Hard Numbers

90,000: The "Yellow Vest" protests are catching on in western Canada where fuel fears come in a different form, namely low prices hurting domestic oil producers and their employees.

A Facebook group for protesters, Yellow Vests Canada, drew 90,000 members in its first two weeks.

14,000: President Trump announced this week that ISIS has been "defeated" in Syria and that US troops will soon be withdrawn from that country. The plan continues to draw criticism from a number of US lawmakers, including Republicans, in part because the US military reported recently there were still as many as 14,000 ISIS militants in Syria as recently as June and a similar number in neighboring Iraq.

2008: As of yesterday's close on Wall Street, the Dow and S&P 500 are on track for their worst yearly performance since 2008. We can't remember what happened that year, but it must have been bad.

1: A calendar that features only pictures of Vladimir Putin is the #1 best-selling 2019 calendar in Japan. Because the Japanese love Putin? Doubtful. Because Russian bots are brainwashing Japanese holiday shoppers? We're not going there. Because the Japanese love kitsch? That seems more likely.

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Paige Fusco

Justin Trudeau is leaving you, Donald Trump is coming for you. The timing couldn’t be worse. The threat couldn’t be bigger. The solutions couldn’t be more elusive, writes GZERO Publisher Evan Solomon.

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Is international order on the precipice of collapse? 2025 is poised to be a turbulent year for the geopolitical landscape. From Canada and South Korea to Japan and Germany, the world faces a “deepening and rare absence of global leadership with more chaos than any time since the 1930s,” says Eurasia Group chairman Cliff Kupchan during a GZERO livestream to discuss the 2025 Top Risks report.

During the Munich Security Conference 2025, the BMW Foundation will again host the BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt Pavilion. From February 13th to 15th, we will organize panels, keynotes, and discussions focusing on achieving energy security and economic prosperity through innovation, policy, and global cooperation. The BMW Foundation emphasizes the importance of science-based approaches and believes that the energy transition can serve as a catalyst for economic opportunity, sustainability, and democratic resilience. Our aim is to facilitate solution-oriented dialogues between business, policy, science, and civil society to enhance Europe’s competitiveness in the energy and technology sectors, build a strong economy, and support a future-proof society. Read more about the BMW Foundation and our Pavilion at the Munich Security Conference here.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands after speaking to reporters before their meeting at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on May 22, 2017.

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

President-elect Donald Trump raised eyebrows this week by sharing a video clip on his Truth Social account that shows economist Jeffrey Sachs trashing Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The European Union flag is displayed on a laptop screen and Elon Musk's account on X is displayed on a phone screen.

Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Reuters

Donald Trump’s bestie, Elon Musk, looks to be headed for a showdown with the elected leaders of Europe, and it is not clear who will come out on top.

Firefighters battle the Palisades Fire as it burns during a windstorm on the west side of Los Angeles, California, on Jan. 8, 2025.
REUTERS/Ringo Chiu

Out-of-control wildfires are devastating southern California, which, in the hyperpolarized political world of 2025, has resulted in a war of words between Republicans and Democrats.