PUNE: Despite the growth of the American economy and a seeming belief that the U.S. is increasingly determining global affairs today, its position is much weaker than what it used to be since the end of the Cold War. Kishore Mahbubani, Distinguished Fellow, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, tells StratNews Global Opinion Editor Ashwin Ahmad that this has come about through complacency and a series of strategic mistakes by the United States. Rather than fighting “needless wars” as it did in Iraq and lost $3 trillion, the U.S. needed to focus on strategies to contain China when it entered the WTO in 2001 itself which it did not do. On China’s side, Mahbubani believes that Beijing is not interested in changing the international liberal-based world order, as it has benefited most by it, and it must be noted that China’s economy is not the only one’s rising. Despite the blip of the coronavirus and the fact that India must engage in more strategic thinking in order to be a truly global player, an Asia-led world order will dominate geo-politics in the years to come.
