Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon

The concept of global economic fragmentation was, until recently, centered on “friend-shoring.” Former US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was a big advocate, pushing the idea of shifting production out of China and toward allies, or at least “partners” such as India and Vietnam.

As she put it on a visit to New Delhi, for too long had the West been “overly dependent on risky countries.” Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 made obvious the vulnerability of Germany and other European nations to the Kremlin, given their reliance on Russian fossil fuels. Friend-shoring was the solution.