"In these unsettled times, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s return to
the White House looks set to shake things up further. But how does a
disrupter deal with an already disrupted world?
..
SUDAN
Sudan’s war, based on the numbers of displaced and hungry people, is the world’s most devastating. Some 12 million Sudanese—more than a third of
the prewar population—have fled their homes. More than half face acute
food shortages, with parts of the Darfur region suffering famine. United Nations officials describe rates of sexual violence against women and
girls as “staggering.” Increasingly, the country looks headed for
violent fracture.
..
Ukraine and European Security
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has promised to end the Russia-Ukraine
war by negotiating with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Talks are
worth trying, but it’s hard to see a path to a sustainable
cease-fire—let alone a peace deal.
..
Israel-Palestine
Israel’s assault on Gaza, launched in response to Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack, has laid waste to the strip. The campaign, according to local authorities, has killed upwards of 45,000 Palestinians. Most were civilians—at least a third of them children. Thousands more bodies are missing, presumably under the rubble, and some two-thirds of buildings
and infrastructure are damaged or in ruins.
..
Iran vs. the United States and Israel
Tehran still has thousands of ballistic missiles (in October, around 30
of 180 penetrated Israeli defenses), plus allied militias in Iraq and
the Houthis, which continue to fire on Israel from Yemen. Hezbollah may
yet regroup. But around Israel’s perimeter, the Axis of Resistance,
which Iran saw as a deterrent against Israeli or U.S. attacks, is
broken. From Tehran’s perspective, it’s also worrisome how capable Israel’s intelligence agencies are and how high its risk tolerance has become.
..
HAITI
Many Haitians’ hopes that a new government and a Kenya-led multinational police mission could loosen criminal gangs’ grip on the country have
been shattered.

Since President Jovenel Moïse’s assassination in July 2021, the gangs
have seized much of Haiti. Historically used by elites for profiteering
or to take out rivals, such groups have grown more powerful and
autonomous. In early 2024, an alliance of previously warring gangs,
known as Viv Ansanm, besieged the capital of Port-au-Prince.
..
U.S.-Mexico
Mexico is already reeling from violence involving criminal gangs that
resembles some of the world’s worst wars. During the U.S. election
campaign, Donald Trump—now the president-elect—promised to slap high tariffs on the United States’ southern neighbor, send back millions of migrants, and even bomb cartels.
..
Myanmar
Midway through 2024, Myanmar’s military regime appeared to be teetering,
as rebels had seized large tracts of the uplands as well as key military
bases. Since then, China, fearing a disorderly collapse, has thrown
military leader Min Aung Hlaing a lifeline. But the junta still faces determined resistance. A vote in 2025, if it proceeds as planned, will
bring further bloodshed.

The civil war that has torn Myanmar apart since the military seized
power in 2021 has set the country back decades: More than 3 million
people are displaced internally, health and education systems have
crumbled, poverty has skyrocketed, and Myanmar’s currency, the kyat, has crashed.
..
Korean Peninsula
In his January speech, Kim aimed to further seal off North Korea,
especially from South Korean cultural exports—K-pop and K-dramas, in
other words—while tightening his grip on the economy. But further
cutting ties, including virtually all inter-Korean communication, leaves
the countries with few options to manage incidents at a time of mounting friction.

Already, shortly after Yoon assumed power in 2022 and adopted a harder
line toward Pyongyang, the two Koreas had abandoned an accord that
disarmed border guards and set up no-fly zones as well as land and sea
buffer areas.
..
U.S.-China
Trump’s Asia policy is as unpredictable as his approach to other arenas.
Some cabinet picks believe the United States is engaged in a global
struggle with China, one in which it must prevail. Others in Trump’s
circle think Washington should limit itself to deterring Beijing in
Asia.

Tech executive Elon Musk, who does business in China, wants friendlier relations. Trump himself has sent mixed signals: confrontational on
trade, lukewarm on Taiwan’s defense, cantankerous about U.S. commitments
to Asian allies, and often admiring of Xi’s authority.
.." https://foreignpolicy.com/2025/01/01/conflicts-2025-syria-sudan-gaza-ukraine-iran-haiti-mexico-myanmar-korea-china/

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