The Worry List

New Thinking for a New World - a Tallberg Foundation Podcast

Dr. Rohan Gunaratna, a leading expert on global terrorism, warns of a rising terrorist threat and the urgent need for a coordinated global response.

The start of 2025 is burdened with no shortage of things to worry about. The war in Ukraine; conflicts throughout the Middle East; tensions around Taiwan; the Los Angeles inferno; the possibility of Chinese and Russian financial or economic collapse. And, of course, the biggest known unknown that preoccupies the whole world: what will Donald Trump actually do when he's president after all of the noise he’s made on his way to the White House?
The list is almost endless—and quite scary.
Somewhat surprisingly, the global threat of ideological extremism and terrorism doesn't appear on most such lists. After all, we all know Al-Qaeda has been degraded; Islamic State defeated; the Taliban struggling to govern. Most importantly, Iran, the sponsor of so many terrorist groups operating in so many countries, at the least has been wrong-footed by the Israelis.
But, what if that benign assessment is wrong?
In fact, that’s the well-informed view of today’s guest on New Thinking for a New World. Dr. Rohan Gunaratna, a Singapore academic, is a widely recognized expert on global terrorism who believes that the threat of terrorism is rising—and is urging the great powers to develop a coherent anti-terrorism strategy as they did after 9/11, before it is too late.
What do you think? Should we fear a new wave of fundamentalist terror assaults?