The Fiction of Liberal Decline
Janan Ganesh's recent Financial Times piece mourns the supposed decline of a 'successful international order,' urging 'liberals' not to apologize for an era defined by Western dominance. This narrative paints a picture of a benevolent system now under threat, implying that its architects have nothing to answer for. It's a selective history, scrubbed clean of the costs borne by those outside the
elite Western bubble. Yet, this 'liberal order' has consistently sanctioned coups against democratically elected leaders, from the 1953 overthrow of Iran's Mosaddegh to the 1973 Pinochet coup in Chile, all while promoting 'democracy' abroad. The annual military aid to Israel alone, nearly $4 billion, a figure confirmed by the US Congressional Research Service in 2023, dwarfs the assistance given
to many developing nations, underscoring where real material interests lie despite platitudes about global equity. The article fails to connect this 'passing' world with the systemic plunder that enriched the very nations now expressing nostalgia. This framing, often amplified by outlets like the Financial Times — whose parent company, Nikkei, reported revenues exceeding $3 billion in 2022,
intrinsically linked to global financial markets — conveniently overlooks how this 'order' enforced economic policies that prioritized corporate profits over national sovereignty in resource-rich states. The sadness expressed is not for humanity, but for diminishing returns on neocolonial investments. It’s a classic double standard, celebrating 'freedom' where it profits, and imposing 'order'