The effect of geopolitical flux on antimicrobial resistance

Abstract

Changing international relationships and increasing geopolitical tensions can present very real hazards to health and healthcare, particularly in relation to communicable diseases¹. Conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza and Syria have resulted in mass population displacements, and disruptions to sanitation, hygiene, health infrastructures and key public health initiatives challenge efforts to curb the spread of infectious and vaccine-preventable diseases (https://www.iom.int/crisis-ukraine; https://www.iom.int/crisis-syrian-arab-republic).

Political stability and health are closely interlinked, underlining how investments in global health can have profound impacts on humanitarian issues. Put simply, global disease surveillance and prevention are parts of a complex geopolitical tapestry, and we ignore these multiple threads at our peril. The spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a sobering illustration of such complexity and one of the greatest global health threats of our time². In Ukraine, we have seen how AMR continues to extend hospital stays and morbidity while presenting a serious threat to health services across Europe³. International collaboration in health surveillance, therapeutic development and intelligence-sharing therefore is fundamental to limiting the spread of drug-resistant infections⁴.