It examines the roles and strategies of major powers, including the United States, China, and the European Union, and their influence on global governance.

: Pant integrates traditional realism (state power) with constructivism (identities and norms) and liberal institutionalism (cooperation via international bodies).

Provides a retrospective of the Cold War phases (1945–1989), the Vietnam War, and the eventual disintegration of the Soviet Union.