2024

Enthusiastic Reviews by Claire Daly, Mearsheimer, McGovern, Matlock, Crooke, Sakwa, Chas Freeman & Sergey Karaganov:

“Diesen has written a terrific book about the emerging world order. The multipolar system that is now forming, he argues, has the potential to be much more peaceful than the U.S.-dominated unipolar moment that recently ended. But the Ukraine war, a legacy of American policy during unipolarity, has poisoned international politics and made it difficult to transition to a more harmonious Westphalian order. A must read for anyone who wants to understand the great shift in the global distribution of power that is taking place before our eyes.”
JOHN J. MEARSHEIMER, R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago

“A most thoughtful and realistic account of the evolution of the world order, the perils that transitions in it create, and the relationship of these to the tragic conflict in Ukraine. Diesen dispels and replaces the fog of war with the much-needed clarity of historically informed reason.”
CHAS FREEMAN, Ambassador and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs

“Brilliant, in-depth analysis of the roots of the Ukraine war and the emerging changes in the world order.”
JACK F. MATLOCK, JR., U.S. Ambassador to the USSR, 1987–1991

“Excellent book! Glenn Diesen offers a highly informative analysis of the change and continuity of world order over the centuries. Must read to understand the complexity of the Ukraine War as a historical inflection point.”
SERGEY KARAGANOV, Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, Russia Honorary Chairman of the Presidium

“A wide-ranging and stimulating examination of contesting models of world order and the roots of the Russo-Ukrainian war. A corrective to mainstream Western narratives, providing a powerful conceptual framework for critique. A brilliant foundational work.”
RICHARD SAKWA, University of Kent

“A superb book! Diesen dismantles the war propaganda and outlines why the Ukraine War is a symptom of a collapsing world order.”
CLARE DALY, Member of the European Parliament

“Professor Diesen has addressed the geopolitical issue of our era —and likely beyond. What is the future geo-politics: How will states interact between themselves in the future? Does the shift to multipolarity championed by Russia and China hold the promise of more harmony or simply the move to a different mode of contention? He traces the irruption of the powerful nation-state notion of Westphalia, through the Pax American ‘forever wars’—to the waning of the Rules Order presented as the mandatory ‘vision for all.’ “Diesen shows how Ukraine became the rock that holed the Western myth below the waterline— and discusses the likely tribulations a new world order will certainly encounter.
“An important read. Important insights—as we need to face up to the unwelcome task of challenging our own preconceptions and having to navigate in an unfamiliar (non-western) landscape where old, steady handholds simply are no longer present. No longer there.”
ALASTAIR CROOKE, former British diplomat

“What luck! Professor Diesen takes the role of Christopher, patron saint of travelers, as we stumble across the threshold into 2024—a truly liminal year. With laudable candor, Diesen presents little-known facts —on Ukraine, for example—showing how we arrived at this dangerous juncture. If facts lead to action, we may yet survive the demise of the tottering hegemon of the West.”
RAY McGOVERN, former CIA Presidential Briefer