Following a tumultuous 2023, it might seem remarkable to suggest that 2024 could bring unprecedented security events to world affairs. Yet many factors suggest this will be the case. Around 50 countries will vote in 2024, including the world’s three largest democracies and several nations in geopolitical hotspots. Ten of those countries will send nearly a third of the world’s population to the ballot box.
Prospects for unprecedented geopolitically driven interference and conflict are strong, particularly considering rising tensions over Taiwan (Chinese aircraft breached Taiwanese airspace 1,700 times last year alone) and recent statements made by NATO officials like military committee chairman Admiral Rob Bauer that future war between Russia and the allies is entirely conceivable.
This last point signals a sea change in thinking among Western security communities about the proper stance of governments and their societies, both in the face of resilient Russian aggression and the willingness of many countries to support Moscow. Bauer’s comments have led to debate in the United Kingdom and elsewhere about how best to prepare for mobilization of society in a future…
