Istanbul: Trkiye and the wider Near East are not only the cradle of civilisation but also the birthplace of world order itself, a prominent scholar of international relations has said, highlighting the world’s first documented peace treaty signed in the 13th century.
According to TRTworld.com, Amitav Acharya, a distinguished professor and UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance at American University in Washington, DC, talked to TRT World exclusively on the sidelines of the 9th TRT World Forum in Istanbul. Speaking against the backdrop of the Forum’s theme – The Global Reset: From the Old Order to New Realities – Acharya explained that this region gave the world its earliest principles of diplomacy, cooperation, and peace – the very foundations of today’s global governance. He pointed out that even the idea of great power cooperation predates modern international institutions.
The five great powers of the ancient Near East – Egypt, Hatti, Mitanni, Assyria, and Babylon – managed peaceful relations for about two centuries. In that sense, this region laid the foundations for collective security and diplomacy long before Europe.
For Acharya, Trkiye’s contemporary diplomatic activism – its mediation between Russia and Ukraine, its outreach to Africa, the Middle East, and Asia – reflects a deeper continuity with this civilisational legacy. When Trkiye says it has historical connections with Africa, West Asia, the Islamic world, and Europe, that’s good civilisational politics, he said. It gives legitimacy and credibility to its role as a bridge-builder. As Trkiye continues to show, civilisation should serve to unify, not divide. The key is to ensure that this legacy continues to inspire unity and cooperation.
Acharya, however, cautioned against the politicisation of civilisational narratives, as seen in many parts of the world. When civilisational heritage is invoked to advance the ideology of the government or exclude others, it becomes problematic. But when it’s used to promote peace and cooperation, it’s powerful and constructive. Acharya also emphasised that Trkiye’s founding vision as a multi-civilisational republic – rather than an ethnocentric state – remains one of its greatest strengths. If that inclusive outlook can be preserved and expanded, Trkiye can truly be at the forefront of the multiplex world.
At this year’s TRT World Forum, Acharya’s idea of a multiplex world drew special attention. Building on his latest book, The Once and Future World Order: Why Global Civilisation Will Survive the Decline of the West, he argued that traditional notions of multipolarity are too narrow and Eurocentric. In the 19th century, multipolarity meant having several great powers – like Britain, France, Germany, and Russia – that determined the fate of others. Power was defined in military and economic terms, he explained. But today, that’s outdated. We live in a world where technology, ideas, corporations, and non-state actors also shape outcomes.
For Acharya, multipolarity is too power-centric, while multiplexity reflects the complex reality of the 21st century – where influence comes from soft power, innovation, and networks, not just armies and GDP. Countries and regions such as Taiwan, which are not military powers but lead in semiconductors, for instance, matter greatly. So do digital platforms, NGOs, and transnational movements. The world today is far more connected and diverse than the old European balance of power.
When Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared at the inaugural session of the forum that the world is bigger than five, reiterating Trkiye’s long-standing challenge to UN Security Council dominance, Acharya saw it as an echo of his own argument. If the president says the world is bigger than five, that’s not multipolarity – that’s multiplex, he added. By definition, it means more than just five powers. It includes space for Trkiye, Egypt, Indonesia, Brazil, India and others. It also includes corporations, non-state actors, and civilisational forces. In one sentence, President Erdogan summed up what I’ve been trying to say as an academic.
Reflecting on recent global shifts, Acharya also cautioned against the idea of a new US-China G2, especially after the recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in the South Korean city of Busan. The summit was described by Trump as G2 – a term evoking the idea of the United States and China as co-leaders of global affairs. This is a soundbite concept, quipped Acharya. Even if the US and China try to manage their rivalry, the rest of the world – Japan, India, Europe – will not accept a duopoly. The world will always remain complex.
He described the current era as one of asymmetric power distribution – with the US leading militarily, China economically, and other actors – from India to the EU – shaping a decentralised global landscape. The so-called global reset will not be about two superpowers, but about many actors – states, societies, and technologies – interacting in new and unpredictable ways.
Acharya also warned of the consequences of US disengagement from multilateral institutions. Less than twenty years ago, we talked about a unipolar moment. Now, we are entering what I call a world minus one – where the US is not only disengaged but actively undermining multilateralism, he said, referring to Washington’s withdrawal from bodies like WHO and UNESCO. The absence of the US leaves a vacuum that others – China, India, Trkiye, and the Global South – are filling.
As the world grapples with new power shifts, Professor Acharya’s message – rooted in both history and future thinking – is clear: civilisation and world order are not the gifts of any one power. They are shared, evolving achievements. Trkiye and this region were the birthplace of the world order once, he said. If they can revive that inclusive, cooperative spirit, they can help shape it again.