After what happened in previous World Wars, it became apparent that global conflict can arise anywhere. Due to international politics today, there is a balance of power for every nation. If one was left unchecked, the world may fall into another great war. Because of countries like China and Russia, the United States must maintain their presence in some key strategic locations where a little friction and butting heads are to be expected. Here is a list of places in which the risk of a global conflict is high.

Syria

As all of you may know, there is an ongoing war in Syria. Even though most people have no idea what’s happening and what they’re fighting about, Syria has been embroiled in a civil war since 2011. It all started when the people protested against their president, Bashar al-Assad, a rebellion which rapidly deteriorated into a full-scale civil war. The United States supported the anti-government rebel forces, while Iran and Russia supported Bashar and his regime. Since the war started in 2011, hundreds of civilians are killed every single day. Because of this, thousands of Syrian refugees try to flee to other peaceful nations, which in turn has strained a few nations. Newly elected U.S. president Donald Trump has recently stated that in order to help Syria, he has promised to impose safe zones in Syria. This could include measures such as no-fly zones, which could do more harm than good. If such a zone is in effect, the U.S. forces are given permission to attack Russian planes on sight, which may not be such a good idea. Vlad isn’t gonna like that one bit.

Israel

There hasn’t been a boring day in Israel since it was founded in the year 1948. It’s only been around for a few years but there has never been a shortage of conflict. Israel lies between Egypt, Jordan and other Arab Muslim countries. These neighbors haven’t been very friendly, ever since Israel moved in. They believe that Israel is illegally holding the territory they have, in addition to their substantial theological differences.

Basically, it’s like any neighborhood, where you don’t like your new neighbors, and have a big quarrel every year or so, but with actual fighting, and casualties to both sides. But Israel’s worst enemy has to be Iran. They’ve had some bad blood for years now, and now that Iran has been shopping for some nuclear weapons of their own, this might spell trouble not just for Israel but for everyone else. It doesn’t matter who attacks first, as since if a war were to break between these two countries, we’re sure the other nations won’t sit around quietly.

North Korea

If you’ve seen the comedy film, The Interview starring James Franco and Seth Rogen, then you may have an idea about North Korea. A lot of people (including us) think that North Korean leader; Kim Jong Un is a dictator. He has brainwashed his people to think that he is some kind of god while treating them very poorly. There are many humanitarian malpractices done in North Korea but that isn’t really what this post is about, so you guys can just google it yourselves. Anyway, in recent years, North Korea has threatened to start a war with South Korea and the United States of America.

North Korea is most likely all bark and no bite, but the U.S. and South Korea have responded to these threats by keeping a strong military presence near the border areas. Nevertheless, everyone is on the tip of their toes because, in light of their secrecy, there are very few testimonials regarding their capabilities and aspirations. Even if you manage to somehow get inside, they’ll only let you see what they want you to see. If North Korea is able to develop a nuclear weapon that can threaten other nations, it very well can start a war on an international scale.