New Zealand often reminds me of The Shire, the peaceful abode of the hobbits in J.R.R. Tolkien’s books.  

Like hobbits, we Kiwis tend to see geopolitical turmoil as remote and beyond our influence. But, like Tolkien’s fictional ‘War of the Ring’, events like those in Ukraine and the South China Sea have global implications. We can ignore those events with hobbit-like complacency, but we cannot avoid their ramifications. 

Russian president Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine is now in its third year. Meanwhile, China’s Xi Jinping casts his gaze towards Taiwan, sizing up the willingness of the US and its allies to defend the island he regards as a rightful part of his empire.  

Putin and Xi rule their respective countries with despots’ tools – fear, repression and political violence. The comparative freedom and prosperity of the world’s democracies stand as living refutations of their authoritarianism. So, they do all they can to seed instability in democratic nations. 

We can all contribute to thwarting their shared project to undermine democracy – and unlike Tolkien’s diminutive heroes, we need not undertake dangerous quests to do so. 

A first step might be to better inform ourselves. In our domestic world news this morning I saw nothing on the imminent transit of the Taiwan Strait by German warships. There is one short article on Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk, with equal column space devoted to Kamala Harris’ fashion choices. I recommend New Zealand veteran Ben Morgan’s Substack for excellent analyses of the Ukraine war and Pacific security matters, including China’s influence.
 
We can also all play a personal part in shoring up democracy. Across the English-speaking world, democracy is threatened by polarisation. The divisions in our political culture are partly driven by bad actors online—and some of those actors, whether human or AI bots, are in service of Putin and Xi. Cultivating more respectful ways to disagree would go a long way towards defeating their aims. 

In Peter Jackson’s film version of Tolkien’s tale, the hobbit Pippin, disheartened by the perils they are facing, worries that they are just too small to make a difference. His friend Merry’s reply makes clear their responsibility to do what they can: 
 

"The fires of Isengard will spread. The woods of Tuckborough and Buckland will burn. And all that was once green and good in this world will be gone." 

Complacency is not an option.