Order and regulation: Global Governance as a hegemonic discourse of international politics?

Under the heading of ‘Global Governance’ a discussion is taking place on changes in political regulation at the international level. In this contribution Global Governance is understood as a discourse which is a part of the search process of emerging post-Fordist politics and its substantiation. This is based on the Foucault concept of discourse. It is analyzed in terms of five dimensions: ‘globalisation’; ‘world problems’ and ‘global challenges’; Realpolitik; ‘Utopia’ and democracy; and finally the ‘general interest’ of world society. This shows how Global Governance is articulated with the dominant transformations of the political which are understood from the perspective of regulation theory. It is demonstrated that this discourse, which legitimizes societal developments and provides a guide for action, is not at all in contradiction to the post-Fordist neoliberal transformation of society, but rather serves to make the handling of globalization-induced crises more effective. The article does not aim to provide a precise analysis of the discourse or its ontological and epistemological basis; instead it seeks to open up a perspective which should serve to stimulate discussion and research about the changing nature of international politics and hegemony.