Armed conflict between nation-states this year topped the global "current risk landscape" rankings in an annual report released Wednesday by the World Economic Forum ahead of its annual gathering which is due to get underway Monday in in Davos, Switzerland. File photo by Laurent Gillieron/EPA-EFE
Jan. 15 (UPI) -- The threat of armed conflict between nation-states in the next 12 months is top of the list of worries keeping global risk experts awake at night amid elevated geopolitical tensions and division, the World Economic Forum said Wednesday.
Almost one-in-five of more than 900 risk experts, policymakers and industry leaders surveyed by the Switzerland-based group cited a fracturing of the rules-based international order as the reason war was their most pressing concern in the coming year, WEF said in a news release.
The proportion who said they expected some instability by the end of 2026 was more than 50%, reflecting a widespread breakdown in cooperation internationally, the group said in a report ahead of its annual meeting in Davos next week which is expected to be attended by some 3,000 business leaders and 60 heads of state.
Donald Trump, who will be the president of the United States by the time of the gathering, will participate in the proceedings via a live-link from Washington.
Misinformation, where incorrect facts are disseminated unintentionally, and disinformation -- a deliberate effort to disguise falsehoods as truth -- dominate short-term risks and could fuel instability, said the report which warns the issue could damage faith in institutions, adding another dimension to the urgency for stakeholders to work together to tackle "shared crises."
"Rising geopolitical tensions and a fracturing of trust are driving the global risk landscape" said WEF managing director Mirek Dusek.
"In this complex and dynamic context, leaders have a choice: to find ways to foster collaboration and resilience, or face compounding vulnerabilities."
The global economy was pushed into sixth place on the current risks rankings behind war, extreme weather, trade wars, information wars and polarization, but WEF warned economic risks should not be underestimated due to the link to divisions within societies and tensions between countries.
Information wars topped short-term risks for the second straight year, "underlining their persistent threat to societal cohesion and governance by eroding trust and exacerbating divisions within and between nations," the reports states.
Only slightly lower on the list were extreme weather events, societal polarization, cyber-espionage and warfare.
Over the longer-term, extreme weather events, biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse, critical change to Earth systems, natural resources shortages and other environmental risks headed up the rankings on a 10-year horizon.
"From conflicts to climate change, we are facing interconnected crises that demand coordinated, collective action," said the head of WEF Global Risks Initiative, Mark Elsner.
"Renewed efforts to rebuild trust and foster cooperation are urgently needed. The consequences of inaction could be felt for generations to come."
