Different Matters by Damien Grant Dr Hartwich on Different Matters, world order, risks to democracy & Donald Trump's role in it.
Feb 17, 2026
Dr Oliver Hartwich, Executive Director of The New Zealand Initiative and former policy adviser, gives a concise take on the liberal world order. He outlines how post‑1945 institutions cut interstate war. He debates whether Trump is symptom or driver of change. He examines why Russia cannot be integrated, the costs of alienating allies, and how domestic institutional damage undermines democracy.
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A Visit To Münster Brought History Alive
- Hartwich recounts visiting Münster town hall and seeing the portraits of 1648 diplomats tied to the Peace of Westphalia settlement.
- He uses this personal visit to illustrate how that treaty established sovereignty and legal personality for states.
Power Shapes World Orders
- World orders depend on the power distribution; a unipolar moment (post‑1991) enabled the liberal order while reemergent China and Russia threaten it.
- Hartwich draws on John Mearsheimer: unipolarity underpins the ability to export liberal norms.
Trump As Symptom And Accelerator
- Donald Trump is both symptom and accelerator of decline: long-term US retrenchment predated him, but he actively drives unprecedented rule‑breaking.
- Hartwich says Trump confronts allies and rewrites norms in ways prior presidents avoided.