The contemporary international system is undergoing a profound structural transition, characterised by the erosion of traditional multilateral institutions and an intensifying geostrategic rivalry between global superpowers. For several decades following the end of the Cold War, a Western-led multilateral order, anchored by American economic dominance and institutional power, set the rules of global trade, security, and governance. Today, however, that singular framework is fracturing into a contested, multipolar landscape. This shifting global architecture is increasingly defined by a dual-bloc friction: a rules-based West, composed of the United States and its European allies, pitted against an evolving autocratic axis led by China, Russia, and Iran.