American economist Jeffrey Sachs has described India, the US, China and Russia as the world’s four superpowers, arguing that Western dominance has ended. Speaking in Varanasi, he criticised Donald Trump’s tariffs and military policies, urged major powers to cooperate peacefully and backed India’s inclusion as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Renowned American economist and foreign policy expert Jeffrey Sachs stated that the era of Western dominance has officially ended, arguing that global stability now rests on a multipolar order driven by four central superpowers: India, the United States, China, and Russia.
Speaking with ANI, Sachs emphasised that Washington’s refusal to accept the end of its hegemony poses a grave threat to international peace, urging leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi to step in and restrain American unilateralism.
“Yes, the era of Western dominance has ended, but we don’t yet have a good, shared understanding in the world of the new multipolar world,” Sachs said. “The United States still thinks that it’s the dominant power. This is out of date and dangerous because it leads the United States to do very reckless and stupid things like going to war with Iran, and that creates damage for the whole world.”
🚨 American economist Jeffrey Sachs says India will be the world’s largest economy by 2100 and have twice China’s population. https://t.co/w8yGPcSMCh
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Sachs Urges Leaders To Restrain Washington
Sachs called on the leaders of the emerging multipolar world to directly counter Washington’s unilateral military actions and enforce accountability.
“I think the other major powers, the leaders, like Prime Minister Modi, President Xi, President Putin, need to explain to the American president, ‘You can’t do that. You have to stop. This is not your choice whether to bomb Iran or not. It’s not your right. It’s not your interest, and also the whole world opposes it. So, stop. You have to be responsible to the world, not just to your own whim,'” Sachs asserted.
Trump’s Economic Policies Draw Criticism
Reflecting on the economic policies of the United States, Sachs rejected the idea that recent American policy has fostered economic expansion, arguing instead that President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade measures and military conflicts have derailed international stability.
“Trump has destabilised the world economy by too many wars, too much conflict, and by his tariff policy. It’s been awful. I’ve said so from the very beginning,” Sachs noted. “I told my friends in India, this man, Trump, doesn’t know what he’s doing, and the policies are harmful. So, be careful.”
Four Superpowers Must Cooperate Peacefully
To navigate this post-Western era, Sachs argued that the world’s four primary superpowers—India, China, the U.S., and Russia—must abandon hostile military alliances and economic containment strategies in favour of peaceful, law-based cooperation.
“India is one of the four superpowers of the world. The United States, India, China, Russia are the four superpowers,” Sachs stated. “They should cooperate with each other. They should not gang up one or the other. They should respect each other. They should not meddle in the internal affairs of each other. They should not put their militaries next to each other. They should not make alliances with each other. Just cooperate peacefully, and not to say, ‘Oh, side with me against the other one.’ That kind of thinking is the destructive thinking.”