2023: The world as we see it today

death, but also had strategically prepositioned anti-aircraft gunners. Another significant factor would be the anti-aircraft missiles and drones from countries supportive of Ukraine like the U.S.

The International Monetary Fund has also sounded the alarm over the Ukraine conflict’s “severe economic repercussion in Europe, with higher energy prices, weaker consumer confidence and slower momentum in manufacturing resulting from persistent supply chain and rising disruption costs,” at the same time warning that about half of the European Union will be in recession in 2023.

Saying the world took a dangerous turn in 2022, the Council on Foreign Relations lists several Tier 1 (high priority) risks or potential conflicts to watch this 2023, based on the results of the 15th annual Preventive Priorities Survey conducted by its Center for Preventive Action.

An escalation of the armed conflict in Ukraine resulting from the employment of unconventional weapons, the spillover into neighboring countries

(including cyberattacks on critical infrastructure and/or the direct involvement of NATO members) has become a real danger, warned CFR. It also points to the continuing tensions between the U.S. and China – describing the relations between these two majors as plummeting – because of their differences over Taiwan.

“As if Taiwan and Ukraine were not enough to worry about, several disputes in other parts of the world also became more menacing in 2022, notably those involving Iran and North Korea,” CFR also noted, its assessment echoed by other think tanks that have expressed concern over the probability of Iran becoming a nuclear weapons state, as well as North Korea’s relentless missile launches with Kim Jong Un ordering the “exponential” expansion of their nuclear arsenal.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies will hold its annual forecasting conference this Thursday regarding policy challenges in the Indo-Pacific Region. Growing tensions in the region is a major cause of concern, especially with the intense strategic competition between the U.S. and China. I was asked to deliver a keynote speech for the event where a CSIS team of experts will be conducting panel discussions on the political and economic developments on the region. Immediately after that event, I will proceed to the International Institute for Strategic Studies where I was invited to its Americas Ambassadors Forum to share our foreign policy thrusts and priorities as well as my perspectives on the geopolitical and economic challenges that impact the Philippines and the region.

Given the continuing challenges that nations face in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, a key priority for nations would be economic recovery more than pursuing military might.

As many experts have noted, a nation’s military supremacy has its foundations on superior economic development. Put another way, the main driving force for most countries is still the economy, and this to a large extent determines their relationship with other nations.

Taken in that light, the U.S.