Description
The post-World War II liberal international order has been partially premised (albeit oftentimes falling short) on the racial equality of all states within the international system, self-determination, and norms to mitigate international anarchy. However, the emerging global illiberal international order, led by Trump, Bolsonaro, Farage, Milei, Orban, and others represents a return to a pre-World War II international order that seeks to reinscribe race and racialization back in as an organizing principle of international order. This is because race and racialization are useful for legitimizing and advancing their ontological view of world politics, and because it helps invigorate other processes that strengthen illiberal, far-right actors and their actions, while weakening the liberal international order. In particular, this article focuses on how illiberal actors seek to replace norms of racial equality by reintroducing racial hierarchy within the international system, and working to reanimate White Supremacy and Imperialism, as detailed through a discussion of Trump’s foreign policy actions during 2025-2026. Building from critical scholars working on race and international relations, this article theorizes race and racialization, on the one hand, and the emerging illiberal international order, on the other hand, focusing on their symbiotic relationship that seeks to upend the liberal international order – not with novel ways of doing politics – but by returning to past norms and legitimizing methods.