Beyond unipolarity and the Euro–American horizons of IR thought: Reflections on the emergent world order

Abstract

Amidst the continuing conflict in Ukraine, the Russian President Vladimir Putin made a notable pronouncement of the end of the US-led unipolar world and the rise of a multipolar world order. Against this backdrop of the debate on polarity, my research paper seeks to address the following questions. To what extent have global institutions, mainstream IRT and academia as well as policies reflected if not reinforced Euro-American norms and interests? Does this purported shift to multipolarity require a shift in institutional and theoretical practices reflecting the broad concerns of the Global South? Using global and regional case-studies like India (especially in regard to the representation within academia and the glass ceiling affecting institutional practices like Young Professionals Programme), I draw from critical and post-colonial theoretical IR frameworks to argue for a comprehensive reform of the prevalent global institutional and theoretical structures.