Geostrategic tensions, global mistrust and the dark side of the digital world are significant threats that could fracture the world, according to the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General during the UN General Assembly in September 2020.

With the United States (US) presidential election nearing its apotheosis, predictions about what will come after are dominating discussions well beyond the US. When it comes to international relations, forecasts range from apocalyptic to cautiously optimistic. But what is needed is an actual way forward, grounded in realism.By realism, I don’t mean the “realist” approach to international relations, which emphasises the role of sovereign states as self-interested actors.

In Greek mythology, Icarus – in trying to escape a bad situation – became reckless and flew too close to the sun, plunged into the sea and perished. This ancient parable has current relevance in Southeast Asia.

The outcome of the United States (US) presidential election on 3 November will have momentous consequences for America in terms of economic policy, racial justice, the judiciary, health care, and the overall quality of its democracy. But the election’s international effects could be equally far-reaching and lasting.

United States (US) President Donald Trump cast blame on China over the coronavirus pandemic in an address on Tuesday before the United Nations (UN), whose chief warned against a new "Cold War" between the two powers.At a General Assembly held almost entirely virtually due to COVID-19, Trump delivered a speech in election campaign mode, while Chinese President Xi Jinping instead unveiled ambitious new targets to fight climate change.As the US death toll from COVID-19 reached the grim

It seems that instead of de-escalation, the bilateral relations between the world’s two largest economies has gone from bad to worse following the recent visit of Alex Azar, the United States (US) Secretary of Health and Human Services to Taiwan; the imposition of economic sanctions on the 11 current and former Chinese officials including Hong Kong’s chief executive Carrie Lam over the imposition of a new national security law in Hong Kong; Washington’s banning of the Chinese social media app

Observers of United States (US)-China relations increasingly talk of a new cold war. On top of a long-running trade war, the two countries now find themselves in a destructive cycle of mutual sanctions, consulate closings, and increasingly bellicose official speeches. Efforts to decouple the US economy from China’s are underway as tensions mount in both, the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. A cold war between the US and China would leave both countries and the world worse off.

On 3 August, President Duterte issued a directive disallowing the Philippines from joining naval/maritime exercises and drills of other countries like the United States (US) in the South China Sea (SCS) to reduce tensions in the disputed waters.

In his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on 27 July, President Rodrigo Duterte stated that, “Within ASEAN and beyond, the Philippines will continue to work with partners to address global perils and ramp up cooperation to secure for our peoples, greater peace, progress, and prosperity. The Filipino nation claims its rightful place in the community of sovereign states.

Tensions are mounting by the day between the United States (US) and China, leading to talk of a new Cold War.