The end of entitlement: Europe’s problems are not the world’s problems

Dresden after World War II bombing

“Europe has to grow out of the mindset that Europe’s problems are the world’s problems, but the world’s problems are not Europe’s problems.” These were the words of External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar, speaking at a global security forum in Slovakia.

The statement lays bare an enduring flaw in the worldview of many European powers—a belief that their own disputes and crises are of universal importance, while the struggles of other nations are peripheral, if not irrelevant. 

This Eurocentric ideology has shaped both history and narrative. It is precisely this mindset that allowed Europe to label the two major wars of the 20th century—World War I and World War II—as “World Wars.” In truth, these were largely European civil wars, born out of rivalries within the continent’s imperial order. The rest of the world had little to do with their origins, but was nonetheless dragged into the conflicts, often at great human and economic cost.

Historically, Europe’s dominance over vast parts of Asia lasted scarcely 100 to 150 years, from the early 19th century until the mid-20th century—a mere blink in the timeline of civilizations that stretches back tens of thousands of years and will extend indefinitely into the future. Yet because this dominance is so recent, the political and intellectual classes in some of the former colonial powers continue to behave as though global leadership is their permanent right, and that others must rally to resolve their crises.

This attitude has bred an unspoken expectation: that non-Western nations should make costly sacrifices for European causes, while Europe is free to ignore, or even exacerbate, the crises of others. Many of these global problems—whether in Africa, Asia, or Latin America—are in fact the result of European interventions, colonial extractions, and political manipulations.

But history is moving on. The brief era of Western dominance is reaching its epilogue. The global order is now irreversibly multipolar, with nations determined to chart independent courses based on their own strategic, economic, and cultural imperatives.

For India, this means safeguarding its resources and decision-making autonomy. Any assistance to Europe—or, for that matter, to the United States—must be grounded in mutual benefit, not inherited obligation. Partnership must replace presumption, and reciprocity must replace entitlement. In the multipolar century, respect will be earned through balance, not demanded through outdated hierarchies.