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The Biggest Country Rivalries In 2024
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May 10, 2025
▶ In this video I explore a few international relationships marked by tension and dislike between various countries. I start with Venezuela's claim on Guyana's territory - Esequibo - following with the strained relations between Poland and Belarus due to their opposing sides of an external conflict. Saudi Arabia and Iran, the United States's rivalry with Russia, and China, and what each of those involve. Next I delve into the lingering grievances between Chile, Bolivia, and Peru since the War of the Pacific which caused Bolivia's landlocked status, as well as the tensions between Morocco and Algeria. Finishing with the discord between Myanmar and Bangladesh, and the historical animosity between Turkey and Armenia. ▶ Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/GKonYoutube ▶ Join the Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/f4neAVWZfF ▶ Business Contact: [email protected] ▶ Thanks for watching, remember to subscribe to catch future videos! ▶ TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 00:47 Venezuela vs Guyana 01:59 Poland vs Belarus 03:00 Saudi Arabia vs Iran 03:57 United States of America vs Russia 05:07 USA vs China 06:09 Chile vs Bolivia & Peru 06:55 Morocco vs Algeria 07:43 Myanmar vs Bangladesh
View Video Transcript
0:00
We thankfully live at a time when most countries get along pretty well. Constant warfare and
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revolution seem to be a thing of the past for most countries and diplomacy is in general
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peaceful. However, throughout the world, various countries still have tense relations with each
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other, going to the point of actively criticizing and disliking one another. At least, when it
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comes to their governments. I'm sure the people themselves don't care that much and would just
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get along. In this video, let's learn about some countries that dislike each other, at least right
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now, helping us also understand some past, current, and potential future conflicts that justify these
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poor relations. First, Venezuela and Guiana. Just at the end of 2023, Venezuela held a referendum
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on whether or not they should annex the Ezequibo region, yes, one with a suspiciously gigantic majority of the votes
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not surprising for Venezuela. Ezequibo consists of more than half of Guiana's territory
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It's mostly uninhabited forest, but it's a very resource-rich region, and oil was just discovered offshore
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Venezuela has long sought to control Ezequibo, disputes stretched back to 1841
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when the Venezuelan government alleged that, that, in its acquisition of Guiana from the Netherlands, the British had encroached on
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this Venezuelan territory that maybe belonged to Spain at some point in colonial times too
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the contingent kept going with the 1899 Arbitral Award which was intended to settle the border dispute
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It resulted in the delineation of the current border, but Venezuela rejected it, claiming
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that it was unjust and that the territory of Ezequibo which is west of the Ezequibo River
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rightfully belonged to them. In summary, the main and only issue seems to be Venezuela's claim on more than half
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of Vienna's territory, which, according to international law, is rightfully part of Guyana
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Then Poland and Belarus. Poland and Belarus were both part of the Soviet Union's sphere of influence after
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World War II, however, with the collapse of the USSR and the destruction of the Iron Curtain
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they went very different ways. While Poland truly became a sovereign country, developing immensely and associating itself
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with the rest of Europe to its west, especially joining NATO and the EU
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Belarus did not. Belarus arguably remained in Russia's fear of influence since the start
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Their development and progress was not the same and they quickly fell back into an authoritarian regime arguably even a direct puppet of Moscow Poland defense of democracy in Belarus against its authoritarianism
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the fact that Belarus has pushed migrants and refugees forcefully into Poland, forcing them
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to close their border, as well as Belarus's role in the conflict in Ukraine has led tensions between
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the two countries to be higher and their relations worse than ever. In summary, ideological differences
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supporting different sides of another conflict and direct actions of aggression are the main issues
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Further east, Saudi Arabia and Iran. Saudi Arabia and Iran have long been in direct competition to be the major power in the Middle East region
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Even though Iran itself is located further to the east, the situation is reminiscent of a Cold War ever since Iran had its Islamic revolution in 1979
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The clash revolves around ideological differences. one is an Islamic authoritarian republic and the other is an absolute monarchy
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They're not that different in the way that power is concentrated but they are different regimes
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Both nations openly criticize each other on religious grounds. One is of Sunni majority while the other is Shia
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They engage in proxy wars such as the conflicts in Yemen, Syria, Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan
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and even as far as Nigeria. Saudi Arabia has even accused Iran of supporting militant groups within Saudi Arabia itself
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In summary, competition to be the main regional power, ideological differences, and religious
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differences are the main issues. Then the United States and Russia. Speaking of Cold War, this rivalry has been around since back then
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The Soviet Union may be over, and Russia's power and influence might be a fraction of
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that of the USSR, but it's still a threat to the world order that the US wants
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The dispute isn't freedom and capitalism vs authoritarianism and communism anymore. I would argue the capitalism and communism elements have been eliminated
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Conflicting interests in regions like Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and the Arctic have
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fueled mistrust and competition. But this is a little like the chicken and the egg
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Is there mistrust and competition because they have opposite interests, or do they choose to have opposite interests because there's already
