Global South Nations Pursue Geoeconomic Insulation Amid US-Led Order

Developing nations are actively building defensive autonomy and economic resilience to shield themselves from the impacts of US-led policies. This bottom-up movement, termed the 'Great Insulation,' sees small and middle powers constructing firewalls rather than pursuing isolation. Recent US-Israeli strikes on Iran illustrate how the current order functions like an air conditioner, cooling the American center while exporting heat to the periphery through mechanisms like aggressive interest rate hikes and proxy wars. The Middle East, long treated as a staging ground for great-power conflicts, has been reclaiming geopolitical agency in recent years. Economic self-reliance is accelerating as a more accessible path compared to military autonomy. This insulation strategy aims not to decouple from major powers but to protect against exported inflation and geopolitical risks.