Edytorial: Przemiany porządku światowego
Editorial: Transformations of the world order

Summary/Abstract: In what direction are the current transformations of the world order heading? Asking this question in the Call for Papers for this thematic issue, we wrote: The Russian invasion of Ukraine has challenged the current world order. Authoritarian governments in Moscow and Beijing aim to establish an international order that recognizes regional hegemons and their spheres of influence. The war in Europe has reminded us of the importance of military power in international relations, but today's global conflicts are also ideological-political disputes: democracy vs. autocracy, universal human rights versus the multiplicity of civilizations and diversity of traditions. Current transformations in world politics are described using various categories. There is talk of the decline of the liberal international order, the breakdown of the rules-based international order, the emergence of a multipolar world, and new great-power rivalry. The dichotomy of "democracies vs. autocracies" competes with the concept of systemic rivalry. This refers to the rivalry between those participants in international relations who defend an order based on international law, the United Nations Charter, and universal human rights, and powers such as Russia and China, which demand recognition of their spheres of influence and view the liberal idea of human rights as a tool of interference in internal affairs. The formula of systemic rivalry seems very abstract, axiologically neutral, and therefore not very inspiring. In turn, contrasting democracy with authoritarianism is strongly value-laden and as such tends to be instrumentalized in domestic politics, especially under conditions of strong political polarization....

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