[At the End of the American Century: America's Role in the Post-Cold War World]

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In the ten years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, students of international relations (IR) have been unsuccessful in reaching a consensus regarding the new rules of the international political system. For some forty years, the nature of the cold war stand-off was unambiguous, especially from the perspectives of the two competing superpowers. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, this is no longer the case, and decision-makers in the majority of countries are grappling with the consequences. The End of the American Century is a wide ranging attempt to outline the difficulties government leaders in Washington, DC, face as they try to operate in an international system that has so far …