Intro

Is 2026 the year of global conflict escalation?

In this in-depth conversation, Richard Atwood, Executive VP of International Crisis Group and host of Hold Your Fire! podcast, discusses the top 10 conflicts to watch in 2026 and how Trump's foreign policy is reshaping global order.

Richard Atwood, one of the world's leading conflict analysis and prevention experts, draws on 20+ years of field research across 50+ war zones (Ukraine, Gaza, Venezuela, Syria) to explain:

• Venezuela: a dramatic US raid, but no clear ‘day after’

• Latin America: pressure politics over intervention wars

• Greenland: how seriously should Europe take Trump?

• Europe & NATO: defence burden-shifting and US unpredictability

• Ukraine: diplomacy stalled, deterrence doing the heavy lifting

• China-Taiwan: mixed signals, high stakes

• Iran: regime under pressure, options narrowing

• Israel-Palestine: ceasefire without resolution, West Bank escalation

• Syria: Assad gone, opportunity or new instability?

• Gulf politics: Saudi-UAE tensions beneath the surface

• Sudan-Yemen: neglected wars reshaping the region

Advising UN, EU, US State Dept and cited by world leaders, Atwood delivers unfiltered analysis on rules-based order collapse, Trump 2.0 impact, and which wars pose the greatest global threat. For geopolitics analysts, policymakers, and anyone tracking 2026 flashpoints, this is essential predictive intel.

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📘 About Richard Atwood Executive VP International Crisis Group | Hold Your Fire! host | Oxford IR expert | UN/State Dept advisor

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