WORLD ROUNDUPThe Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe | Trump Is Pushing India to Submit to China | Thailand-Cambodia Conflict, and more

Trump’s Missed Opportunities Are Piling Up  Stephen M. Walt, Foreign Policy)
The Trump administration had an unprecedented chance to change the United States for the better.

The Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe  (Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic)
Israel’s far right wants to take over Gaza. Netanyahu wants to stay in power.

Thailand-Cambodia Conflict: Legacy Politics and Premeditated Escalation  (Angela Suriyasenee and Nathan Ruser, The Strategist)
The eruption of fighting between Thailand and Cambodia on 24 July may appear to have been sudden, but it was neither abrupt nor unforeseen. It was the product of a calculated build-up and was shaped as much by domestic politics and legacy ambitions as by maps and military strategy.

Mapping a Decade’s Worth of Hybrid Threats Targeting South Korea  (Fitriani, Shelly Shih and Alice Wai, The Strategist)
While Australia is coming to terms with the realities of hybrid threats, South Korea has long been on the front line. Reflecting its formal state of war with North Korea, South Korea has endured decades of grey-zone provocations, including infiltration attempts, cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns.
However, the hybrid threat landscape confronting South Korea is evolving in both intensity and complexity—just as it is for the broader Indo-Pacific. For South Korea, it now extends beyond North Korea’s traditional campaigns to encompass state actors such as China, emerging technologies such as AI, and threats including intellectual property theft.

Israel’s Strategic Priorities in Post-Assad Syria  (Hirak Jyoti Das and Abhishek Yadav, IDSA)
The fall of Assad in December 2024 has created a fragile transition in Syria under Ahmed Al Sharaa, marked by sectarian tensions and weak central control. Violence against the Druze community, especially in Suwayda governorate, has triggered Israeli military intervention aimed at protecting its border and Druze allies.

The Risks of Israel’s Druze Policy  (Ahmad Sharawi, Foreign Policy)
Picking and choosing between Druze leaders will prove counterproductive.

Trump Is Pushing India to Submit to China  (By Sushant Singh, Foreign Policy)
Without clear U.S. support, the cost of resisting Beijing is too high.

‘A New Society: Behind Canadian Armed Forces Members Plot to Form a Militia and Seize Land  (Jessica Davis, GNET)
On 8 July 2025, three men in Quebec, Canada, were arrested and charged with facilitating terrorist activity, and a fourth was charged with weapons offences. According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the men plotted to “forcibly take possession of land” near Quebec City. They sought to establish a new society and build an anti-government militia. The activity is alleged to have taken place between 2021 and 2024. Media reports indicate that the plot was first uncovered by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), which informed the RCMP, a federal police force responsible for most terrorism investigations in Canada. 
The arrests followed a January 2024 raid in which a massive cache of weapons was seized outside of Quebec City. In that seizure, the RCMP took possession of 16 explosive devices, 83 firearms and accessories, 11,000 rounds of ammunition, and nearly 130 magazines. Some of the material seized was “diverted” from the Canadian military, although no details have been released.