A New Synthesis among IR Theories? Moral Leadership in International Relations

There is currently not only a retrogression of the global economy and governance in progress but also one of international morality, which the growth of populism has destructed. Moral retrogression has yet to arouse the same level of awareness among policymakers and the public as has economic retrogression. Scholars like Yan Xuetong, Joseph Nye, and Richard Ned Lebow, however, have discerned this problem and its significance. This article compares Yan and Nye, with respect to the gradual convergence of their views on leadership, along with that of Lebow's perceptions of morality. But how can the research agendas of a moral realist, a neoliberalist, and a constructivist converge? It is argued that deep underlying similarities exist between their views on the nature of world politics and the perceptions of the current international order that may facilitate a much broader account of the international system. The relevance of this theoretical movement to real-world events is clear. Such convergence on moral leadership both reflects the reality of a moral leadership deficit and constitutes an antidote to the current global chaos.