The current international arena is returning to the idea that a country can only have substantial, “economic gains at the expense of another.” Current analysts are witnessing stronger countries leveraging their own power to elevate their positions, and reduce the relative positions of others. Such actions are endangering the regulatory framework that was constructed to bring order to the global economy. Furthermore, it tarnishes any desire for increased global trade. Referring to the work of Vincent Ferraro, the dependency theory is not just a phenomena that existed during the mid-1900s, but one that may have transformed throughout the contemporary arena.
Now more than ever it is vital that legal frameworks, which are abided by and agreed upon by the international system, are created and reinforced. Tensions between powerful countries such as the United States and China have prompted the return of mercantilism and the belief that every deal has one winner and one loser, and that mutually beneficial partnerships are not possible. Such beliefs can result in no organization or institution being capable of administering and/or governing a world economy.