The Role of Selective Enforcement in Sustaining Global Order

In this paper, we discuss:

• How the “rules-based order” relies on selective enforcement, with hegemons promoting universal norms while exempting themselves;
• Human rights law as a case study of asymmetry, where great powers avoid binding constraints yet invoke norms against weaker states;
• The risks of excessive hypocrisy, which erodes soft power, and of abandoning the façade altogether, which fuels systemic instability;
• How renewed “America First” realism weakens multilateralism and pushes middle powers toward greater strategic autonomy;
• Why the global order endures through calibrated asymmetry rather than true universal equality.

Download PDF: Selective Enforcement – February 2026