The world is going through a “multipolar moment” and the West’s attempts to maintain its dominance are undermining peace, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Newsweek published on Monday.
Asked to comment on Moscow’s strengthening relations with Beijing and other powers, and the effects these partnerships could have on the world, the diplomat argued that the shift towards a “multipolar world order is a natural part of power rebalancing.” Russia and China have a mutual understanding on this issue, he added.
Lavrov explained that these developments reflect “objective changes in the world economy, finance, and geopolitics.” Even the West has belatedly begun to realize that this process is “irreversible,” he argued.
“We are talking about strengthening new centers of power and decision-making in the Global South and East. Instead of seeking hegemony, these centers acknowledge the importance of sovereign equality and civilizational diversity and support mutually beneficial cooperation and respect for each other’s interests,” the minister said.
Lavrov added that the growing role of regional associations such as the African Union, Eurasian Economic Union, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are contributing to the manifestation of multipolarity.
Meanwhile, the BRICS group has become a “model of multilateral diplomacy,” according to Lavrov, who said the UN should also continue to function as a forum for aligning the interests of all nations.
Russia believes it to be the responsibility of all countries, including the US, to comply with their obligations “on an equal basis with others rather than disguise their legal nihilism with mantras of their exceptionality,” the diplomat added.
Lavrov argued that this position is supported by the majority of the world’s countries, particularly after seeing international law violated with impunity in places such as Gaza and Lebanon, and previously in Kosovo, Iraq, Libya, and elsewhere.
The diplomat concluded by stating that Russia and China share the opinion that “security and development are inseparable and indivisible,” and that as long as the West continues to seek dominance, “the ideals of peace set forth in the UN Chapter will remain a dead letter.”
Last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also stated that relations between Beijing and Moscow have reached their strongest-ever level, and that they share a “clear position” on issues such as opposing hegemony, policy of force, illegal sanctions, ‘long-arm jurisdiction’ and interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states.