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mistrust and competitions due to past reasons? Issues such as Russia's annexation of Crimea
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Their invasion of Ukraine, interference in US elections have also made tensions rise
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Sanctions by both countries, mutual diplomatic expulsions, and a lack of a constructive dialogue
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has also contributed to a challenging diplomatic environment In summary the historic dispute of the Cold War kept going and the actions they continuously take due to that may have made things worse and created new disputes of their own Also the United States and China where the dispute is both similar and different to that
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with Russia. The strained relations are characterized by a mix of economic competition
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geopolitical rivalry, and ideological differences. The US's place as the world's biggest economy is
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often threatened by China, China is a self-designated communist regime and definitely an authoritarian
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one that constantly seeks to expand its sphere of influence across the world, reaching into places
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where the US have long influenced. Additionally, trade imbalance, intellectual property theft and
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technology disputes have fueled economic tensions, leading to the imposition of tariffs and trade
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restrictions by both nations, essentially a trade war. Geopolitically, territorial disputes in the
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the South China Sea, Taiwan and differing approaches to regional influence contribute
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to an uneasy dynamic, if you will. Not to mention human rights concerns, particularly in Xinjiang
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and Hong Kong. In summary, ideological disputes, economic competition and geopolitical disputes
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are the main issues. Chile, Bolivia and Peru also still hold some grudges too. Arguably not as
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serious as any other on this list, Bolivia and Peru don't have the best relationship with Chile
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ever since the War of the Pacific in 1879. In this war, Bolivia lost its coastal territory to Chile, leaving it landlocked
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The territorial dispute continues to fuel strained relations between the two nations
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and despite defeats in international courts, Bolivia continues to fight over their right to sea access
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Additionally, Peru, also having been involved in the Pacific War on Bolivia's side
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retains Estroco grievances with Chile over additional territorial losses, but at least they weren't left landlocked
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In summary, territorial disputes cause not so great relations between them. I would say Bolivia's case is more extreme than that of Peru
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In Africa, Morocco and Algeria. Despite being neighbors that often cooperate and hold in diplomatic relations
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tensions exist between these two. Examples of that are several crises since their independence
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The 1963 Sand War, a border dispute due to Morocco claiming two Algerian provinces
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the Western Sahara War of 1975, which was an armed struggle between the Sahrawi indigenous
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Polisario Front supported by Algeria against Morocco when Algeria began offering exile
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to West Saharan leaders the closing of the Algeria border in 1994 which lasts up to today as well as the signing of the Israel Normalization Treaty In summary border disputes opposing foreign affairs positions and Algeria refusal in accepting Morocco annexation of Western Sahara are the main issues
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Back in Asia, we have Myanmar and Bangladesh. Ever since the military coup in Myanmar, relations with Bangladesh have been pretty bad
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The causes are various, including ideological differences, but mostly focusing on the Rohingya
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refugee crisis. The persecution of the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar led to a significant influx of
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refugees into Bangladesh. Not only does Bangladesh condemn the persecutions inside Myanmar, but they have also been forced
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to deal with the refugee crisis, additionally disagreeing regarding the repatriation of said refugees
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This, coupled with a few historical border disputes, continue to contribute to diplomatic tensions
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In summary, the ideological disagreements between Bangladesh's democracy and Myanmar's authoritarian regime, Bangladesh's Muslim nation, condemnation of the persecution of
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Muslims in Myanmar, and the resulting refugee crisis that Bangladesh is involved in as the
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destination country are the main issues. And then of course Turkey and Armenia. Again
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the main issue here is a historical one. The poor relations are primarily rooted around the mass
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killings of Armenians during the Ottoman Empire in 1915, which Turkey denies. This has led to a
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lack of diplomatic recognition and a lack of formal relations between the two countries
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which make it impossible for any resolution to happen. Additionally, the ongoing conflict over
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the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, where Turkey supports Azerbaijan, while Armenia considers
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it a part of their sovereign territory, has further worsened tensions. In summary, the deep-rooted
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historical animosity and consequential conflicting geopolitical interests are the main issues. So, those are some of the countries or governments of countries that still dislike each other in 2024
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Like I said, in most cases I believe the people on both sides would actually get along fine
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and these dislikes are usually exclusive to the country's governments due to geopolitical
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issues but of course there are some exceptions. Sometimes past ones where a grudge is still held or a solution hasn't been found to
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whatever problem existed, sometimes current ones and sometimes small issues that might
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hopefully not, evolve into future conflicts. What do you think about this
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Are there any more countries you know or think dislike each other? Let me know in the comments
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