Jaishankar Says US Has ‘Deliberately Become A Lonelier Power’ As China Rises

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday said the global order is undergoing a major transformation, marked by the radical repositioning of the United States, the rise of China and growing efforts by emerging and middle powers to become more self-reliant.

Speaking at the Munich Leaders Meeting in New Delhi, Jaishankar said Washington’s changing posture was a “posture of choice” and that the US had “deliberately become a lonelier power”. He described the shift as one of the defining features of the changing international landscape.

The second major feature, he said, was China’s rise. Jaishankar pointed to Beijing’s economic strength and said China accounts for about one-third of global manufacturing, with its economic capabilities increasingly translating into political influence. He also noted that China’s view of itself as a “unique country” was both a matter of self-perception and, in many ways, a reflection of reality.

Jaishankar said the world was witnessing “very sharp competition” between the US and China, but stressed that the rivalry was no longer restricted to the two powers. Countries were increasingly using whatever economic, political or strategic leverage they possessed as a tool in international competition.

“That competition today, not limited to these two countries, has led to a weaponization of any leverage that any country has,” he said, while pointing out that intense competition continues alongside the “complexity of interdependence”.

He also highlighted the growing importance of emerging and middle powers, saying they were becoming more conscious of their interests and increasingly pursuing self-reliance, diversification and de-risking.

According to Jaishankar, countries are developing agenda-based cooperation and building more resilient supply chains without necessarily requiring complete agreement on every issue. A “reasonable degree of convergence” and enough common ground, he said, can be sufficient for countries to work together.

He cited the Quad, BRICS, India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), International Solar Alliance and Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) as examples of emerging forms of cooperation.

Jaishankar said this trend of countries working together where their interests converge was gradually shaping a new global architecture based on de-risking, diversification, flexibility and resilience.