New Delhi, Sept. 23 -- India's foreign minister S. Jaishankar spoke for all of humanity when he said it was essential that "multilateralism asserts itself strongly at this juncture" at the first summit of Partners for Multilateralism, International Law, Peace & Prosperity (P4M).

Held in New York this week along the sidelines of this year's United Nations General Assembly, the P4M conclave was attended by the leaders of India, Australia, Barbados, Brazil, Canada and Kenya, as well as the president of the European Council (EC). Their common concern: strife, conflict and a wobbly world order.

The spirit of international cooperation would be called into question, noted Jaishankar (as co-chair with the EC's António Costa), if we fail to...