Death of diplomacy driving world into dangerous era as war becomes ‘new normal’

The world is moving in a risky direction as geopolitical hotspots are destabilising, raising the risks of more hot wars breaking out

A distracted US, growing economic pressure and increasing tendency for nations to ditch diplomacy in favour of war make for a dangerous new status quo

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A view of the destroyed village of Moshchun in the Kyiv region of Ukraine on May 19, 2022. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has generated widespread global disruption on its own but also drawn much of the world’s attention, allowing flare-ups elsewhere to go unnoticed. Photo: Reuters

Abishur Prakash

Abishur Prakash is the founder of The Geopolitical Business, an advisory firm in Toronto.

Published: 3:30am, 20 Feb 2023

The world is on edge. “Balloongate” between the United States and China is just the tip of the iceberg. Alongside this are calls by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to equip his country with fighter jets, South Korea exploring managing nuclear weapons and a new strike by Israel on a weapons factory in Iran reportedly producing drones for Russia.

It is clear that the world is moving in a dangerous direction. Geopolitical hotspots that have been global headaches for decades are destabilising. At any moment, a hotspot could turn into a hot war. The world cannot withstand another conflict, though, as it would permanently fragment the globe and destroy any chance of long-term global peace and stability.

Much of what is happening stems from two things. First, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drawing the world’s attention, tensions flaring elsewhere are flying under the radar. The international community is doing little to calm the waters. Second, and more importantly, the effects of the war in Ukraine have snowballed and are influencing the politics of other nations.