HIROSHIMA MON AMOUR ?

The G7/G20 gathered in Hiroshima. They were joined by the Ukranian president, who made the other participants look small.  The support for Zelensky by the G7 was clear in sharp contrast with the embarrassed body language prevailing in the G20 . 

The G7 remains a useful tool but it is also showing its age.  Meant to be the custodian of the post-WWII grand design (World Bank, IMF) it no longer rules uncontested. It is normal that, for the time being, Russia is a pariah state by choice. China should be invited to the G7 because it is becoming absurd to claim ownership of the world's future when its second most important stakeholder is not part of the decision. China might very well decline (it probably would). After all it shines in the BRICS, which surpasses the weight of the G7. The USA remain still by far the world's most innovative economy and soft-power model, equal to none.

The Economist gave Dr. Kissinger the well-deserved honor to spell out his vision of world affairs anno 2023. The professor/diplomat remains the ultimate virtuoso in his ability to find order in the chaos, albeit at a non-negligeable cost. It can be assumed that even under the current blackened skies he would still find a way to engage Putin, a challenge nobody can take on today. His analysis of China is also pertinent, taking into account its proven enduring cultural DNA. 

Western leaders, with the exception of President Macron, act too often as car dealers. They fix but seldom repair or rebuild new. In the G20, India or Indonesia i.a. have ambitions that can no longer be ignored. Most Arab states are too happy to give the US a headache after decennia of kotowing. The Western alliance is becoming a push and show performance wherein they all end up making the pilgrimage to Kiev and end up returning, even smaller, to their imperiled homelands. President Biden is respected but his "grand father" style and an insecure power projection lack both grandeur (Obama) and punch (Trump). Truth which fails to convince lacks sustainability. What made Kissinger's shuttle diplomacy so irresistible was also his unshakable self-confidence and his wicked, often unorthodox approach to the most complex issues. He assumed full responsibility for the many unsavory collateral damages done (Chili, Cambodia, Vietnam, i.a.) in the name of the law of cynicism. He did not have to read Machiavelli or Tsun Tzu to be adept to their ways.

Everybody sees how the world is falling to pieces. As in Hiroshima, leaders continue for the time-being to wait it out or to ignore primary courtesy (Lula didn't meet Zelensky). This doesn't stop the multiplication of online dating between various actors who no longer obey by yesterday's rules and only take joy in the embezzlement on the back of the former riches. Hiroshima stands for a terrible tragedy, the proper setting maybe for the current prevailing mood, wherein too many countries formerly in sync have become uncoupled (Israel, Hungary...)

Quel livre immense on composerait de tous les faits qu'on a crus, et dont il fallait douter.  (Voltaire)