Global multipolarity has now become an irreversible reality due to shared historical experiences, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Friday, adding that dynamics have shifted among the Western allies, signalling a changing world order.
Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue 2026, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said India’s response during the pandemic showed that the idea of the Global South has real meaning in international relations.
He noted that even while India was carrying out its own vaccination drive during COVID-19, it continued to supply vaccines to developing countries.
"When Covid happened, India was still vaccinating its own population, yet it chose to send vaccines to countries across the Global South. That showed the Global South is not just a concept, it actually matters to us," Jaishankar said.
Distinctions appearing in the West
He added that the idea is rooted in shared historical experiences and a sense of collective identity.
The minister also pointed to changes within Western alliances, suggesting that the earlier perception of a unified Global West is beginning to shift. "Earlier, the Global West functioned as a fairly cohesive bloc culturally, politically and strategically. But now we are seeing clearer distinctions emerging within it," he said.
Highlighting broader changes in global politics, Jaishankar said the international system is no longer dominated by a handful of powerful nations.
"Multipolarity is now a lasting reality," he said, adding that major countries may continue to form temporary partnerships on specific issues. However, he stressed that the world is unlikely to return to a system where a few powers reach major agreements and expect the rest of the world to simply accept them.
Jaishankar further argued that global cooperation must adapt to the emerging distribution of power rather than attempt to resist it. According to him, multipolarity does not necessarily undermine multilateral cooperation. Instead, he said, the challenge is determining how much multilateralism can function within a multipolar world, noting that the success of multilateral institutions cannot depend on reversing the trend toward multipolarity.
