Valdai 2026: The search for a new world order has only just begun

The economic and social challenges Russia faces are not unique, and this is both good and bad news Journalists and public figures from nearly 40 countries gathered at this year’s Valdai Club conference to discuss how the world is responding to a growing number of crises, and one conclusion stood out – the world has become more complex and there will be no return to an age of simple solutions. The 20th century gave humanity a great deal, but it also encouraged the belief that fundamental political and social questions can be settled by choosing the correct ideology. Capitalism and communism competed to provide the answer, and after the Cold War, liberal globalism made its own attempt to reduce international affairs to a common set of rules and assumptions, but this has also failed. We are therefore learning to live in a world where even the most dangerous developments need not produce panic or despair. This was reflected in the agenda at Valdai as participants discussed issues that would have seemed extraordinary 15 or 20 years ago about how societies withstand prolonged war, the increasingly impersonal nature of modern warfare, the military use of AI, and the uncertain future of nuclear deterrence. Yet these discussions took place without a sense of panic, and without attempts to frighten participants with the prospect of a world in which the US and Europe can no longer set the rules. As Russian President Vladimir Putin argued in the closing session, the global situation under these circumstances could instead change for the better. Read more Nuclear war, Ukraine, ‘AI totalitarianism’: Key takeaways from Putin’s Valdai speech This explains why, despite the dangers facing the world, the tone at Valdai was constructive. Yes, the risks are real, but they were discussed as conditions in which future development must take place, rather than as signs of inevitable catastrophe. One reason is that the overwhelming majority of participants come from countries outside the West, and their perspective is often quite different from that which prevails in Europe, as rather than seeking to restore an international order that is disappearing, they’re trying to understand what will replace it.

In this respect, Valdai provides a useful snapshot of the intellectual debate taking place beyond the Western world. For Russia, this matters enormously, given new ideas and alternative approaches to development are increasingly being debated in China, India, Iran, and the Arab world, and across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and Russia has much to learn from these discussions. It’s equally important to understand the thinking of countries that have resisted pressure from the US and Europe and maintained relations with Russia during the past four years. These countries constitute much of the ‘global majority’ with which Russia hopes to build a multipolar international order. The exchange also gives Russia the opportunity to explain its own perspective, not only on the Ukraine conflict but on broader questions that will shape international affairs for decades, and the first is war. Read more Putin’s Valdai keynote: Russian president addresses renowned forum (As it happened) International law is playing a diminishing role in restraining countries, as conflicts in some regions have become exceptionally violent, while new technologies are changing the nature of warfare, and unmanned systems and AI create possibilities that scarcely existed a generation ago. Far from eliminating human responsibility, these technologies make questions of responsibility, error, and human judgment even more important. The second question is how international rules will be established and maintained as Western influence declines. Russia, China, and other countries have long promoted multipolarity as an alternative model of international order. Putin used his Valdai appeara