Multidestructionism: The 21st Century of International Relations
Elizabeth Walen ’28
After World War Two, the United Nations was founded to establish a system of multilateralism in lieu of the ineffective League of Nations. If political leaders needed to fight, there was a new language of war, one that maintained diplomacy, rather than cold-blooded invasions. The UN brought hope that if further conflicts were to arise, member countries would still be aiming for a common goal of keeping international peace, right? This house of cards depended on key decision makers’ actions aligning with their words. Yet, the precarious international relations of the US—one of the UN’s founding members—make these goals seem less attainable than ever. The post-World War Two multilateralism set by the United Nations is being broken down, and the consequences are rupturing the global world order.
Multilateralism is the act of collaboration between multiple states in support of global peace, which has been foundational to international stability. This not only prevented further large-scale wars between major powers but also supported security, trade, and humanitarian aid. With the help of multilateralism, there has been no direct war between major global powers since 1945, an expansion of global trade networks according to the World Trade Organization, and a decline in interstate wars.
The United States had an incredibly important role in sustaining this, with leadership in the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and other global economic institutions. American power was far more than just militaristic involvement, but revolved around its institutional and economic contributions. The United States is known to be the largest contributor to NATO defense spending and a major funder of UN programs.
Since October of 2024, Donald Trump has been dismantling this system, which has prevented major global struggles for around 80 years. He has withdrawn from the Paris Climate Agreement, which has been working since 2015 to combat climate change; he has withdrawn from the Iran Nuclear Deal, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which limited Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for economic sanctions relief; he has also undermined NATO by stating that it is a “paper tiger” and that he wanted to withdraw the United States from it completely, leaving the countries to “fight for themselves,” according to CNN. The Pew Research Center found that 19 out of 24 nations had low confidence in Trump’s leadership regarding world affairs. The United States’ increase in tariffs and trade disputes has caused major tensions between former United States allies. Trump’s blatant disregard for foreign relationships has not been sustaining the growth of US power, but simply the growth of his own gain.
With the United States’ consistent withdrawal from these global organizations, the systems put into place to keep peace have been unstable. The breakdown of multilateralism incentivizes unilateral action. Countries such as Russia and China have been acting independently, which has caused harsher backlash from other nations and a rise in geopolitical risk, according to the International Monetary Fund. The resulting instability of the global economy has caused worldwide tensions: according to the World Food Programme, millions of people are now facing food insecurity. There are similar fluctuations in the energy markets, which have been affecting everything from transportation costs to household electricity bills— not only in the United States, but worldwide. From Cairo to Kigali, blackouts have been increasing rapidly due to the high cost and instability of electricity.
These consequences are strikingly evident in the Middle East. The United States’ withdrawal from the Iran Nuclear Deal has reduced the effectiveness of international oversight. Because there is a lack of cooperation between major powers, directly connected to Donald Trump’s imprudence, diplomatic solutions have been much harder to achieve.
As these institutions have been weakened, countries have fewer incentives to rely upon them. In place arises a much more chaotic system. When the United States steps back from its role as a major leader in international geopolitical affairs, it destabilizes a system that billions of people depend on. If the United States still wants to be considered an important global power, this withdrawal from multilateralism must end immediately, and the US must continue to be a part of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Any further withdrawals would be destructive, and the United States should not only try to maintain its current semblance of peace but also try to re-enter what it has withdrawn from, in order to avoid further instability. Multilateralism is what has kept the world far from the state it was in prior to and during World War Two, and it undoubtedly must be maintained. Congress must work to maintain international committees, politicians must work to revert to times of unity, and we, as people who are in fact directly impacted by this, must vote, protest, and use our will to promote international amity. Otherwise, 80 years of peaceful multilateral relations will be a matter for remembrance, rather than being known as our current global political standing.