The emergence of COVID-19 and the Ukraine crisis will shape the international order in a profound way, Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies (BIPSS) President Maj Gen (Retd) ANM Muniruzzaman has said.
“We should believe in permanent interests, not permanent friends,” he said, noting that countries like Bangladesh, which are integrated within the International system, must minutely analyse the ongoing global trends and solidify its own position to identify the challenges it is going to face, and aptly utilize the opportunities that lie ahead.
While delivering his remarks at recently held BIPSS-Dhaka Tribune Roundtable titled, ‘The Emerging World Order: How will Bangladesh Navigate?,' Muniruzzaman also identified how the current state of global multipolarity was soon faced with two very major turning points - the emergence of COVID-19 and the Ukraine crisis.
He said the international system is already in a flux and the two events have further injected an incredible amount of fluidity within the international system.
Highlighting the key facets and variables concerning global trends, the analyst said the post-cold war era, which initially commenced through the concept of unipolarity, did quickly turn into multipolarity with the emergence of actors like China.
Former Foreign Secretary Md. Touhid Hossain emphasized on the major dimension in terms of economic and global trends.
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He also highlighted the key security trends as well and eloquently dissected the regional and global political dynamics, and the underlying pragmatism and interest driven approach behind it.
The former foreign secretary highlighted the significance of trade, military and cooperation and how much sway these variables hold over the global order.
He later moved on to the case of Bangladesh, and it incessantly getting into a limbo and finding it harder to ensure the strategic neutrality that it has maintained throughout, with the inclusion of already existing challenges like the Rohingya crisis.
Touhid Hossain suggested that Bangladesh ought to thread this multipolar world order with the utmost caution, and thus should look for “newer friends”, while maintaining firm and vibrant relations with the old one.
He suggested that we also ought to bolster our technological structure and ensure a more articulated approach to ensure a more solidified position in the global world order.
Pondering upon the broader geo-political and strategic trends, Dr. ASM Ali Ashraf, Professor, at the department of International Relations, University of Dhaka, illustrated the key thematic concepts towards understanding the overarching dynamics of the global world order, spanning from a theoretical understanding, to historical transformation through various watershed events (fall of Soviet Union, 9/11) and realities of the contemporary global system.
He urged for the necessity for sensitization within the global system and highlighted the key national interest that Bangladesh ought to focus on and the much-needed alterations in order to follow through, a crucial one being the necessity to ensure the diversification of trade, modernization of capabilities of the military and the law enforcement authorities and the instillation of a stronger posturing as long as Bangladesh in concerned.
Participants included foreign diplomats, security sector personnel, scholars and journalists, among others.
Muniruzzaman ended on an intriguing note, emphasizing on the necessity of a more realistic and pragmatic approach.
He emphasized upon the necessity to develop Bangladesh’s own capability and ensure the strengthening of its institutions. “We should believe in permanent interests, not permanent friends.”
The world order, almost dictated and instigated by the wide number of factors and variables, is always evolving, leaving the realities of yesteryears in the past, and introducing newer dynamics, regimes and paradigms, says BIPSS.
There are always newer trends emerging on the horizon, following the inclusion of the slightest of alterations in the spheres of politics, economy and strategy, it said.
The roundtable was attended by diplomats, scholars, security experts and youth representatives from various disciplines.