Geurasia

G20 summit signals the end of the unipolar world order

Photo: AFP/Ludovic Marin

Eurasia 11/09/2023 19:22

G20 summit ended with a joint statement on Ukraine signed by Western leaders and Russia, which avoided direct criticism of Moscow’s role in the war. Moreover, the African Union has been added as much as the same way the European Union represent its member states. These developments signaling the end of the unipolar world order.

The standout event from the G20 meeting this past weekend in New Delhi was the agreement on a joint statement on Ukraine signed by Western leaders and Russia. The statement avoided direct criticism of Moscow’s role in the war, and was no doubt signed with some reluctance by Western leaders. The wording of the statement may even provide a blueprint for future peace negotiations, wrote Philip Pilkington in an opinion piece published on Unherd.

As the West wakes up to the reality of a rapidly changing world, with the Brics alliance adding six new members last month, it is starting to see the need for realpolitik, Pilkington noted.

These dynamics also explain other developments at the summit. The African Union — a continental grouping encompassing 55 member states that came into being in 1999 — has been added to the G20 in much the same way as the EU represents its member states. The inclusion of the African Union was suggested by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in May.

AFP/PIB

There were also calls to increase the size and scope of World Bank lending to developing countries. Ahead of the summit, President Biden called for an expansion of $25bn, with the potential to grow another $100bn if pledges from other countries could be secured. On Saturday, a joint statement was signed that pledged to “mobilise more headroom and concessional finance to boost the World Bank’s capacity to support low and middle-income countries”.

Notably the statement also seemed to point in the direction of changed criteria for lending, stating that the World Bank should “undertake comprehensive efforts to evolve their vision, incentive structures, operational approaches and financial capacities”, Pilkington added.

As the author pointed out, India is playing its role as a balancing power extremely well. It is keeping one foot in the Western camp and one in the Brics+. Its goal seems to be to maximise the power and extract as much for the Global South as possible.

AFP/Ludovic Marin

What we saw play out at this year’s G20 summit is a blueprint for the emerging multipolar world, where countries and regions must jockey for power and influence against one another, Pilkington concluded.

In such a world, the Western powers will have to stop assuming that they can dictate terms and even moralise to other countries about what values they should hold. In a world of geopolitical competition, it is only the fittest that survive.

#African Union #US #Russia #India #G20

G20 summit signals the end of the unipolar world order

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