The end of the Cold War has brought a redistribution of power from the sole province of state governments to a more fluid conglomerate of state, corporate, and civil actors. Political, social, and security roles once dominated by national governments are now shared by international organizations, civil societies, and non-governmental organizations. In this article, the author outlines the decline of traditional Westphalian state system, and evaluates the new international bodies that have arisen to take its place. While the state-system is certainly not dead, technology, non-governmental organizations, and cross-border interactions are causing its relevance to be increasingly questioned.
