Geoeconomics: concepts, instruments and actors in the new economic order

This article examines the rise of geoeconomics as a key analytical paradigm for understanding the ongoing transformations in the international economic order. Against the backdrop of the decline of the neoliberal model, events such as the U.S. China trade war, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the global energy crisis have reinforced the growing entanglement between national security and economic policy. Based on an exploratory approach grounded in literature review, the study investigates the geoeconomic instruments employed by states and international organizations and analyzes how these instruments are strategically mobilized. The article also highlights emerging patterns of technological and trade rivalry, particularly among China, the United States, and the European Union, while also addressing the role of middle powers such as India and Brazil. The analysis reveals how economic interdependence has increasingly become a source of vulnerability and a means of leverage in geopolitical disputes. Ultimately, geoeconomics is portrayed both as a driver of global fragmentation and as a potential framework for selective cooperation in addressing shared challenges, such as the energy transition and food security.

Keywords: Geoeconomics; International Economic Order; Sanctions; National Security;
China; USA; European Union; Investments; Supply Chains.