Israel-Hamas conflict, Ukraine-Russia war and tussle between countries in the Middle East raise concerns such as instability in supply-demand economics and supply chain as well
Businesses across the world have always been impacted by the major events taking place across the globe. In the age of globalisation, it is nearly impossible for companies to ignore it. The ongoing Middle East conflict, Russia-Ukraine war, and polarisation have always made businesses take every step cautiously.
While talking about the geopolitical uncertainties at the BW Security World 40 Under 40 Awards, Credit Suisse Executive Director Sanjeev Sabharwal says, “If in four to five months we could not bring the Israel-Hamas conflict under control, even the auto rickshaw wala will feel the heat of it. The solution lies at the intersection of three geopolitical situations, maritime security, and trade of commerce.”
What makes the Red Sea so important? Trade through the Red Sea accounts for 15 per cent of total global sea trade, including vital supplies of grains, sea-born liquid natural gas and oil, according to media reports.
Emerging Threats
Since the most stable country across the globe, the US, is also gearing up for the presidential election, it brings a ton of uncertainties for businesses. If Donald Trump wins the election, it is likely that he will withdraw support from Ukraine, which would again disrupt the supply chain and impact businesses adversely.
Commenting on the same, DridhG Security International, Safety & Risk Management Expert- Advisory Leader, Ashok Datta says, Ukraine-Russia war does not impact countries that follow similar diplomatic policies to India. “Countries like India have made their own alliances. We are trying to work out that if the conflict continues for another, it will not affect us economically,” he adds.
The moderator Vashita Mehra Director-Global Security Manager India and SE Asia, Marsh & McLennan, asked what risks businesses have other than geopolitical uncertainties, Sanjay Sehgal, COO, Highstuff Services states, “Climate change is very strongly affecting businesses across the world.” It affects both short-term and long-term plans of businesses. It is among the top five risks that will impact businesses in the next decade. We need to change our mindset and evaluate the risk associated with it. To India, it brings three major risks, floods, earthquakes, and fires,” he adds.
For Securitas Regional Security Advisor-APAC, Akshita Mathur, one of the most concerning threats that businesses have is to find a solution for the threats associated with Intelligence (AI) such as deep fakes. We must prepare ourselves as companies on how we can make sure that our assets are protected, employees are safe. All these things are promptly surrounded by advanced technologies like AI. Deep-fakes are a major challenge that we would be foreseeing in 2024. We must protect ourselves against it.
