Editor's note: Imran Khalid, a special commentator for CGTN, is a freelance columnist on international affairs. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

The G7 summit in France concluded without a final communique. For the second consecutive year in the group's history, the leaders of the world's wealthiest democracies cannot agree on basic language. This is not a procedural glitch; it is a political death certificate.

The immediate catalyst is clear: The United States expects Europe to endorse its military campaign against Iran, and Europe refuses. The deeper reality is that the over-seven-decades-old Atlantic alliance has reached its breaking point. The G7 was long the visible symbol of Western unity. If that symbol crumbles, the structural reality underneath has already collapsed, driven by three profound shifts in global power.

The first shift is a fundamental legitimacy gap. When the US launched military strikes against Iran on February 28, it acted alone, without consulting NATO allies or seeking UN Security Council approval. European capitals reportedly learned of the strikes from broadcast news. For Washington, this was business as usual. For Germany, France and the UK, it was a turning point. The old understanding that American military action ultimately served collective Western interests is dead.

Europe still considers Iran's nuclear program a threat, but European leaders no longer accept the premise that American policy and multilateral interests are identical. The evidence is operational: Berlin has blocked weapons shipments through its territory, London denied US warplanes access to its air bases and Paris recalled its ambassador to Washington. The US can no longer automatically convert alliance membership into military mobilization.

The second fracture is economic, defined by a complete reversal of the traditional alliance transaction. Historically, the US provided global public goods, such as secure sea lanes and open trade, and allies accepted American leadership in return.

Today, European officials see American policy as a cost exporter. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the US strikes raised European energy prices and diverted Western military resources away from Ukraine. Washington’s current demand is not to maintain a shared order, but to have allies share the cost of its escalation.

While NATO's European members now spend $380 billion annually on defense, a steep rise since 2022, Washington continues to demand more. This economic friction has devastated public trust. A survey by the European Council on Foreign Relations, published on June 10, revealed that only 11% of Europeans view the US as a reliable ally, a drop of 11% from November 2024. Europe's response has become explicit: It will pay for collective defense, but it will not finance Washington's unilateral conflicts.

The third and most consequential shift is that European strategic autonomy has transformed from a theoretical debate into an operational reality. For decades, the idea of an independent European defense capability was dismissed by Washington and resisted within Europe. Recent decisions show that this resistance has evaporated.

On June 12, the EU activated its permanent structured cooperation military framework. Five days later, Germany and Poland signed a new defense deal. Crucially, the European Commission has proposed a 100-billion-euro defense fund that explicitly excludes non-EU members.

This acceleration was triggered by a profound realization regarding American reliability. Following tensions earlier this year regarding Greenland and Danish territory, European leaders concluded that alliance solidarity under the current American administration flows only one way. Washington expects total loyalty but offers none in return, demanding European troops for Iran while simultaneously questioning NATO's Article 5 core guarantee.

The deadlock at the G7 summit carries three major implications for the shifting global order. First, the US can no longer assume European support for military actions outside NATO's core territory. The Iran conflict has set a binding precedent of European refusal.

Moreover, the global landscape is rapidly decentralizing. The G7's paralysis accelerates the movement toward multipolar institutions. For example, BRICS now represents over 50% of the global population and 36% of world GDP, while the G7 has shrunk to 10% of the population and 30% of GDP. The economic and demographic trend lines have officially crossed.

Finally, the next global crisis will find a deeply fragmented West. Whether in the South China Sea, the Middle East, or Eastern Europe, Washington will confront allies who demand genuine consultation before commitment.

The G7 is not dying; it is becoming irrelevant. A club that cannot issue a joint statement and represents a shrinking share of global output can no longer claim global leadership. For Europe, strategic autonomy is now a matter of survival. For the US, unilateralism has carried a measurable cost in alliance capital.

The post-Cold War order is over. What replaces it will be multipolar, complex and negotiated issue by issue. The G7 just signaled that this transition is happening much faster than Washington expected.

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