Uncertainty a defining feature at start of year

A worker looks closely as containers are unloaded in Qingdao Port, Shandong province. [Photo/China Daily]

There is much ado about uncertainty these days.

As we usher in 2017, there seems to be no alternative to uncertainty as a broadly, if not universally, applicable catchall to events whose full ramifications are yet to be seen. It applies fittingly to so many countries, so many people, in so many ways.

Everything yet to unfold is inherently uncertain. Uncertainty is therefore a constant, secure favorite in previews of a coming year.

But, it seems particularly true this year given the US factor. The incoming US president Donald Trump appears determined to shake things up, and not only in his own homeland.

On the other side of the Pacific, actually in most parts of the world, people are waiting anxiously to see precisely what will happen in Trump's first year of office.

And in the Europe Union, as the United Kingdom begins to get down to the nitty-gritty of leaving the bloc, there are worries that the fate of what once was the world's most successful regional integration project could be on the line.

Although, at the end of the day, where things are headed for continental Europe may to a great extent hinge on whether and how Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin get along.

The same will likely also be the case in the Middle East, the messy state of affairs regarding the fight against terror, as well as Syria, Israel and Palestine are all subject to the post-Barack Obama US-Russia relationship.

Asia, too, is in a guessing game over what differences the Trump presidency will bring, and what is in store for the local geopolitical landscape. What lies ahead for China could be a crucial period of strategic challenges, in lieu of what was dubbed a "period of strategic opportunities".

Beijing will find its hands full this year: From the Korean Peninsula to the East and South China seas to China-US relations, old conundrums will present new dimensions, complexities, and inevitably uncertainties with the addition of the Trump factor.

Likewise, on the home front, dilemmas surrounding the real estate sector, currency, overcapacity and the environment will collude to press for real, costly changes.

All will test the leadership's ability to balance short- and long-term concerns, as well as its strategic resolve and flexibility.

As per the highly dialectical Chinese way of thinking, there is no challenge that does not at once carry potential opportunities. But to exploit the potential opportunities, the challenges must be handled first.