Interest-based relationships are paving the road towards a new global reality. While many liberal democracies vie to conserve the 'enlightened' frameworks of the past, others have come to embrace realpolitik. The People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation, for instance, have welcomed the opportunity. The two powers, recognizing this political shift in the early 1990s, have striven to alleviate nationalist friction, understanding that a united front is more practical to surviving the precarious years to come. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin highlighted his approval of the updated pragmatic global climate just last month, matter-of-factly declaring that a Russia-China military alliance is "quite possible to imagine."

As the United States and China find themselves locked in a battle for technological superiority, Israel’s semiconductor industry could become the next “chip” on Washington’s shoulder.

Semiconductors, the building blocks of modern digital technologies, hold the key to achieving breakthroughs in everything from artificial intelligence (AI) and big data to robotics and virtual reality. Concerned that advances in Chinese semiconductor technology benefit the People’s Liberation Army, and seeking to maintain America’s technological edge over the People’s Republic of China, Washington has gone on the offensive.

President Xi Jinping's first thoughts when he wakes up each morning, revolve around his responsibility to feed China's 1.4 billion citizens. Bearing the Mandate of Heaven, Xi's main objective is to sustain the Chinese people's confidence in the ruling Communist Party of China. Amid a global pandemic, unprecedented rainfall, and contaminated crops, China's leader's mission is easier said than done. Meanwhile, roughly 6,316 km West of Beijing is the tiny State of Israel, with unparalleled agricultural research and technology and well-positioned to help satiate Chinese hunger for agricultural solutions. But has Israel’s food tech industry been paying attention to its potential as a solution to Chairman Xi’s predicament?

Just last year, when Israelis were remembering the 10 plagues inflicted on Egypt, a modern-day plague was afflicting China. In April 2019, the Middle Kingdom lost over 200 million pigs to African swine flu. Considering that pork is the meat-staple of the Chinese diet (the average Chinese person consuming roughly 120 pounds per year), it’s perhaps not surprising that Beijing kept the news of the disease quiet to prevent domestic unrest. One result of this policy was that pig wholesalers were able to buy infected pigs for pennies on the dollar and resell them across China. The disease spread far and wide, upending the global meat industry. Pork imports rose 86% this year, causing a price spike of 69%. 

What will it take to rescue the global economy in the wake of COVID-19? Are adjustments, improvements, or amendments enough? Haven’t we done this before? Maybe it’s time to rethink this with a mindset, not of ‘starting again’ which would tend to invite ‘again’ thinking, but instead to begin with a completely blank slate – no preconceptions – just goals.

I suggested a new paradigm, a total reset.