Ploughshares to Swords: The Delegitimization Entrapment and the Liberal International Order

The aim of this paper is to explore one of the challenges facing the Liberal International Order (LIO): Delegitimization Entrapment. Building on Alan Kuperman’s notion of Moral Hazard, Delegitimization Entrapment broadens the concept’s scope and applies it to the struggle for international legitimacy. The concept of Moral Hazard, borrowed from economics, explains how expectations of international intervention can increase the likelihood and escalation of violence. Delegitimization Entrapment extends this ex ante logic by arguing that actors seeking to damage the reputation and legitimacy of their rivals–and to gain advantage in the broader global struggle for legitimacy–can strategically exploit the humanitarian regime, mass media, and human rights organisations and institutions in order to entrap their rivals into documented violations of the principles of the LIO. Such dynamics may further exacerbate human rights violations and contribute to the erosion of the LIO itself. We support these theoretical arguments through an examination of the conflict along the Gaza border between Israel and Hamas (2018–2019) and the conflict along the Polish–Belarusian border (2020–2022).