The western world remains in serious chaos. In early 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in eastern Europe, bringing the reality of war back to the European continent for the first time since 1945 and the end of the second world war. In the pacific, China remains aggressive and threatening, and recently launched a massive aerial demonstration over the island of Taiwan which they claim as their own territory. North Korea has continued to hold bombastic military parades in the capital city of Pyongyang, and a recent demonstration showed civilian vehicles repurposed as military weapons.
As the war in Ukraine continues to rage, Russia recently confirmed reports that a U.S.-built missile was used in the conflict to destroy a military transport plane. The missile, known as a patriot missile, was used by Ukraine and 74 Russians perished in the incident. Nearly half a million civilians and soldiers have been killed or wounded, and the war continues with no signs of concluding. While both Russia and Ukraine’s governments at large and top leaders have acted poorly, significant negative public opinion in the western world has been centered at Vladimir Putin, the longstanding leader of Russia. Countries across Europe and North America have cast Putin as a tyrant and a bloodthirsty international aggressor threatening the sovereignty of an unprovoked Ukrainian nation. While the causes for the conflict remain questionable, serious concerns and problems within the Russian military have been brought to light.
In a recent development, the nation of Denmark has pledged its entire inventory of artillery to Ukraine for usage in the regional conflict between Ukraine and Russia in eastern Europe. Russia has been gaining in the east of the country and the Ukrainian government has been pleading for increased assistance. Ukraine simply does not have the infrastructure to compete with Russia as the conflict drags on and can only fire about 20% of the artillery shells Russia does on a daily basis.