Part of what made the liberal world order liberal was the principle of self-­determination enshrined in the Atlantic Charter and United Nations Charter. This principle was sometimes violated, including by the United States. But in past multi­polar orders, great powers never even had to consider the rights of small nations, and they didn’t. By contrast, the liberalism of the American order pressured powerful countries to cede sovereignty and independence to smaller ones in their orbits.

Moscow’s satellite states in Eastern and Central Europe would not have been so bent on escape had there been nothing to escape to. The American order promised a higher standard of living, national sovereignty, and legal and institutional equali­ty. This gave nations living under the shadow of the Soviet Union an option other than accommodation, and when given the chance to leave Moscow’s control, they took it.

That era is over. Trump has managed in just one year to destroy the American order that was, and he has weakened America’s ability to protect its interests in the world that will be. If Americans thought defending the liberal world order was too expensive, wait until they start paying for what comes next.