According to a report by Russia's RT on November 18, German Chancellor Merkel stated: the old order upon which the West has relied for the past 80 years is heading towards an end, and the post-Cold War structure that has been familiar to the East for the past 35 years is also collapsing at the same time.

He did not name China, but anyone familiar with the current world understands that the real force driving the shift in order comes from China's rise behind this abstract statement.

Currently, the unipolar system led by the United States has collapsed, Europe can no longer enjoy the stability dividends, and the Global South is beginning to move away from Western narratives. These changes have rapidly accumulated over the past few years, making the West truly realize that the world no longer revolves around them.

Among all variables, China's power is the most decisive. However, China does not seek to overthrow anyone, but rather the old order has lost its foundation.

Merkel

After World War II, the United States controlled global finance, trade, energy, rules, and military, building a unipolar system centered on its own interests.

After the Cold War ended, the collapse of the Soviet Union, Europe falling under the U.S. security system, China's integration into globalization, and the Global South relying on Western capital made the United States the sole source of power globally.

The order of the past 80 years was a continuation of this system; the Eastern order of the past 35 years was a period when the U.S. was unmatched in Eurasia.

Now, both structures are collapsing simultaneously, mainly due to the failure of hegemonism.

Domestic divisions in the U.S., extreme fiscal burdens, manufacturing decline, and offshoring of industrial chains have left the U.S. unable to maintain its former global presence, causing its unipolar structure to start loosening.

However, the weakening of U.S. power does not mean the world automatically regains balance, but rather that the foundation of the old order has developed cracks.

Merkel's so-called deep fissures do not refer to specific events, but rather the entire Western world is sliding from the center to the periphery.

EU flag and U.S. flag

At the same time as the old order is weakening, China's rise directly changed the global power structure.

China has neither actively challenged the U.S. nor openly torn apart the old system, but its scale and energy have made the old order unable to continue operating according to its original logic.

China's economic size is close to the total of the United States, its manufacturing scale is the largest in the world, its supply chain completeness is unique, and its technological innovation has made breakthroughs in areas such as new energy, AI, drones, and quantum communication. Its trade network covers the globe, and its payment system and infrastructure output capabilities are constantly increasing.

The foundation upon which the West could "define the world" is now ineffective in front of China's current strength.

More importantly, China's influence in the Global South has surpassed the decades of accumulation by the West. Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Latin America no longer see the West as the only option. The appeal of Chinese solutions covers everything from infrastructure to the digital economy.

China, EU, and U.S.

The foundation of the old order is Western centrism, while China is enabling the world to have a second path for the first time.

This is not所谓的 confrontation, but rather the world automatically reorganizing under a larger economic gravity field.

As China's leading role in the global supply chain increases, the old system begins to deviate. Therefore, although Merkel did not explicitly name it, he had to acknowledge that Western influence is fading, and this cannot be stopped by diplomatic rhetoric.

Regardless of whether the West is willing to admit it, China has become a new global power node, which is the most critical fact in the process of order change.

In the future, the world will irreversibly move toward multipolarity, and China will continue to play a key role in it. However, China's approach is not to replicate the U.S. hegemony logic.

China's strength comes from its economic scale, technological breakthroughs, supply chain integration, and market attractiveness, not from military occupation, sanction systems, or ideological pressure.

In summary, Merkel's speech reflects the West's confusion about the future, rather than a re-understanding of reality.

They know the old order cannot be maintained, but they have yet to find coordinates for the new order. They can only watch as China becomes the deciding factor in the reshaping of the international order.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7574278197882225195/

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