LSE: The Ballpark | Rethinking the 1990s with Professors G. John Ikenberry and Peter Trubowitz
The 1990s were an important decade. They saw the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, falling trade barriers, an expanding capitalist democratic order and the rise of what came to be called the liberal international order.
But the 1990s also sowed the seeds of the rise of populism and anti-globalism in Western democracies that are now complicating global politics and governance. A new book, Rethinking the 1990s, Liberal World Order-Building in the Aftermath of the Cold War looks back at how important the 1990s were and to the opportunities that were missed at that time by politicians.
In April 2026 the Phelan US Centre spoke with the book’s editors, Professor G. John Ikenberry and Professor Peter Trubowitz. The discussion covered what makes the 1990s such an important decade for the world today, how the US’ liberal bet on China failed, and how US and Western attempts to expand liberal internationalism were met with resentment abroad and at home. We also talked about the lessons the US can take from the decisions made in the 1990s that are still affecting global politics.
Further reading and resources
- Ikenberry, G John, and Peter Trubowitz (eds), Rethinking the 1990s: Liberal World Order-Building in the Aftermath of the Cold War(New York, NY, 2025; online edn, Oxford Academic, 22 Sept. 2025), https://doi.org/10.1093/9780197813133.001.0001
- Text of George F. Kennan’s "Long Telegram" - https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/coldwar/documents/episode-1/kennan.htm
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