A Changing World Order: Multipolarity and the Ukraine War

Photo: 8th United States Army via ​Reuters​​ 

Argument by Jake Corbett | April 4, 2025

While ​​​​​​​​American isolationist tendencies grow in light of the Russo-Ukrainian war, American foreign policy must adhere to an ​​​​hawkish internationalist approach to weaken the ‘Axis of Evil’, bolster American hegemony, and maintain the overarching global strength of the ​​international system. American foreign policy objectives must reflect these goals ​​in its efforts to weaken Russia’s economy and provide greater military assistance to Ukraine. The domestic divide over American responsibilities in the conflict reflects the recent pull towards isolationism following the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, ​​​​which ended decades of direct American foreign engagement. Fears of another beleaguered conflict have motivated around half of the U.S. population to neglect any American responsibility to help Ukraine defend itself.  

The ongoing war in Ukraine, amidst other growing global conflicts, has immense potential to ​​shift global power politics and lead to a new multipolar equilibrium. The strategic anti-American Sino-Russian alliance has exploited anti-Western sentiment in Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, and elsewhere to undermine U.S. economic, political, and military ​​interests. An isolationist response to growing global authoritarianism and extremism hands the reins of hegemony to these anti-American powers. To support democracy, freedom, and American superiority, there must be intensified action to weaken adversarial nations, including supporting proxies and allies.  

American foreign policy decision-making cannot be viewed in the vacuum of ​​the ​Russia-Ukraine conflict. Other rising threats to American hegemony inherently ​​​​changes American foreign strategy– to focus on ​​​​a coalition of threats, not a single Russian enemy. ​​The bigger geopolitical picture illuminates an existential threat to America’s near ​​century-long period of supremacy. The response and deterrence methods required of the U.S. would differ substantially without the ​​growing risks imposed by China, Iran, and North Korea. ​​The alignment of anti-American nations poses a substantial threat that needs a corresponding foreign policy readjustment, akin to FDR’s response against the Axis powers of World War II. ​​The new ‘Axis of Evil’ has fomented kinetic conflicts upon their respective fronts: ​​​​Iran engaged its proxies in massacre attacks against Israel, China initiated disputes in the South China Sea over Taiwan, and Russia launched a full-scale ground invasion to annex Ukraine. These ongoing conflicts ​​reflect a common theme of aggression against the Western world, carried out by Sinic, Islamic, and Orthodox civilizations.  

Samuel P. Huntington’s Clash of Civilizations underscores the basis behind these emerging conflicts​​. The work predicted the cleft nature of Ukraine, split between Western and Orthodox civilizations, would eventually catalyze into conflict. With this conflict surpassing the longevity and devastation of 90% of all interstate wars in the last 200 years, it is clear that civilizational conflicts are pervasive. The emergence of anti-Western conflicts among multiple fronts ​​disproves the notion that civilizational conflicts would gravitate against the Islamic world. Instead, the West is ​​viewed as ​​a common enemy due to its political, economic, and military predominance for the majority of the millennium. ​​​​The U.S. strategic objective should be to counter them directly; deter civilizations from contesting ​​Western power or ‘pit them against each other.’  

The culmination of threats to the Western world order necessitates a realist response to solidify the global power hierarchy. Western support for Ukraine, alongside Taiwan and Israel, can help ​​​​this objective by diminishing the capabilities of revisionist forces. Ukraine and Israel have granted the U.S. a rare opportunity to weaken regional adversaries and bolster American influence, all while avoiding a prolonged American-led ground operation. The weakening of Russia should not be curtailed; instead, it should be thoroughly supported by the American government. 

The opportunity to appropriately manage NATO’s expansion in Europe has passed, and the alliance has long regarded Russia as persona non grata. Thus, efforts to weaken ​​Russia’s authoritarian regime ​​do not necessarily need to be balanced by considerations of ​​future reintegration and contemporary diplomacy. These measures can be imposed following ​​the conflict, as Ukrainian success could greatly impact post-war bargaining and ​​statecraft opportunities. Since the fall of the Soviet Union and the uniting Orange Revolution, Ukraine has aligned with the Western world. The U.S. must support nations that lean toward the Western world, especially in light of ​​​​the civilizational global shift of power toward the Axis of Evil. ​​The Western world order is being tested across Eurasia; a muted response would indicate America’s willingness to step down from its hegemony. Therefore, American strategic efforts must prioritize the destabilization of Russia’s economy and fortification of Ukrainian military operations to avoid a collapse of the global system.  

The momentous decisions by past American presidents to combat rising threats abroad, which threatened democracy around the world, have seemingly been left out of the modern American psyche. American efforts to quell the expansion of communism in Korea and Vietnam, ​​prevent a dictator’s unlawful invasion of sovereign Kuwait, and ​​​​deplete the capabilities of terrorists across the globe, have all been written off as mistakes or failures. ​​​​This is not to say all of these global interventions have been completely successful in their objectives, but America ​​endeavored to lead the world through its ​​hegemonic vision of freedom and democracy. The stability of America’s hegemony, in part, relies on our foreign oversight; a limited global influence would result in worse economic conditions and ​​reduced political power. To put ‘America first’, it is imperative to reaffirm our positions of influence across the globe​​, by destabilizing authoritarian regimes that seek a new multipolar anti-Western global order.  

America’s best course of action to prevent a third world war is ​​to degrade the state actors that could wage these wars. The war in Ukraine is a rare opportunity for the U.S. to defeat an adversary without fighting the war itself. In Timothy Snyder’s words, “This is 1938, but Czechoslovakia has chosen to fight​​”. The U.S. can oppose the conquest of the Russian ​​state without needing to enter a greater war in the future. Instead, Ukraine has chosen to fight, creating a unique advantage to weaken Russia and subdue its aspirations. The U.S. is at an existential tipping point in its global dominance; the rise of Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China can decisively change America’s global power positioning. The ardent support of Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and other global allies facing these ideologically anti-Western nations is critical to not only the presence of democracy globally, but also ​​the power the U.S. has wielded for the last century.