The West and the World Introduction After the fifteenth century, explorers from western Europe hacked out empires in the Americas and redefined the nature of international exchange. New areas of the world regions of Africa, the Americas, and Polynesia were brought into the system for the first time. The level of exchange between civilizations became so critical that it affected older political and cultural traditions. In some cases, areas of Asia and the Middle East began to emulate developments in the West. The West's First Outreach: Maritime Power Introduction