The twentieth semi-annual Munk Debate pits Niall Ferguson against
Fareed Zakaria to debate the end of the liberal international order.
Since the end of World War II, global affairs have been shaped by the
increasing free movement of people and goods, international rules
setting, and a broad appreciation of the mutual benefits of a more
interdependent world. Together these factors defined the liberal
international order and sustained an era of rising global prosperity and
declining international conflict. But now, for the first time in a
generation, the pillars of liberal internationalism are being shaken to
their core by the reassertion of national borders, national interests,
and nationalist politics across the globe. Can liberal internationalism
survive these challenges and remain the defining rules-based system of
the future? Or, are we witnessing the beginning of the end of the
liberal international order?
The twentieth semi-annual Munk Debate, held on April 28th, 2017, pits
prominent historian Niall Ferguson against CNN's Fareed Zakaria to
debate the future of liberal internationalism.