The purpose of this article is to present a critical assessment of Jürgen Habermas' reformulation of Kant's philosophical project Toward Perpetual Peace. Special attention is paid to how well Habermas' proposed multi-level institutional model fares in comparison with Kant's proposal—a league of states. I argue that Habermas' critique of the league fails in important respects, and that his proposal faces at least two problems. The first is that it implies a problematic asymmetry between powerful and less powerful states. The second (...) is that it entails creating a global police force that has an obligation to intervene against egregious human rights violations worldwide, and that this seems incompatible with the idea that every person has an innate right to freedom. There are important normative constraints relevant for institutional design in the international domain that Habermas does not take sufficiently into account. However, this does not mean that Kant's league cannot be supplemented with more comprehensive forms of institutional cooperation between states. On the basis of my assessment of the multi-level model, I propose a hybrid model combining elements from Kant and Habermas. (shrink)

Este artigo apresenta o modelo cosmopolita habermasiano e levanta questionamentos a respeito de um possível déficit democrático em sua teoria. Primeiramente, apresenta-se o diagnóstico de época elaborado por Habermas que o leva à defesa da constitucionalização do direito internacional. Em um segundo momento, apresenta-se o prognóstico, isto é, a proposta de Habermas para constitucionalização do direito internacional. Ao final, analisa-se em que medida o arcabouço institucional-democrático delineado por Habermas para uma ordem política internacional oferece respostas para os problemas por ele (...) mesmo suscitados. (shrink)