The Rise of the Post-Western World

Learning activity

Professor Kishore Mahbubani describes the transition to a post-Western world as a return to a "historical norm" where Asian economies like China and India were among the largest in the world. What key point does Professor Mahbubani emphasise about the reaction of Western societies to this shift?

Western societies should embrace this transition, as rising powers are incorporating Western principles like free market economics and the rule of law, and aim to collaborate for a better world.Western societies need to aggressively protect their economic and political dominance by reinforcing their traditional models and resisting changes brought about by the rise of Asian economies.Western societies must focus on building military alliances to counter the economic rise of Asian powers and maintain the current world order.Western societies should isolate themselves from the global economy to preserve their cultural and economic systems in the face of rising Asian powers.

Key Takeaways

In this chapter, Professor Kishore Mahbubani highlighted the West’s response to a shifting world order, and how non-Western nations find their place in it.

The past two centuries of Western domination in global affairs were an aberration in human history. Before colonialism, Asian economies were historically dominant, and the post-Western world represents a return to this historical norm.
Many Western political and intellectual leaders are reluctant to acknowledge or accept the transition to a post-Western world.
Asia’s emerging powers have benefitted from embracing Western ideologies such as free market economics, which have helped facilitate their resurgence to power.
Western nations, particularly the United States, have worked to undermine the very international rules-based order they established, through actions like withdrawing from international agreements and reducing funding to multilateral organisations to weaken institutions that uphold global governance.
As the West constitutes only 12% of the global population, it is ultimately in its own best interests to strengthen the multilateral rules-based order; to ensure all participants abide by the same rules.

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