With the arrival of the 21st century, China, having risen to a significant Asian power, began to assert its claims over Taiwan and the South China Sea as “core national interests,” and it continues to bolster its military power. North Korea’s nuclear development shows no signs of slowing down. Furthermore, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 quickly intensified the militarisation of Europe’s security landscape. Additionally, following the surprise attack on Israel by Hamas in October 2023, Israel’s military invasion of the Gaza Strip escalated, and the turmoil in the Middle East, including military strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, continues. Amid these global military developments, liberalism is rapidly retreating, while power politics is emerging at the forefront.
In today’s international political scenario sketched above, the role of middle powers as proponents of liberalism has risen to new levels. In much of the postwar period, the United States, China, and Russia—nuclear powers and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council—played a key role in shaping the realist–liberal structure of international politics. Recently, however, China and Russia have unequivocally distanced themselves from liberal values and institutions, while the United States’ commitment to liberal international systems has also shown signs of erosion under the presidency of Donald Trump.