Recording of a debate at the Battle of Ideas Festival 2018.

Since the fall of communism, the dominant narrative around international politics and economics has been that of a stable order defined by liberal, free-market values and agreements. In recent years, faith in the liberal international vision seems to have been shattered. In response to the rise of China and resurgence of Russia, populists across the world, most famously President Trump, have denounced free-trade agreements and collective security arrangements. Are we really moving into a more protectionist world, or will free-trade ideology make a comeback? How will the rise of China and the ‘global south’, alongside the apparent slow decline of the US, change things?

CAMERON ABADI

REMI ADEKOYA

PROFESSOR BILL DURODIE

DR TARA MCCORMACK

CHAIR: JACOB REYNOLDS