Mushahid Hussain says 9/11 reshaped global order, weakened US dominance

ISLAMABAD: Twenty-five years after the September 11 attacks, Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed has argued that the event fundamentally reshaped global politics, weakened US dominance and accelerated the emergence of a more multipolar international order.

Speaking at a discussion hosted by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) in Islamabad, Mushahid Hussain presented a fact sheet titled “9/11 in 25: The Date That Changed the World.” He said the most significant transformation was the shift from a world dominated by the United States as the “sole superpower” to one in which China, Russia and regional powers have gained greater influence.

The senator linked this shift to the long-term consequences of the US-led wars that followed the attacks. Citing Brown University’s Costs of War project, he said the post-9/11 wars cost the United States about $8 trillion and resulted in the displacement of around 38 million people. Brown’s project independently estimates that at least 4.5 million people have died directly or indirectly in post-9/11 war zones, while noting that indirect-death estimates remain subject to uncertainty.

Mushahid Hussain also highlighted the consequences for Afghanistan and Pakistan. He argued that opportunities for reconciliation with the Taliban and the restoration of Afghanistan’s former monarchy were missed during the early post-9/11 period.

Discussing Pakistan, he said the country avoided the fate of several other Muslim-majority states that became direct theatres of war but experienced severe instability, particularly in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). He linked the turmoil to the emergence of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in 2007 and wider changes in Pakistan’s Afghan policy.

The senator further argued that the post-9/11 period contributed to the rise of China, the resurgence of Russia and the growing importance of regional groupings such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and BRICS.

Another issue he highlighted was the rise of Islamophobia and right-wing racism in parts of the West. He said these developments had widened tensions between Muslim societies and Western countries.

Mushahid Hussain also connected the post-9/11 geopolitical landscape to US support for Israel and what he described as a “Greater Israel” agenda. These remarks represent his interpretation of the developments that followed the attacks.

The discussion also examined the Iraq war and US policy in the wider Middle East. Mushahid Hussain cited American journalist Thomas Friedman and British author Philippe Sands while presenting his argument about the decision-making surrounding the Iraq invasion.

The event concluded with a question-and-answer session attended by people from different walks of life, providing an opportunity to discuss the continuing political, security and economic consequences of 9/11.

A quarter-century later, the legacy of the attacks remains a subject of debate over war, terrorism, international law, displacement and the changing balance of global power.