Facing the reality of a multi-polar world

The past few months have brought with them some diplomatic triumphs on the world stage, not one of them attributable to the United States or its NATO allies. The most impressive was the Chinese initiative to bring Saudi Arabia and its regional enemy Iran together to iron out their differences.

While neither country is a champion of human rights, and sectarian divisions have long been used to drive tensions by both, easing the discord between them could lead to a more stable Middle East over the longer term. It also seems like the detente might finally bring the proxy slaughter in Yemen, the poorest country in the region, to an end, a good enough reason on its own to applaud China’s efforts.