The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on international relations and world politics. The global and national economies, social sphere and culture were influenced by the pandemic. The global pandemic impact has led to a reassessment of the future development of the modern world.Every country in the world has proposed its own way to address the challenges that occurred with the start of the pandemic and its consequences. At the first stage, the centrepiece of proposed measures was mainly focused on maintaining economic sustainability and providing social support. The emphasis was placed on fostering individual sectors of the economy, which has demonstrated its effectiveness. However, many states were balancing social stability and economic growth, which was hit by the imposed lockdowns. The steps taken have yielded shortterm positives in different countries. At the same time, they demonstrated the limited resources and low efficiency of measures to overcome the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is significant that many countries achieved socio-political stability by increasing the debt burden. In the first phase of the pandemic, such approach was assessed as optimal. In general, the COVID-19 pandemic has shown the vulnerability and weakness of the modern states to combat new challenges. First of all, this concerned economic policy, social issues and the labor market.Many states have drawn positives from the crisis by adjusting political approaches and economic decisions. The current experience has made it possible to transform social policy, support employment, and adjust approaches to labor market regulation. However, the task, targeted at finding optimal solutions from the government, respecting the interests of business, maintaining social stability and the possibilities of the budgetary sphere, is still high on the agenda.The lack of effective mechanisms for multilateral cooperation among world states in tackling global challenges, which include the COVID-19 pandemic, stimulated many countries to seek solutions aimed at protecting their own interests. All countries were forced to implement their foreign policy, build bilateral and multilateral relations in fundamentally new conditions. First of all, internal security and political stability were on the agenda.The global pandemic raised the issue of the prospects for the development of international relations and world politics. Amid relations between states, a tendency to searching for new partners capable of providing support in a difficult economic situation is on its way. This opened up new opportunities for them, making for strengthening their positions. On the other hand, the world’s leading countries are still numbed by their past approaches to shaping relations within the framework of the existing system of international relations. The sanctions policy and the confrontational approach are still actively implemented by Western countries in the policies towards Russia and China. This strengthens confrontational relations between countries and maintains dividing lines in world politics.The COVID-19 pandemic has given new impetus to debates on how to tackle global challenges. The climate agenda, problems of water resources, migration have previously been in the sharp focus of many states. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a revision of the role of states in settling global problems, having the effectiveness of international institutions high on the agenda.The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the development of the global economy, which faced various challenges. Developing economies were most stricken by the pandemic. In turn, the industrialized states were able to channel significant aid, which allowed them to smooth the negative impact of the pandemic. However, the global economic recovery has been uneven as a cosequence of political decisions, states’ economic capacities in certain regions.