Are we entering a 'Westless' world?

How should countries operate in a world of renewed Great Power competition? Even if the West is not in outright decline, its global influence is changing and in some instances waning. Can we expect this process to hasten in the years to come? As war and volatility once again shape international affairs, our LSE panel will discuss whether the post-Western moment has come - and if so, what it might mean.

More about out speakers and chair

Lindsey Hilsum (@lindseyhilsum) is Channel 4 News' International Editor and the author of I Brought The War with Me; Stories and Poems from the Front Line. Recently she has reported on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, and the return of the Taliban in Afghanistan. She has covered the major conflicts and refugee movements of the past three decades, including Syria, Iraq, Kosovo and Rwanda, winning several awards. She is a regular contributor to newspapers and literary journals. Her book In Extremis; the Life of War Correspondent Marie Colvin, won the 2019 James Tait Black Prize for biography.

Rohan Mukherjee (@rohan_mukh) is Assistant Professor from the Department of International Relations and Deputy Director of LSE IDEAS. His research focuses on rising powers and how they navigate the power and status hierarchies of international order. His regional focus is on the Asia-Pacific, particularly how major powers such as India, China, the United States, and Japan, and smaller states in South and Southeast Asia, manage the regional effects of global transitions.

Samir Puri (@purisamir1) is an author, academic and former UK civil servant. He is currently an Associate Fellow at Chatham House. His latest book is called Westlessness: The Great Global Rebalancing. Samir previously worked for the Foreign Office (2009-15) including a year seconded to a ceasefire monitoring mission in east Ukraine. He was subsequently a lecturer in War Studies at King’s College London (2015-18), during which time he also advised the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Ministry of Defence’s think-tank DCDC. His most recent role was Senior Fellow at IISS-Asia based in Singapore (2020-22). Samir has authored numerous articles and books covering different facets of history and international security.

Alexander Evans (@aiaevans) is Professor in Practice of Public Policy. He is a former adviser to the Prime Minister in 10 Downing Street and Director Cyber at the Foreign Office where he was the U.K.’s chief international cyber policy negotiator. He has also served as a senior adviser in the U.S. Department of State during the first Obama Administration, and led the U.N. Security Council expert group on Daesh, Al Qaida and the Taliban.

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