For many observers, 2025 will be remembered as a year when global politics felt permanently on edge. From war zones to trading floors, few regions escaped upheaval as leaders, alliances and economic systems were tested under relentless pressure.
The year opened with a political earthquake in the United States. On 20 January, Donald Trump returned to the White House after defeating Democratic challenger Kamala Harris, marking one of the most dramatic comebacks in modern American politics.
Backed by an expanded coalition of supporters, Trump moved swiftly, signing a record number of executive orders that reshaped US policy on immigration, energy, national security and foreign relations. His combative rhetoric toward the European Union and conditional approach to NATO unsettled long-standing allies.
That unease deepened during a tense February meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, when Trump openly questioned continued US military support for Kyiv.
Although aid was later partially restored, Washington’s unpredictability forced European leaders to reassess their long-term reliance on the United States as Russia’s war in Ukraine dragged into its fourth year.
Trade relations also entered uncharted territory. Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs imposed blanket duties on imports from much of the world, triggering market volatility and retaliatory threats.
While the US struck several last-minute deals — including a tariff compromise with the EU — the episode underscored how trade had become a central tool of geopolitical leverage. A fragile tariff truce with China did little to calm broader fears of economic fragmentation.
Conflict remained a defining feature of 2025. In the Middle East, a fragile, US-brokered ceasefire brought a pause to the devastating Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, though sporadic violence and humanitarian suffering persisted.
Tensions escalated further when Israel and the US launched strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities during a brief but intense confrontation, raising fears of a wider regional war before a ceasefire was reached.
Elsewhere, the fall of Syria’s longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad led to a dramatic diplomatic reset. With a new leadership seeking legitimacy, the US, EU and UK lifted long-standing sanctions, hoping to stabilise the country and enable refugee returns after more than a decade of civil war.
Religious and political milestones also marked the year. The election of Pope Leo XIV, the first US-born pontiff, signalled continuity in the Vatican’s calls for peace and reconciliation. In Asia, Japan made history by electing Sanae Takaichi as its first female prime minister, while simultaneously embarking on a major military expansion.
Meanwhile, instability spread across West Africa, where new coups reinforced a growing “coup belt” and accelerated the region’s geopolitical shift away from Europe toward Russia.
By year’s end, 2025 had left the world facing unresolved wars, strained alliances and deep economic uncertainty — a turbulent prelude to what lies ahead.