There is universal agreement now that that the characteristic of the modern world is interdependence. But we haven’t yet had time to think through its consequences or understood that the international rule book has been ripped up.

Interdependence — the fact of a crisis somewhere becoming a crisis everywhere — makes a mockery of traditional views of national interest. Nations, even as large and powerful as the USA, are now affected profoundly and at breakneck speed by events beyond their borders.

Why is immigration now the top domestic policy issue in much of Europe and in the US? Because globalisation is making mass migration a reality — and only global development will make it a manageable reality.

Why has energy policy, too, rocketed up national agendas? Because of the need for countries like China and India to fuel their rapid development and the threat of climate change. The solution lies in an internationally agreed framework through which the developing nations can grow, the wealthy countries maintain their standard of living and the environment be protected from disaster.

So you can’t have a coherent view of national interest today without a coherent view of the international community. These challenges affect us all and can only be effectively tackled together. And we can’t wait around to see how these global challenges may develop as we could it the past. They require a pre-emptive, not simply a re-active response, on the basis of precaution not just certainty , often outside our own territory.

... contd.