The Strategic Pivot to Minilateralism: Re-engineering Global Governance in a Fragmented Order

This paper examines the contemporary structural shift in international relations from traditional, broad-based multilateral institutions (e.g., the United Nations, WTO) toward "minilateral" frameworks—smaller, ad-hoc, and goal-oriented coalitions of states (e.g., the Quad, BRICS+, AUKUS). Utilizing neoclassical realist and constructivist lenses, this piece argues that minilateralism represents a pragmatic adaptation to gridlocked global governance rather than a total rejection of international cooperation. The implications of this shift for middle-power diplomacy and regional security architectures are briefly evaluated.