It is quite an achievement for an expression to be patronising, factually inaccurate, a contradiction in terms and a catalyst for political polarisation all within two words, but the deeply unhelpful term “Global South” manages it with aplomb.

The expression apparently has its modern roots in postcolonial discourse, particularly in writings by the US activist Carl Oglesby about the Vietnam War. But in recent years it has been elevated into a descriptor for all lower-income nations, from the poorest “least developed countries” to the middle-income giants such as the Brics – some of which, specifically China and Russia, have extensive historical and indeed present-day imperialist traditions of their own.