The shocking oil price hike resulting from the conflict in the Middle East is a brutal reality.
It confirms the interdependence of human society, particularly the global economy, and how it should not be toyed with.
In 2026, the interdependence of human society should not need reminding.
The widely reported attacks by the US and Israel on Iran, and Iran’s retaliation have reminded us of how closely the global economy is intertwined.
The price of oil, a commodity which virtually runs the modern economy, shot up, increasing the cost of doing business globally.
Poorer countries are feeling the pain more as the price of fuel feeds into virtually all industries, raising prices all around, including transport and groceries.
Zero-sum people such as Donald Trump misunderstand interdependence and its foremost “by-product”.
The formation of early groups naturally led to competition with other groups for resources and convenience as groups came into contact.
Conflict between groups occurred simultaneously with interdependence within those groups.
However, what zero-sum people must understand is that generally interdependence won because it kept transforming smaller groups into larger groups.
Tribes formed nations, and nations formed coalitions.
The existence of the global economy with its intricate connections and interdependence is a testament of this.
For people who understand the development of mankind, it is not conflict that defines humankind.
Instead, it is our gravitation towards interdependence which defines us.
In our part of the world, we call it ubuntu.
It makes us stronger despite the unrelenting and competing belief that humankind is in a tussle of the “survival of the fittest”, where the weak are eliminated through force.
Far from it, our collective survival is a result of our gravitation towards interdependence and co-operation.
This has helped humanity to overcome impossible odds.
The emergence of the global economy, the global order, global social and cultural development are all inevitable results of something that has fascinated the human psyche for all time.
Unlike empires of yesteryear, where powerful dynasties sought to rule the globe and became the driving force, the present global system is far more inclusive.
It has developed from diverse backgrounds, cultures and social systems into a complex multilevel system where the centre is held not by dynasties but by states of varying power and complexity.
This is a level of interdependence that has never existed before.
Our international stance must help mitigate real threats such as elevated prices of goods and services. Anything else does not represent national interests
Too often, the existing system of global trade is misunderstood to be the project of the west.
Yet, it is the inevitable result of human development at scale.
Unfortunately, you cannot explain this successfully to Trump or Benjamin Netanyahu.
Their zero-sum construct of the world disallows it, and we are all paying for it.
Their counterparts on the other end of the political spectrum hold the same zero-sum view of the world and are just as hard to convince.
“The world is so globalised, and we need to continue beating the multilateralism drum.
“We have friends and the South African business community should not demonstrate favouritism for any country or region, but work for South Africa’s best interests,” French President Emmanuel Macron said.
France and Macron are not innocent participants in the global economy by any stretch of imagination.
However, next to Trump, Macron becomes a saint.
Though Macron recently disinvited SA from the G7 summit because of pressure from the US, he invited SA to the recent One Health Summit, where he said these words.
He demonstrated for France what he refers to as the “best interests”.
His approach points to the well-established practice of separating political interests from economic interests and others.
It allows countries to co-operate at some level even if they do not align politically.
It is a resilient approach to international co-operation.
Macron seems to understand the role of multilateralism.
He suggests that national interest must be used as the guiding light by SA businesses, showing no favouritism in their interactions.
Our government should do the same.
It should divorce national interests from political interests because the latter reflects only the interests of the ruling elite.
In fact, the actions of Trump and Netanyahu reflect precisely the folly of conflating political interests with national interests.
SA’s stated support for multilateralism must see our country’s consistency in promoting a co-operative interdependent global environment.
This is a prerequisite for continued development.
Ultimately, our foreign policy must be anchored in measured national interests to serve our citizens.
Our international stance must help mitigate real threats such as elevated prices of goods and services. Anything else does not represent national interests.
Daily Dispatch
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