The Munich Funeral: The End of the Rules-Based International Order

The Munich Security Conference was not just a conference; it was a funeral. It was a funeral declaring that the current world order is officially over [00:10]. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated this loudly, and the conference sessions further explored the deepening "West-West divide." We are witnessing a fractured alliance where "the West" no longer holds a unified meaning [00:50].

The Dawn of the Age of Empires

This shift fulfills a significant prediction made by former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt in 2009, who wrote about a coming "Age of Empires" [01:16]. In this new reality, the world is dominated by massive blocs: China, Russia, India, the United States, and the European Union. As Verhofstadt noted, in such a world, only Europe—acting as a unified bloc—can survive [01:42].

Interestingly, this also aligns with ancient perspectives, such as those found in the Book of Daniel, which predicted a final age characterized by a similar alignment of empires [01:52].

New Alignments: The Case of Canada and the EU

We are seeing smaller nations realize they must align with these larger empires to thrive. A landmark example is Canada becoming the first non-European country to join the European Union’s defense initiative, SAFE [02:36]. By joining the European Defense Fund, Canadian firms gain access to the expertise and capital necessary to compete in this new era [02:44].

The Race for Supremacy and Self-Sufficiency

The competition between these empires is particularly fierce in the realms of technology and AI [03:16]. These blocs are increasingly prioritizing self-sufficiency over traditional global cooperation. We see this with India’s focus on its own strategic interests [03:49], and with the United States and the EU implementing reciprocity in tariffs and internal regulations [04:09].

The "Brussels Effect" vs. Global Rules

The "rules-based international order" is being revamped. In its place, the strongest empires are writing their own rules and leveraging their massive economies to force compliance from others [04:52]. We see this with the "Brussels Effect," where the EU’s internal regulations become global standards because other nations cannot afford to lose access to the European market [05:01]. The United States is taking similar steps with tariff reciprocity [05:07].

The era of a singular, global rulebook is fading as empires forge paths that serve their own survival. We are in a totally different world order now, and we will continue to examine these changing times under a microscope here on The Twist [06:11].