Assessing the West’s Role in the Post-Western World

In this chapter, Professor Kishore Mahbubani emphasised the role of the West in the forthcoming post-Western world, underscoring the imperative for it to adjust to this evolving geopolitical landscape.

1. While the multilateral rules-based order must be preserved, the UN Security Council must be reformed to include emerging powers like India, Brazil, Nigeria, and South Africa to retain legitimacy and reflect contemporary global dynamics.

2. The West must learn from the causes of past conflicts - like the punitive sanctions imposed on Germany post-World War I or the alienation of Russia post-Cold War - and address contemporary underlying structural issues that could spark future conflicts.

3. Where the United States’ approach to international relations is somewhat insulated due to its geographical distance from the rest of the world, European nations, due to its proximity with the Middle East, Asia and Africa, must adopt a more realistic geopolitical approach.