Having admitted the African Union (AU) as a permanent member, the Group of 20 (G20) took a historical step forward in improving global governance and revitalizing international economic cooperation.

The expansion, agreed by G20 members on Saturday, gives developing countries a greater voice and more representation. More cooperation and development opportunities will gravitate toward the Global South as China and other major economies have pledged staunch support for the region to shine in the global arena. 

Amid cheers and applause from the global leaders in attendance, AU Chairperson, Comorian President Azali Assoumani, assumed his seat representing the 55-member continental body at the inaugural session of the 18th G20 summit held in New Delhi on Saturday.

AU Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki hailed the entry, saying it would amplify the continent's advocacy and contributions to meeting global challenges. 

The G20, founded in 1999 in response to several world economic crises, is a major forum to discuss financial and economic issues. It previously comprised 19 countries plus the European Union (EU). Xinhua

 Washington's irrational use of military power to dominate and intimidate other countries has disrupted world peace and order, a Kenyan scholar has said recently.

Historically, U.S. military hegemony has sown seeds of discord, leading to deaths and the destruction of livelihoods and international order, said Dennis Munene, executive director of the China-Africa Center at the Africa Policy Institute, a Pan-African policy think-tank based in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

U.S. military hegemony, as reflected in warmongering and the plundering of resources and bringing about illegal regime changes, poses a threat to the survival of world civilization, Munene said in a recent interview with Xinhua, commenting on a report titled "Origins, Facts and Perils of U.S. Military Hegemony," which was issued by Xinhua Institute, the think tank of Xinhua News Agency.

In the report, Xinhua Institute outlines the formation of the U.S. military hegemony, summarizes the means Washington adopted to maintain it, and delves into its perils by presenting facts and data.

Citing the report, Munene noted that the United States has about 750 military bases in 80 countries and regions overseas that have enabled the country to launch wars or military operations in at least 25 countries.

"Putting the facts into context, from the end of World War II in 1945 to 2001, there were approximately 248 armed conflicts in 153 regions of the world, of which about 201 were initiated by the United States, accounting for about 81 percent," Munene said.

Taking the invasion of Libya by the U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization as an example, he said, such kind of intervention tore apart countries that could have found peaceful solutions to their problems.

"Today, after the military intervention, Libya remains trapped in a spiral of violence involving various groups and external interference," Munene said.

And what is even worse is that the following decade-long unrest has resulted in rampant arms trafficking in the Sahel region, a vast semi-arid region of Africa extending from west to east, where armed groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State have become more powerful.

According to a report by Mark A. Green, president and CEO of the Wilson Center, a Washington D.C.-based think tank, the Sahel accounts for 43 percent of the world's terrorism deaths, more than South Asia and the MENA region (the Middle East and North Africa) combined.

Observers said it was just after the fall of Gaddafi that terrorism began in the Sahel region, and the people in the Sahel region are suffering the consequences of the Libyan war.

"The crisis in Libya is a living example of how U.S. military hegemony has wrought havoc in a previously stable region," Munene said.Source Xinhuanet Editor Li Jiayao  Xinhua