The Risky Endgame of Global Institutionalism

On September 15 in Budapest, the 5th Geopolitical Summit co-organized by the Danube Institute and the Heritage Foundation asked a bold question: Is international institutionalism still alive?

The panelists’ response was nearly unanimous: global institutions are in dangerous decline. As Ernst Roets put it, they are like a “wounded buffalo” — weakened but all the more aggressive.

• Zoltán Kovács: “International organizations have no sovereignty. Sovereignty belongs to states.”
• Eugene Kontorovich: The so-called “rules-based order” has always been a fiction.
• Stefano Gennarini: The UN is expanding its bureaucracy, passing hundreds of resolutions that intrude into domestic politics.

Why does this matter for the Danube region?

Central and South-Eastern European countries face a choice: submit to supranational bureaucracy or reaffirm national sovereignty. Ukraine today is the ultimate test of whether international institutions can still deliver justice.

Analytical Report by the Institute of Danube Research (IDR)