How can the EU shore up an international system adrift?

ENSURED Final conference Previous crises of multilateralism were generally understood as periods of turbulence within a fundamentally stable system, where reforms or renewed commitments could restore order. By contrast, the current moment is characterised by the deliberate and systematic weaponisation of economic integration, increasingly transactional and coercive strategies by great powers, and the proliferation of alternative governance arrangements that fragment rather than coordinate global efforts. Multilateral institutions such as the United Nations, World Trade Organization, and the Conference of the Parties (COP) are not merely under strain: their financial viability and core architecture are under threat. Consensus-based rulemaking has slowed or stalled altogether. All this undermines the credibility and effectiveness of international commitments. For the EU, maintaining the status quo is neither realistic nor desirable.