America’s retreat reshapes alliances, trade and warfare

The brief

Fareed Zakaria and Scott Galloway connect the Iran war, threats to Gulf shipping and Ukraine’s resilience to a broader question: what happens when America retreats from global leadership?

The Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb show how regional conflict can disrupt global energy security, while drones and autonomous systems expose the limits of conventional military power.

Zakaria argues that weakening the Canada-Mexico-U.S. production system benefits China, whose electric-vehicle and AI advantages are already pressuring Western industries.

Tariffs may be unpopular enough to create political space for renewed Western cooperation, but fuel prices, inflation and polling will shape the midterm outlook.

Ukraine’s ability to hold and regain territory despite its smaller resources becomes the episode’s clearest example of determination and technological innovation challenging conventional power.

Zakaria remains optimistic that the United States can still steer events, even as overlapping geopolitical, economic and technological crises strain its traditional role.