By Kim Won-soo
Kim Won-soo
Two dramatic events were recently televised live worldwide from Washington, the capital of the world's wealthiest and most powerful country. The events happened one after another in the hearts of America's foremost political institutions, the White House and the Capitol.
On Feb. 28, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was berated by both U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance over the Russia-Ukraine war. The meeting ended on a bitter note in an extraordinarily discourteous manner, especially for the visiting head of state whose country was fighting, with the assistance of the U.S., a much bigger power.
The second event happened when Trump addressed the joint session of Congress on March 4 for the first time since retaking office. His 100-minute address, one of the longest in history, received extremely polarized reactions — applause from Republicans and jeers from Democrats. It culminated in a very rare scene in which one of the Democrats was ordered by the Speaker to be escorted out of the chamber for interrupting the speech.
Trump's main message was that "America is back" under his leadership. He ended by claiming "the golden age of America has only just begun." He seems to argue that Pax Americana can be extended in a reversal of the course America has traveled since the end of World War II. But his claim is much easier argued than actually realized. The reality facing America is too complex to be navigated as successfully as he claims.
The recent two events are symptomatic of the tough reality America faces domestically and abroad. Externally, America's role as the world’s police is declining. Internally, American democracy is suffering from rising polarization fueled by populist rhetoric. The events sent two vivid messages to the world in dramatic fashion: America is divided and no longer interested in altruistic foreign assistance.
Pax Americana started in earnest after it emerged as the leader of the victorious allied states of WWII. It was a belated debut, though. By the early 20th century, the U.S. already surpassed all other competitors in aggregate terms of national power. But it remained isolated under the Monroe Doctrine until it was awakened by Japan’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
From the end of WWII, the U.S. began to assume the responsibility of being the world’s police. Ever since, Pax Americana has been maintained in the form of the liberal international order backed by the combination of unrivaled American hard and soft power. The U.S. has enjoyed the No. 1 status far superior to its next competitor both in terms of economic and military power until recently, as China is closing the gap. American leadership also thrives on the appeal of the universal values it represents. The liberal international order, the hallmark of Pax Americana, is enabled by the alliance system and the extensive network of multilateralism championed by the U.S. Its global outreach is multiplied by the provision of the world’s largest development assistance and the advocacy of free and fair trade.
Recent trends are troubling for Pax Americana. China is catching up fast with the U.S. in economic, military and high-tech areas. The alliance network is being shaken and multilateralism is under siege. External challenges facing America are mounting at every level — global, regional and sub-regional —and in every area — political, socioeconomic, environmental and technological. Geopolitics are increasingly entangled with geo-economics and techno-politics.
In the face of these mounting challenges, the American people increasingly seem to favor moving back to its previous isolationist posture under the Monroe Doctrine, which was meant to care for America and the Western hemisphere only.
Trump is not the cause of America's retreat to an isolationist posture, but his return was made possible by rising public sentiments in favor of isolationism. In a larger sense, America's retreat is the cause of Trump’s return. It is reasonable to assume that an American retreat will be accelerated for the next four years under the Trump presidency. His intention seems to strengthen American hard power at the expense of other crucial pillars such as soft power, alliances and multilateralism, which have buttressed Pax Americana through the liberal international order.
A divided America with weakening global leadership cannot be a recipe for extending Pax Americana. To the contrary, actions taken in the early days of the Trump presidency are threatening to tear away its pillars, which may accelerate Pax Americana's decline. Accelerated decline without a reliable alternative in sight will create a huge power vacuum and only bring greater chaos and peril to the world. This slide must be halted for both America and the world. It is incumbent on American people and political leaders to wake up and step up to the plate.
Kim Won-soo is the former undersecretary-general of the United Nations and the High Representative for Disarmament. He is now the chair professor of Kyung Hee University in Korea.
English (United States) ·