The U.S.-Russia contest over Ukraine ‌shows both the persistence of classic power politics and the clash of competing worldviews‌ at a time when the international system is undergoing ‌a seismic process of reordering. The Ukraine war and its potential settlement ‌are upending traditional major-power dynamics‌.

U.S. policy ultimately will be defined by Israel. With Donald Trump in the White House, the Middle East will become even more vulnerable, and the security situation may erode. Saudi Arabia may not get the security guarantees it wants from the United States, and Iran will continue to be in the picture.

The future of the region should be decided by the countries there, not by external actors. Strategic autonomy, an idea frequently raised by some Arab countries in recent years, shows they’re waking up to reality. There should be no illusions about the future.

The three-way meeting in Beijing stood out for its effort to clarify the historical context of the Iranian nuclear issue and to present impartial, fair and equitable demands to all parties involved.

On February 14, 2025, at 1:30 PM, the 61st Munich Security Conference (MSC) opened at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof. I arrived early at the conference hall, but the 200 seats had mostly been taken and I finally found a spot back in the room.

The Quad has evolved into a coalition with increasing military cooperation and shared concerns over China’s rising power, though India’s reluctance to fully engage in a military alliance limits the group's effectiveness in countering China's influence in the Asia-Pacific.

The world is undergoing profound changes, as reflected in the report from this year’s Munich Security Conference. Focusing on multi-polarization, the report details U.S. arrogance, European hopelessness, Global South helplessness and worldwide disorder.

If Europe fails to awaken and respond to its humiliating rejection by the United States, it will lose not only its seat at the table for Ukraine-Russia peace talks but also its status as a leading player in the future multipolar world.

The rapidly growing AI industry was rocked last month with the launch of DeepSeek, an open-source, Chinese-developed competitor to OpenAI’s products. The introduction of a valid competitor to American dominance in AI will lead to many questions in 2025 on how the U.S. will respond.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth urged NATO to take greater responsibility for European security as the U.S. shifts focus to deterring China. The Trump administration’s reassessment of global deployments could foreshadow a strategic pivot, but uncertainties remain over China’s military trajectory and the effectiveness of U.S. policy responses.