Global History and Politics Dialogues

70 Years since Bandung: Non-Alignment,
Multi-Alignment, and the Role of Middle Powers

15 to 17 April 2025 in Bandung / Jakarta, Indonesia 

The Global History and Politics Dialogue commemorated the 70th anniversary of the first Asian-African Conference in Bandung by examining its relevance to today’s geopolitical strategies as well as its historical influence on the countries in the Global South.

Objectives

• Strategic insights for today: The evolution of non-alignment into today’s multi-alignment approach, where emerging and traditional middle powers navigate relationships between major actors.
• Exploration of Non-Aligned Movement’s legacy: The legacy of Bandung in shaping contemporary alliances like BRICS and its role in shaping the agenda of middle powers in the 20th and 21st centuries.
• Insights for German and European foreign policy in building partnerships with countries from the Global South, addressing their concerns, and exploring avenues for cooperation, taking into account the results of the second Körber Emerging Middle Powers Report.
• Addressing historical “blind spots” in the Global North by integrating historical contexts and perspectives of the Global South into the debate on global order and international cooperation. For a better understanding of an increasingly multipolar world.

In cooperation with BRICS Policy Center, Chatham House, FPCI, Gateway House, Oxford University, SAIIA.

Tuesday, 15 April

19:00 – 19:10
Welcome Remarks

19:10 – 21:00
Welcome Dinner

Wednesday, 16 April

09:00 – 09:30
Registration and Welcome

09:30 – 11:00
The Bandung Spirit & It’s Contemporary Relevance: A Living Framework for Middle Powers?

11:00 – 11:30
Break

11:30 – 13:00
Sovereignty & Security: Recalibrating Autonomy in a Multipolar Era

13:00 – 14:00
Break

14:30 – 15:30
A new „New International Economic Order“: Lessons from Post-Colonial Development

15:30 – 16:00
Break

16:00 – 17:30
Joint Responses on Transnational Challenges: How can Middle Powers Cooperate in a Fragmented World?

Thursday, 17 April

Workshop „Beyond Bandung: From Dialogue to Action“

14:30 – 14:40
Welcome Remarks

14:40 – 15:40
Rethinking Non-Alignment for a Multipolar World

15:40 – 16:00
Break

16:00 – 17:00
Bridging Non-Alignment and Multilateralism?

Public Event „The Asian-African Conference at 70: Non-Alignment, Multi-Alignment, and the Role of Middle Powers“

15:30 – 15:40
Launch of the Emerging Middle Powers Report 2025

16:10 – 17:30
Moderated Panel Discussion and Q&A with the Audience

70 Years since Bandung:
Non-Alignment, Multi-Alignment, and the Role of Emerging Middle Powers

Our new publication explores how the legacy of the 1955 Bandung Conference can help us rethink multilateralism in today’s fractured world order.