in the USA would be robust. It is certain that Europe, if President Donald Trump maintains the thrust of current policy, is in for some interesting epochal decisions. As for South Asia, a vigorous realignment is expected in the wake of the formal definition of China as the main challenger of the United States for the leadership of the globe. By the way, it would be interesting to see how the BRICS sustain its integrity, if rapprochement indeed is in the books between the United States and Russia. With regard to Africa and its rag flag political entities and non-entities, the fallout of these systemic developments that we have no control over would surely impact us at some point. As with our independence process, we can only hope that these consequences would advance our interest.
Ademola Araoye is a former Nigerian diplomat and a retired official of the United Nations. Currently a Visiting Professor associated with the SARCHi chair on African Diplomacy and International Relations at the University of Johannesburg, Araoye is author of critically acclaimed books including Cote d’Ivoire: The Conundrum of a Still Wretched of the Earth and Sources of Conflict in the Post-Colonial African State. He is a regular contributor to TheNEWS magazine
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