International cooperation and the rules-based order as we know it is now at stake. The inauguration of Donald Trump in his second presidential term, Russia’s brutal war on Ukraine, and great power rivalry are just some of the factors that have had an influence on how countries can work together. In addition, several multilateral organisations are being criticised for a lack of efficiency in solving issues.

In the midst of this, the EU and other institutions are working to maintain international cooperation on one hand and adjusting to the new reality on the other. In a time where uncertainty reigns, we must ask ourselves: Is the era of cooperation coming to an end?

In this episode we look at the state of international cooperation both between countries and in different institutions and organisations. We also visit Johannesburg to investigate what international cooperation looks like from a South African point of view.

Contributors to this episode are Amina Dossa and Buhle Kokela (students at WITS University), Sithembile Mbete (Executive Director, PARI), Malte Brosig (Professor, WITS University) and John Karlsrud (Research Professor, NUPI). Host for this episode is Marie Furhovden (NUPI). The podcast episode is part of the NAVIGATOR project, funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under the Call HORIZON-CL2-2021-DEMOCRACY-01 – Grant agreement n°101061621. Visit the project webpage to learn more here.