Opinion

How Xi’s Saudi Arabia visit shows rise of new world order beyond US hegemony

The liberal world order the US led after World War II is falling apart and taking the credibility of US leadership down with it

Xi Jinping’s warm reception in the Middle East underlines the appeal of its vison of a multilateral, fairer and more inclusive world

4-MIN READ4-MIN

Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman receives Chinese President Xi Jinping in Riyadh on December 8. Photo: Saudi Press Agency / dpa

Andrew Leung has had decades of experience as a senior Hong Kong government official in a variety of fields including finance, industry, social welfare and overseas representation.

Published: 8:15pm, 16 Dec 2022

After World War II, world peace and prosperity have on the whole endured with a benign US-led liberal world order. That order followed the United Nations Charter of universal respect for national sovereignty, territorial integrity, international law, free trade, human rights and non-discrimination on the grounds of race, sex, language or religion.

Nowadays, it appears that this liberal world order has been fraying at the seams, if not falling apart entirely.

US credibility was damaged by its unilateral “war on terror” with charges of weapons of mass destruction. It tore up a painstakingly negotiated Iran nuclear deal. It withdrew from Afghanistan after two decades, handing over a devastated nation to the Taliban.

Neither has the United States presented itself as a shining example on human rights, fair elections and free international trade. The country is still feeling the effects of the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 and supporters of former US president Donald Trump storming Capitol Hill in 2021.