The centre left is not dead. A progressive new counter-Trumpian movement is on the way, as social democrats finally confront the failures of globalisation to create equality or deliver for workers. If Donald Trump represents the backlash against the liberal rules-based order, then we may now be witnessing the backlash to the backlash.
Sanchez Leads the Charge
In a recent speech, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez declared, "They scream and shout not because they are winning, but because they know their time is running out," referring to those undermining international law and normalising the use of force. While the Trump administration and its allies seek to remake the world in their image, alternative visions of the international order are finally taking shape. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, in his Davos speech in January, highlighted the vulnerabilities of a world in "rupture," arguing that middle powers must act together because "if we're not at the table, we're on the menu." Carney advocates not abandoning globalisation but remaking it: preserving openness while upholding a rules-based order and avoiding over-reliance on a single country. French President Emmanuel Macron's push for EU "strategic sovereignty" reflects a similar instinct: openness with guardrails, a strategic liberalism hardened against geopolitical contestation.
Barcelona Summit: A New Progressive Internationalism
Another response to Trumpism and nationalist great-power politics is emerging. A gathering of global progressives in Barcelona, co-hosted by Sanchez and Brazilian President Lula da Silva, brought together centre-left leaders to forge a progressive internationalism fit for the 21st century. This project starts with a different reading of the backlash: recognition that while globalisation generated growth, it failed to deliver for many, leaving wages stagnant, inequalities entrenched, and regions feeling left behind. The Barcelona summit aimed to fill a void, providing the raison d'etre the centre-left has sought since the 2008 financial crisis. In the years after the bailout, it became clear that championing untrammelled globalisation, third way-style, did not improve the lives of the working classes, the centre-left's core constituency.
It has taken nearly two decades and a far-right surge for the centre-left to develop a response matching this diagnosis. First, it seeks to redistribute the gains of globalisation through taxing billionaires, reforming global finance, and expanding development investment. Second, it aims to reshape the conditions under which globalisation operates by strengthening multilateral institutions, reforming the UN, regulating big tech, and ensuring globalisation operates within democratic and social constraints. Third, it reasserts peace as a central pillar of international cooperation, emphasising diplomacy, de-escalation, and the primacy of international law, particularly regarding markets, digital platforms, and political systems.
Global North-South Dialogue Revived
With over 40 countries from Europe, Africa, and the Americas involved, this progressive internationalism revives the cold-war era logic of dialogue between the global north and south. It is turbocharged by Sanchez's charismatic leadership and renewed progressive energy from the US, notably from new-generation politicians like Zohran Mamdani. Sanchez emerges as a leader to rally around, even with a fragile coalition government at home. Like Willy Brandt and Olof Palme before him, Sanchez seeks to bridge north-south divides and translate the latter's demands into actionable terms for western governments. Brandt and Palme were leading figures in European social democracy, advocating for a fairer international order. The landmark Brandt Report in 1980 called for wealth transfers and structural reforms for developing countries. Palme emphasised disarmament, solidarity with anti-colonial movements, and dialogue over confrontation. Together, they legitimised "north-south dialogue" as a central pillar of progressive foreign policy.
The new progressive internationalism echoes this approach but goes further. Sanchez, Lula, and others recognise that redistribution, peace, and dialogue are insufficient. Today's task is also to reclaim democratic control over the economic, digital, and geopolitical systems nationalists are challenging. The renewed momentum behind these visions is not accidental; it reflects a political landscape where transatlantic alignment of national-populist movements is fracturing, symbolised by Viktor Orban's electoral defeat in Hungary, long seen as a reference point for the Trump administration and other rightwing leaders.
Challenges and Divergences
Progressive internationalism and strategic liberalism both offer paths to rebuild the rules-based order: the former focusing on legitimacy, the latter on managing risk and preserving openness. Yet the limits of this emerging unity are visible. Many European leaders face realpolitik constraints. Germany's Vice-Chancellor Lars Klingbeil foregrounds Europe's security challenges, arguing a strong Germany is a precondition for a strong continent. Sanchez and others have been vocal on Gaza but quieter on Ukraine, with diverging perspectives shaped by geography, history, and domestic politics making unity hard to find. For UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the challenge is to reposition Britain's role in Europe between sovereignty and cooperation, defining a credible international role after Brexit. Some in this coalition want radical global transformation, others are incrementalists; crises loom larger in some places; some bet on America bouncing back, others focus on decoupling. Sustaining unity despite these differences will be vital as the counter-Trumpian movement gains pace.
