Just as the world's key players are no longer the same, the forums where international relations are debated are also changing. Davos, the quintessential gathering of Western economic elites, is seeking a new purpose since Trump decided to reject globalization, promote protectionism, and impose barriers to international trade in the form of tariffs.
The latest meeting of the Munich Security Conference was used by Vice-President JD Vance to launch a full-blown attack on European democracies and promote the idea of regime change in the EU, hand in hand with patriotic and far-right political formations.
While Western conferences are in crisis and the transatlantic relationship is clearly floundering, new forums are emerging that symbolize their importance and bring the multipolarity that already governs international relations into the world of ideas. Thus, the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi, the Antalya Forum in Turkey, and the Doha Forum in Qatar are gaining prominence. All of them serve as platforms for thought and mobilization of actors in the new centers of international power, where the articulation of the conversation in a post-Western world converges.
At the Doha Forum a few days ago, Trumpism and the American old guard paraded together. Hillary Clinton was questioned by her interviewer in an exercise of free journalism and received criticism for being stuck in the past. Donald Trump Jr., a partner in the investment fund that profits from his father's presidency, received, on the other hand, the treatment favored by new apprentices of authoritarianism: a comfortable interview in which he praised Trump's unpredictability as a negotiating tool while continuing to lecture the Europeans. "The United States needs more partners like Qatar and fewer like the European Union."
The day before, Kaja Kallas, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, had done her best to convey to the attendees Europe's strategic disorientation. "We are still the most important ally of the United States," she stated, despite the fact that the National Security Strategy had clearly outlined Washington's perception of the EU: a place where freedom of expression is censored, where regulation "stifles," and where diversity—that is, immigration—will cause European civilization to vanish.
The transatlantic divide is evident in these dialogues, as countries like the host, Qatar, proudly assert their status as regional powers. It is no longer just China or Russia that aspire to shape the world of tomorrow. Middle powers, regional players, and strategically important nations in sectors such as energy are also vying for power in this increasingly multipolar world.
The Doha Forum was the setting where Bashar al-Assad's allies decided to withdraw their support a year ago. In a meeting held on the sidelines of the official program, representatives from Russia, Turkey, and Iran acknowledged how the opposition's gains made it preferable to back new leadership. A few days later, Assad left Damascus for Moscow, and the opposition found in the former jihadist Ahmed al-Sharaa the figure to head the new interim government. Al-Sharaa was received at this year's Doha Forum with the protocol befitting a head of state, Westernized in his dress and with a more conventional demeanor, following his recent visit to the White House.
Qatar and forums like the Doha Forum are adapting better than Europe to the new shifts in global geopolitics. The Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of this small Gulf state was interviewed by none other than Tucker Carlson, a leading political commentator on Trumpism and the MAGA movement. During the conversation, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani took the opportunity to emphasize the importance of the alliance between the United States and Qatar, which has positioned itself as a mediating power in regional conflicts, clearly aligned with Donald Trump's peace agenda.
Carlson, who just days earlier had been accused of condoning antisemitism after interviewing far-right agitator Nick Fuentes on his program, inquired about the neutrality of Qatar, the country hosting Hamas's exiled leadership. Al Thani responded that it was others—in a clear reference to Israel—who were determined to sabotage the good relationship with the United States and the shared desire for peace in the region.
Some will call it opportunism disguised as mutual flattery. But the truth is, while Al Tahni and Carlson were showcasing Qatar's ability to adapt to the new MAGA era, those of us in attendance were reminded of the moment when Trump demanded Benjamin Netanyahu publicly apologize for the bombings in Doha, in a forced conversation between the Israeli prime minister and his Russian counterpart. The new world order is being assembled in new forums, and it is we Europeans who seem to be left out in the cold.
