2026: A New Year with the same conflicts and tension

As many celebrate the start of the New Year, the beginning of 2026 has illustrated that political and religious conflict continues whatever the date may be.

Russia and the Ukraine accused each other of attacking civilians during the New Year period, with Russian claims of 24 people being killed in a drone strike on a hotel being countered by Ukrainian reports of drone strikes on power plants across multiple locations within Ukraine.

Since the war began in 2022, Statista have reported over 49, 431 civilian casualties (confirmed by the U.N.) as of November 2025. There has been worldwide condemnation of the conflict, but despite efforts from U.S. President Donald Trump to conduct peace negotiations that have resulted in, what appeared to be, moments of progress, the fighting continues.

The South China Sea

The South China Sea, and in particular Taiwan, has been the source of much tension between China and the Western world for many years, and after recent Chinese military drills close to Taiwan in-between Christmas and the New Year, it appears likely that the brinkmanship will continue into 2026.

The Chinese military conducted live-fire exercises for 10-hours on 30 December, with naval vessels firing live missiles into the ocean to the north and south of Taiwan, while air force units hit air and maritime targets.

The exercises were clearly designed to intimidate the Taiwanese people, with a statement by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office also sending a direct message to nations such as the United States and Japan.

“Any external forces that attempt to intervene in the Taiwan issue or interfere in China’s internal affairs will surely smash their heads bloody against the iron walls of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.”

In late 2025, Japanese Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, made comments about a hypothetical military response to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, inciting the anger of the Chinese Government and straining relations between the two nations.

In the early days of 2026, Chinese President, Xi Jinping, will host South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on a state visit. A move widely seen as an effort to potentially isolate Japan in the region after the recent diplomatic tensions.

A further incident intent on destabilising the region occurred on New Years eve, when the Philippines Coast Guard deployed an aircraft to an area off the coast of the northern Cagayan province. The plane was given the specific task of challenging (via radio) a Chinese research ship that acts as the base for submersible vessels.

The Chinese research ship did not respond, but the Chinese embassy in Manila stated that China does not accept certain domestic maritime laws.

In 2025 defence analysts claimed that Chinese vessels were mapping the sea floor around Australia and New Zealand in order support submarine movements.

Antisemitism and the re-emergence of ISIS

The rise of Antisemitism around the world is another critical issue that threatens to disrupt peace during 2026.

The horrendous scenes at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on 14 December 2025, where 15 people were murdered in cold-blood, was a violent reminder of the threats to Jewish communities around the globe.

Alleged to be influenced by ISIS, Sajid and Naveed Akram opened fire on people at a Hanukkah event at the iconic Australian beach, with a total of 40 people hospitalised.

The Australian Prime Minister said to the Media that it was a “targeted attack on Jewish Australians,” and despite also stating that Australia would “never submit to division and hatred,” his (Labor) government has been heavily criticised for not doing enough to prevent the rise of Antisemitism within Australia in recent years.

A pro-Palestinian gathering at the Sydney Opera House two years prior to the Bondi shootings, where people dressed in black chanted “gas the Jews”, while the NSW Police stood by without intervening, was widely seen as a point where governments within Australia, and the law enforcement departments they control, were willing to turn a blind-eye to Antisemitic comments and actions.

In Europe, the U.S. Ambassador to France, Charles Kushner, stated in November of 2025 that he had sent a letter to President Emmanuel Macron in July, where he had accused the French Government of ignoring the rise in Antisemitism in that country. In nations such as Germany, the United Kingdom and Denmark, there has also been a reported rise in antisemitism.

In Toronto, Canada, Waleed Khan is facing multiple terrorism charges after colluding with ISIS to carry out various attacks on Jewish people.

After an international coalition of forces defeated ISIS from 2014-2018, the extremist Islamic group has begun to reemerge in strength, with analysts fearing they could regain strongholds in Syria in 2026 and beyond, after the collapse of the Assad regime.

The African nation of Nigeria has endured increasing violent activity by ISIS in recent times. Radical Islamists have been carrying out vicious attacks on Christians throughout 2025, with thousands of people murdered.

US President, Donald Trump, had called out these atrocities, and threatened repercussions if they continued. Precision strikes were carried out during the Christmas period when 16 GPS-guided precision munitions were deployed from MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial platforms to destroy two ISIS camps in the Sokota region of north-west Nigeria.