Ian Bremmer discusses the Thucydides Trap, and the history lesson Harvard professor Graham Allison brought to Trump's National Security Council in 2017: a wake-up call for American and Chinese leaders. Conflict between rival great state powers is likely - but with statecraft, war is not inevitable.

But ... White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon saw Chinese leadership as America's greatest existential danger. As a result, he pressed a harder line with China on tariffs, AI, IP, and Hong Kong protests. If confrontation with China is inevitable, is it better to make a move early? Another question: can the Trump administration contain China without cultivating allies?

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People in support of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol rally near Seoul Central District Court in Seoul on Feb. 19, 2026. The court sentenced him to life imprisonment the same day for leading an insurrection with his short-lived declaration of martial law in December 2024.

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65: The age of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was sentenced to life in prison on Thursday after being found guilty of plotting an insurrection when he declared martial law in 2024.

How people in G7 and BRICS countries think their policies will effect future generations.
Eileen Zhang

Does skepticism rule the day in politics? Public opinion data collected as part of the Munich Security Conference’s annual report found that large shares of respondents in G7 and several BRICS countries believed their governments’ policies would leave future generations worse off.