Make internationalism great again

WASHINGTON — Across the West, nationalism has been appropriated by political forces that are isolationist, illiberal, and protectionist. For proponents of open societies, this poses a problem. In election after election, voters have demonstrated that when asked to pick between abstract internationalism and allegiance to their countries, the will almost invariably pick the latter.

Those who favor globalism, liberalism and openness need to stop dismissing nationalism and instead reclaim the term from the loud-mouthed nativists, bigots and Putin-lovers. They have to show the national interest is not advanced by empty promises of manufacturing jobs, immigration bans and ethnic homogeneity. Instead, it is best served by economic openness, international engagement by liberal democracies and reasonably liberal immigration policies.

To be sure, nationalism is a troubled concept, one that has to be handled with care. The distinction between “us” and “them” is often just a few steps away from bigotry and chauvinism, especially when combined with a zero-sum view of international politics and trade.

Whether it is the mass deportations, registration of Muslims and trade wars promised to Americans by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, or Russian President Vladimir Putin’s quest to restore his country’s greatness through aggression against its neighbors, it is easy to understand why nationalist sentiments spark recurrent geopolitical and economic disasters.

“What liberal leaders must offer is a different narrative about national identity and national greatness, one we might call ‘internationalist nationalism.'”

And yet, the attempts to do away with nationalism are utopian. Arguments for a cosmopolitan view of the world might be morally and intellectually compelling, but they run contrary to most people’s intuitions. To provide justification for their existence and to get through tough times, human societies — just like families, firms, or other organizations — rely on narratives that stress the bonds that tie them together.

Europe’s political leaders who try to force cosmopolitanism on reluctant electorates are taking a gamble, with stakes that are particularly high this year. In politics, a commitment to one’s country can serve to sustain the legitimacy of political institutions. Similarly, feelings of moral like-mindedness and “we’re all in this together” can help counterbalance political polarization or the growing disconnect between political elites and voters.

What liberal leaders must offer is a different narrative about national identity and national greatness, one we might call “internationalist nationalism.” A genuine commitment to prosperity and success of one’s own country, they must argue, goes hand in hand with the embrace of openness, economic dynamism and globalization.

“To encourage economic growth, it does help to have a state that is able to coordinate and fund vital infrastructure,” argued Victoria Bateman, an economic historian at the University of Cambridge. “This requires a wide enough tax base of citizens who are happy to sacrifice some hard-earned cash, and politicians and civil servants who feel a responsibility to the wider country as much — or more — than they do to themselves.”

Western history is replete with examples of how the quest for national prestige encouraged economic dynamism, competition and diffusion of new ideas and technologies. Think of the Industrial Revolution or the economic and technological breakthroughs driven by the Cold War.

Donald Trump during his presidential campaign in Pennsylvania | Mandel Ngan/Getty Images

The visceral, zero-sum nationalism offered by Donald Trump or French National Front Leader Marine Le Pen offers only a nostalgia for a past that never really existed. Its chimeric proposals — of industrial jobs that are never displaced by foreign competition or technological change, stable social hierarchies, ethnic homogeneity — are the fastest route to economic stagnation and backwardness.

Internationalist nationalism, by contrast, has a strong track record. It has been at heart of the success of open societies, and it is much more powerful than the variety offered by Europe’s far-right movements. Instead of trying to project fear, it encourages other countries to emulate it by embracing the rule of law, government accountability, economic dynamism, innovation.

The effects of this brand of nationalism can been seen in how the allure of the West helped transform the transitional economies of Central and Eastern Europe in the 1990s. Today, we can still see it at work in places such as Ukraine or Georgia. With some luck and the right political choices, the West still has an opportunity to be “a shining city on a hill” for many other aspiring liberal democracies around the world.

Dalibor Rohac is a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.