The continuous weakening of the West’s economic power, especially considering the increasing potential of BRICS, is objective.
According to all statistical indicators, the GDP of the Western G7 was estimated at about 30% in 2024, while the potential of BRICS exceeded 35% of the total global volume.
The most important indicator of the West’s declining influence in world affairs is the weakening of relations between the United States and the European Union. Many observers use the terms ‘growing discord’ and even ‘division’ in this regard. The change in the Trump administration’s position on the Ukrainian conflict and the normalisation of ties with Russia took the leaders of the current Western European states, who are accustomed to focusing on Washington in all matters, by surprise (recently, US Secretary of State Rubio said that Americans and Western Europeans have switched places; now Washington stands for peace, while its allies seek to continue the war).
An additional factor complicating relations between the NATO allies is Trump’s policy of upholding Christian values and normal family relations (the US president clearly stated that there were only two sexes – male and female). Meanwhile, the ruling circles of many Western European countries have taken the schizophrenic ideas of the Biden administration about transgenderism, the reality of same-sex marriage and so forth as a call to action. That is why it is difficult for them to give up overnight what they so fervently preached after their ‘elders’.
Anxiety levels are rising
The activities of Western elites in recent years have not only failed to bring humanity closer to solving the most pressing global challenges, but have actually made it quite difficult to reach a consensus on finding optimal solutions to these challenges. This is clearly reflected in the deepening divide between rich and poor, between developed and developing countries. Most people – even in the countries of the ‘golden billion’ – agree that wealth in the West is growing rapidly, the middle class is emptying, and democracies are on the verge of oligarchy. All this corresponds to the day-to-day worries of the majority of the population: housing is becoming less and less affordable, the wealth of billionaires is growing unimaginably, and the pandemic has exposed sizeable gaps in social security systems.
The UN Human Development Index tracks life expectancy, education and income. Following the pandemic, the index gradually began to bounce back; rich countries are doing better than others. However, developing countries are seeing minimal progress, if any. According to the United Nations Development Programme, a child born in Iceland is expected to live more than 82 years and receive 18 years of education, the average annual income per person is about $70,000. At the same time, life expectancy in South Sudan is 58 years, secondary education is less than 6 years, and the gross national income per person is only $688.
In recent years, Western ruling elites, hoping to stay in power, have been using disinformation, lies and hypocrisy, blaming external forces, primarily Moscow and Beijing, for all their troubles. However, this February, even US Vice President Vance called on Western European leaders to look to the causes of the problems they constantly face in their own policies and not in Russia and China.
Most countries of the Global South believe that the deterioration of the Western world is largely due to the moral decline of its leaders, who supported Israel’s war in Gaza, which many in the developing world consider to be a genocide. The number of Palestinians killed and injured is approaching 200,000.
A growing schism between rich and poor
In modern societies, technology companies, represented by a vast number of billionaires, are striving to take government into their own hands. Even an ideological platform for these future changes has been developed. The introduction of new information technologies will not only improve the state of affairs and eliminate bureaucracy, but will also allow us to find optimal solutions to most global problems. For this, we must seriously limit democracy and to suppress those who stand in the way of ‘ensuring happiness for all’.
These recipes are so odious that even the US press, which is loyal to the billionaires, is beginning to sound the alarm. On May 16, the Washington Post published an article titled ‘Big Tech takes a harder line against worker activism, political dissent’.
It is no coincidence that the growing influence of the rich in Western countries is perceived with concern by many segments of the population, which is why confidence in the ruling elites is constantly decreasing. This is especially evident in the largest Western European states (the UK, France and Germany), where the rulers’ ratings are declining. They currently do not exceed 20-23%.
Some observers consider the most striking indicator of the decline of the West to be the fact that the United States is losing the economic and technological race to China, even lagging behind the Chinese in the field of artificial intelligence.
Vladimir Mashin, PhD in history, political observer
