Munich: The Munich Security Conference (MSC) will hold its 61st session Friday, with the participation of 60 Heads of State and Government, 150 ministers, heads of leading international organizations and security experts from around the world. The Conference is one of the key global forums for discussing international security issues. This year comes amid major challenges, including the future of the global order, the escalating trend towards a multipolar world, and international crises, including the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East.
According to Qatar News Agency, the three-day conference will begin with the opening speech by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Speeches will also be delivered by US Vice President JD Vance, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy at the European Commission Kaja Kallas. The MSC will witness the first meeting between the US delegation, led by the US Vice President, and European political and military figures since the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will also participate in the event.
Vance, accompanied by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is scheduled to meet with the Ukrainian President on the sidelines of the conference to discuss President Trump’s increasing pressure to push Ukraine and Russia to begin negotiations to end the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II. Days before the start of the conference, the Munich Security Report (MSR) 2025 was issued, which confirmed that multipolarity in the world has become a reality, as power is shifting towards a larger number of actors who have the ability to influence key global issues. On the other hand, the world is experiencing increasing polarization both between and within many states.
The 151-page report argues that the growing influence of emerging powers offers hope for a more just and peaceful international order, but warns that growing competition, polarization and unilateral action risk creating a more conflictual world without shared rules and effective multilateral cooperation. A survey conducted by the Munich Security Conference (MSC) revealed that most citizens in Western industrialized countries express concern about the emerging multipolar system, fearing it could lead to increased chaos and conflict. Meanwhile, the majority in the BRICS countries view this shift with optimism, seeing it as a path towards a more just, fair, and peaceful world.
Addressing the latest edition of the Conference, MSC Chairman Christoph Heusgen emphasized the importance of discussing European security in the context of global trends and highlighted the broader implications of advances in technology, changing economic relations, and global warming on security. He noted that the international order is now influenced by a multitude of actors beyond just two superpowers. Heusgen stated that while the world may not yet be truly multipolar, it is shaped by multipolarization, which could lead to a fairer and more peaceful world but also pose risks such as increased inequalities and constraints on global problem-solving.
Heusgen stressed the need for recommitting to the rules established in the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to ensure that a multipolar world does not become one where every pole acts independently and undermines the rule of law. The Munich Security Conference, an annual event since 1963, aims to build trust and contribute to the peaceful resolution of conflicts through continuous and informal dialogue within the international security community. In 2021, the conference was held virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic.