The liberal international order and the global south: a view from Latin America

Abstract

The contributions to this special issue take a Global South perspective rooted in the long experiences of Latin American countries with international organisation, laws and norms. Contributors explore how the weaker, poorer, and presumed subordinate Latin American states have contributed to and challenged the construction and development of today’s Liberal International Order (LIO). The articles in this special issue ask what Latin American experiences in different domains and historical periods can tell us about the LIO as it now fractures and reconstitutes. The core argument among these essays is that, despite inherent contradictions and tensions, Latin American engagements with the LIO have attempted to level the playing field and prevent the reinforcement of existing international hierarchies. The contributions to this special issue demonstrate that Latin American actors were not mere norm-takers and passive supporters of the LIO. Latin American actors have often sought to hold the leaders of the LIO to their own promises. They have insisted that the rules of a rules-based order should apply not just to the poor, weak or indebted but to the rich, strong and powerful as well.