Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, outlined a potential scenario in which a “polycentric order” emerges, characterised by multiple centres of power, marking the end of the West’s five-century period of global dominance.
Lavrov addressed the Doha Forum through a video feed on Sunday, with RT reporting his remarks as follows:
“But I assume that you were discussing the multipolar world, which is emerging after 500 years of domination of what we call the ‘collective West.'”
He said the West’s hegemonic rule has been “based on a diverse history, including the ruthless exploitation of the peoples and territories of other countries.”
The foreign minister explained that the West continues to use its centuries-old globalisation model to maintain its global empire. He pointed out, “However, other countries, using exactly the principles and instruments of Western globalisation, managed to beat the West on its own turf, building economies on the basis of national sovereignty and the basis of balance of interests with other countries.”
A polycentric order is much different from a “multipolar’ system. It’s a highly competitive environment where major powers possess the freedom to exert dominance over their neighbours. The world is becoming more chaotic, and that is why countries are ramping up military spending and securing energy sources.
In August, Lavrov told South Africa’s Ubuntu Magazine that BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) is becoming one of the pillars of a polycentric world order.
Back to Doha, where Lavrov said the emergence of a polycentric world order is “not to the West’s liking.”
Lavrov continued: “In order to suppress this kind of development,” the West has pivoted from globalisation to a rules-based world order.
“The rules were never published, were never even announced by anyone to anyone, and they are being applied depending on what exactly the West needs at a particular moment in modern history,” he noted.
Lavrov added that “in various conflicts, which the West ignites all over the world,” including the one in Ukraine, it’s all about keeping the hegemony going.
“Is there a single place where the US intervened with military force and where life has become better? I think you know the answer,” Lavrov told the audience.
As the old order falls, the similarities between the late 1980s USSR and the present-day USA are uncanny.
