Change is the rule of the world. Nothing remains static; everything is dynamic, for everything changes. This rule perhaps applies best to the realm of global politics. The G20 summit, which is meeting in the backdrop of the Russo-Ukraine war and the nascent economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, throws light on the need to build a new world order. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has highlighted that the Russo-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic have been responsible for disrupting global supply chains and threatening food security and has called for expeditious measures to alleviate global suffering.

In this context, the leadership role of Prime Minister Modi, who has given a clarion call for developing a new world order, needs to be understood in a nuanced and layered manner. This new world order will undoubtedly be led by India and is based on the following cardinal axes.

Want peace, not war

“Peace is absurd, fascism does not believe in it,” said Benito Mussolini; everybody knows what happened to him and his comrade Hitler. The current world order is based on the need for peace, everlasting peace. Peace may appear to be a cliché, but it is what the world is desperately yearning for. Enforcement of peace is absolutely pivotal. This gains all the more importance in light of the ongoing Russo-Ukraine war. The war besides killing thousands of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers and destruction of billions of dollars’ worth of infrastructure with Russia suffering terrible suffering too has shown that peace is necessary.

If globalisation wouldn’t have been there then the world couldn’t have cared less about the fate of Ukraine. However, the interconnected nature of the global order has shown that problems in Ukraine may threaten what a person in a country of Africa or for that matter a poor country in Asia may eat in a day.

The possibility of a global hunger epidemic in light of the war has shown that it is imperative that peace be maintained. The war has shown that even when conventional war is fought, how terrible the repercussions can be. Therefore, this new world order, which India aspires to lead, puts the enforcement of peace and a peaceful global order at the top of the world’s priorities.

This idea of peace reinforces India’s image of a moralpolitik great power that is concerned with the rights of humanity. Geopolitical competition is a pejorative term here. This global order will be based on the three principles of cooperation, harmony and co-existence.

Sustainable order

A new feature of this world order will be an order that is climate and nature friendly. Climate change, which was regarded as an issue of least concern, is now dominating the agendas of global summits. India is the perfect choice to lead a sustainable world order. Prime Minister Modi in the G20 summit promoted LIFE or lifestyle for the environment as an initiative that seeks to build a sustainable and climate-friendly anthropocentric relationship with the environment.

This new world order to be led by India will focus on showcasing the Indian way of how the world particularly the largest carbon emitters the USA and China should commence at the grass root level the need to inculcate a healthy and paternalistic relationship with the environment. The idea of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ with special emphasis on the environmental approach to world politics will be the objective of this new sustainable world order.

Strategic autonomy

A crucial feature of this new world order will be the assertion and right of nation-states whether big or small the right to exercise agency in their dealing with other nations on equal terms. Known as strategic autonomy, this has been the cardinal feature of Indian foreign policy since 2014. This aspect of strategic autonomy has been on full display during the Russo-Ukraine war when India bought and continues to buy oil and natural gas from Russia at heavily discounted rates much to the chagrin of Western countries and is aggressively promoting the rupee to settle payments. This is being done with the aim of endorsing the rupee to become the potential global reserve currency in the future.

Further, even India’s adversaries be it Pakistan or China have praised the power of India to assert its autonomous foreign policy objectives without budging under pressure which was often the case in the yesteryears.

For Humanity

Finally, the call for the establishment of a new world order is anchored in the belief in a humanistic world order, which prioritises humanity is put first. Nationalism, sectarianism, and fundamentalism must be emphatically discarded with the aim of uniting to propound a community. A community by the people, of the people, for the people.

– The writer is currently working as a Research Associate at Defence Research and Studies (dras.in) and is a columnist. The views expressed are personal and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda