United States

In October 1962, the world came frighteningly close to a nuclear war. The event is remembered as the Cuban Missile Crisis, one of the most dangerous moments of the Cold War. The usual story is familiar, the Soviet Union placed nuclear missiles in Cuba, the United States discovered them, President John F. Kennedy confronted Nikita Khrushchev, and the Soviet Union finally removed the missiles. The crisis is often presented as a clear American victory.

Over the past several years, Chinese manufacturers have increasingly shifted operations to Southeast Asia. Rising labor costs in China, along with geopolitical tensions such as the US-China trade war and the global trend toward supply chain diversification, have driven this strategic move. Dubbed the "China Plus One" strategy, this relocation echoes Japan’s industrial shift to Southeast Asia in the 1980s and 1990s. While it brings promise, the question remains: will this wave of investment lead to long-term development or simply reinforce the region's middle-income trap?