The writer and economist Jacques Attali has delivered a severe analysis of the state of international relations, arguing that the world today rests less on a genuine rule of law than on power relations that are increasingly asserted.
According to him, the present situation at least has the merit of making a reality more visible: there would not, strictly speaking, be an international order. “There has never been an international order; there are only power relations,” he asserts, stressing that the great powers act above all in accordance with their interests.
Jacques Attali also questions the real scope of international law. In his view, a law cannot be considered fully effective unless it is accompanied by sanctions in case of non-compliance. Yet, in the current international system, he believes that no truly binding mechanism exists to compel adherence to common rules.
In this logic, treaties would be applied only by States that voluntarily agree to respect them, and not because they would be truly compelled to. Unlike domestic law, which rests on institutions, courts, and sanctions, international law would suffer, according to him, from a structural weakness. Jacques Attali sums up this idea with a powerful image: there is no “common prison for humanity” capable of sanctioning those who violate what is called international law.
The economist thus describes global political life as a space dominated by “rational selfishness” or, failing that, by a “self-interested altruism.” In other words, states would aid others when they see a direct or indirect advantage; when they believe that this interest disappears, they stop doing so.
In this frame, Jacques Attali also evokes the historical role of the United States. He recalls that Europe can be deeply grateful to them for their decisive contribution to the defeat of fascism and Nazism in the 1940s. But he adds that this commitment also, at least largely, arose from American self-interest.
His observation leads to an unambiguous conclusion about the current situation of the European continent. According to him, Europeans must now acknowledge a new strategic reality: no one has a genuine interest in defending Europe on their behalf. In other words, the security and protection of the continent can no longer rest sustainably on Europeans themselves.
Through this reading, Jacques Attali offers a lucid, even disenchanted view of the international system. His argument underscores the retreat of illusions about the strength of the law, the solidity of alliances, and the existence of a world order founded on universal principles that are truly binding.
In an international context marked by wars, power rivalries, and the weakening of multilateral mechanisms, this analysis reopens the debate on Europe’s ability to defend its own interests, its security, and its place in a world increasingly governed by power rather than by the rule.
