Author: Jeff Leong, PhD Candidate in International Law and Regional Governance, Beijing Foreign Studies University (2023-2027); Chair, LAWASIA Corporate, Securities and Investment Law Committee; Co-Chair, LAWASIA Belt and Road Initiative Committee; and Senior Partner, Jeff Leong Poon & Wong (Malaysia) ————————————— Southeast Asia stands as one of the world’s fastest-growing regions and a vital hub… Continue reading ASEAN’s Pathfinder Multilateralism and Principled Pragmatism: Navigating Trump World Order and Great Power Rivalry in Southeast Asia
George F. Kennan’s Spiritual Vitality in the Post-Rupture World Order
Abstract The post-1945 liberal international order has entered a phase of rupture, as articulated by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in his January 2026 Davos address. This article applies George F. Kennan’s concept of spiritual vitality—the capacity of a society to resolve internal challenges, maintain coherence, and project an attractive model—to assess major powers in… Continue reading George F. Kennan’s Spiritual Vitality in the Post-Rupture World Order
Reconstructing the Post-Rupture World Order: Civilizational Wisdom and China’s Global Governance Initiative
Abstract The contemporary international system faces profound disruption, characterised by successive crises that have eroded the post-Cold War liberal consensus. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s January 2026 address to the World Economic Forum in Davos framed this era as a “rupture, not a transition,” urging middle powers to adopt principled pragmatism in navigating great-power competition… Continue reading Reconstructing the Post-Rupture World Order: Civilizational Wisdom and China’s Global Governance Initiative
Reclaiming the UN Charter in a Post-Rupture World
Abstract Observers frequently describe the international rules-based order as dead, ruptured or under severe strain. Recent events illustrate the point. Yet the UN Charter itself remains fully intact and binding on all 193 Member States. No state has withdrawn from it. What has ruptured is not the universal legal framework but the version long dominated… Continue reading Reclaiming the UN Charter in a Post-Rupture World
Revisiting John Rawls in the Post-Rupture World Order
John Rawls ranks among the most influential political philosophers of the 20th century in the Anglo-American tradition. His seminal work, A Theory of Justice, revives the social contract tradition from Locke, Rousseau, and Kant. Rawls portrays society as a fair system of cooperation among free and equal citizens.1 Rawls connects profoundly to the Western liberal… Continue reading Revisiting John Rawls in the Post-Rupture World Order
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