Described as “the end of history”, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the exodus of eastern and central European countries from the Soviet sphere was supposed to usher in an era of western, liberal supremacy, where peace reigned, trade flourished and a McDonald’s was a quick walk from anywhere on the globe.

German academic Peter Neumann, however, charts the death of this Western dream. More than 30 years on, a banking crisis, the economically catastrophic

Brexit, the lunacy of Trumpism, Chinese authoritarianism, Russian expansionism, Islamic fundamentalism and a looming climate crisis have spoiled the party.

The author looks at early failures such as the Bush Government’s misguided attempts to “democratise” Iraq by force, instead radicalising a generation of young Muslim men, and the removal of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi which turned the country into a war-torn graveyard.

He then moves to examples of the West shooting itself in the foot with populism and lax rules on the financial sector.

Dr Neumann calls for leaders of the West to adopt a “more sustainable modernity”, honestly appraising its own shortfalls and mistakes as it attempts to spread its own values around the world.