China is ready to be an anchor in a brave new multipolar world
The title of the latest Munich Security Report says it all. After 2022's 'Turning the Tide – Unlearning Helplessness', 2023's 'Re: vision' and last year's 'Lose-Lose?', this year's tome, released ahead of the
Munich Security Conference last month, is called 'Multipolarisation'. The unipolar era has ended.
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I was the sole Chinese speaker invited to the conference's kick-off event and attended the report's release. Having taken part in the Munich Security Conference's side events for years, I reckon far more delegates this year were from the Global South, a reflection of rising multipolarity.
As US President Donald Trump's agenda
takes shape , many attendees seem to view China as a stabilising counterweight – a role China appears poised to embrace.
The conference's thematic arc mirrors a
broader reckoning . Three years ago, the debate over
'collective helplessness' captured the disarray in the transatlantic sphere. Last year's exploration of
'lose-lose dynamics' framed the tensions of zero-sum competition. This year's focus on multipolarisation reflects a world of dispersing powers – a transition turbocharged by Trump 2.0.
Trump's
tariff threats and deal-making instincts dominated Munich's corridors, casting a shadow over discussions as attendees grappled with the implications of his aggressive trade agenda.
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