Geopolitical shifts in the Western alliance could have a considerable impact on Africa's fortunes.

Two major summits in June could expedite one of the most significant strategic realignments in the international system. The Group of Seven (G7) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) summits may determine how deep current political fractures run.

Their outcomes will also suggest the extent to which certain actors are willing to pivot away from a collective Western bloc identity. This could see the locus of power becoming more evenly spread across either side of the Atlantic.

The implications will be profound, and although Africa is not at the table, it will be affected. A more hard-nosed understanding of global power shifts and their effect on African countries' shared security and developmental agenda is needed.

The G7 wields an outsized degree of influence on global governance. Its members represent more than half of the world's economic output, account for 55% of global military expenditure, and play a central role in trade with more than 90% of global foreign exchange reserves held in G7 currencies.

More importantly, this group of leading market economies and liberal democracies has influenced the global order for nearly half a...