For more than two centuries, the Western world has dominated international affairs. Is that epoch coming to an end? After all, the West’s share of global economic output is shrinking. All those wars in the Middle East since September 11 have damaged American credibility and influence. And as Brexit, Donald Trump’s rise and the populist explosion across Europe shows, there is widespread distrust of Western elites.

Meanwhile, the rise of China, India and the rest – thanks to capitalism and technological innovation – continues unabated. So, has the West lost it? The answer, according to a new thesis by that title, is yes. If I were asked to nominate a brief, readable critique of the West today, this book would top the list.

Traders on Wall Street: A new book suggests the West has won, but is now losing. Credit:AP

Kishore Mahbubani, one of Asia’s most distinguished foreign-policy intellectuals, argues that although the West has won, it is now losing and will be need to come to terms with its decline. How so?

The West has won, according to Mahbubani, because everybody realises that markets and technology work and the rest have learnt to embrace capitalism. But the West refuses to accept that humanity has turned a corner in its history, he says, because the domination by an eighth of the global population is drawing to a close. Which is why we must adapt to the emergence of China as a major force.