The international deterrence system built around the United States and the United Nations has become largely ineffective in conflict zones around the world, according to the Korean article. It says economic sanctions and diplomatic warnings no longer carry the same force, in part because of a quiet, modular anti-Western alignment.
That alignment is described as a network in which countries and armed groups trade only what they need, such as North Korean artillery shells and Iranian drones, without formal alliances or treaties. The article says this black-market-style network is now replacing official battle lines and undermining the Western sanctions system.
The piece also says modern warfare has expanded beyond territorial control to the weaponization of supply chains. It cites attacks on Iranian merchant ships by Ukraine and threats to oil facilities by pro-Iranian forces as examples of conflict spreading into logistics and energy infrastructure.
As a result, the article says even regional powers such as Saudi Arabia have shifted toward pragmatism, focusing on direct strikes against forces that threaten their own infrastructure rather than trying to balance between the United States and China. It argues that the world has entered a period of chronic, hard-to-control proxy conflicts that keep global supply chains under constant strain.
