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With the exception of the extreme right, no one in Israel wants to be stuck in Gaza, responsible for 2.4 million Palestinians, and facing a likely insurgency. Israel can end this war soon and save those hostages who are still alive, having demilitarised Gaza and set the stage for an alternative to Hamas.

After more than 200 years of neutrality with respect to regional and global great-power conflicts, Sweden has now chosen a side with its formal accession to NATO. With major strategic assets to offer the alliance, Sweden's membership represents a fundamental shift in the regional balance of power.

Two years after Russia launched its full-scale war of aggression, Ukraine is still holding the line militarily, and even beginning to recover economically. As much as Vladimir Putin wants the world to think he has shielded the Russian economy from blowback, recent financial and economic developments suggest otherwise.

Growing concerns over Beijing’s coercive power in the critical mineral supply chain have led the US and other Western countries to explore new strategies for diversifying away from China. Japan provides a useful case study in this regard.

Whether they target Chinese vessels directly or not, attacks on Red Sea shipping by Houthi rebels threaten to undermine China’s economic recovery. But, viewed through the lens of its rivalry with the US, the current turmoil in the Middle East is not bad news for China.

Given the island’s role in the US–China rivalry – which can be understood as a contest between democracy and autocracy – the recent presidential and legislative elections may turn out to be a kind of bellwether. In any case, believers in democratic principles worldwide have reason to celebrate.

Ensuring that the UK is ready to cope with national challenges requires increased resourcing and a commitment to the right level of governance, based on a clear strategy that can be implemented across the whole of society.

The impending demise of Myanmar’s military junta illustrates that autocracies can be brittle and that democratic transitions can be resumed. But even though resistance forces will likely overthrow the regime, they will require meaningful support from regional powers to reconstitute a viable pluralistic state.

It is hard to see anything good coming from the current spasm of violence between Israel and Hamas. But this tragedy, which has forced both Israelis and Palestinians to stare into the abyss, might prove to be a turning point that will clear the path for a lasting peace.

Vladimir Putin has reimagined Russia's past throughout his political life.

The latest Gaza war presents the US and governments across the Middle East with an opportunity to end Hamas and Iran’s cynical project of creating chaos. But first, Israel must be stopped from expelling the Palestinians from Gaza, as that would radicalise and destabilise the entire region.

The passing of the US’s preeminent foreign-policy thinker and practitioner marks the end of an era. Throughout his long and extraordinarily influential career, Henry Kissinger built a legacy that Americans would be wise to heed in this new era of great-power politics and global disarray.

Ukraine’s recent long-range strikes against the Russian Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Sevastopol and its ships triggered discussions about the related operational impact. Much less attention has been paid to the important strategic implications of Ukraine’s successful military activities in the Black Sea.

Brazil and Mexico wish to expand their role in the chip-making supply chain by forging partnerships with global competitors China and the US.

With Europe divesting from Russian hydrocarbons in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has shifted the bulk of its exports to the east. However, the risk is that it goes too far and leaves itself vulnerable to Chinese and Indian economic and political influence.

At the root of the peacekeeping crisis in Africa is a paradox. UN peacekeepers tend to be well-resourced but unwilling to undertake dangerous enforcement missions, whereas African peacekeepers are more willing to do what is needed to maintain peace, but rarely receive the logistical and financial resources they need.

The ruling Law and Justice party, in power since 2015, has signalled that it is unlikely to leave gracefully after a much-anticipated parliamentary election denied it a majority. For the EU, as well as NATO, such an anti-democratic turn in Warsaw is a nightmare scenario – but it need not happen.

Since 2018, a pro-Kremlin organisation called the All-Russia People’s Front has taken on an increasingly important role in Russia, both to increase support for the ruling United Russia party, and now as a tool to galvanise support for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

The UK government is exploring new rules on the use of AI in weapons systems, including autonomous weapons systems. In doing so, it has an opportunity to follow the US’s lead, build a shared framework for allies and show moral leadership.