UNCLASSIFIED in the Near and Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and the Korean peninsula, new "hot spots" are emerging, and zones that are not controlled by any states' authorities are expanding. Territories affected by armed conflicts are becoming the basis for the spread of terrorism, interethnic strife, religious enmity, and other manifestations of extremism. The emergence of the terrorist organization calling itself Islamic State and the strengthening of its influence is the result of the policy of double standards to which some states adhere in the sphere of the fight against terrorism. 19. There is a continuing risk of an increase in the number of countries possessing nuclear weapons and of the proliferation and utilization of chemical weapons, and also uncertainty about instances of foreign states' possession of biological weapons and their potential for developing and producing them. The network of US military-biological laboratories on the territory of states adjacent to Russia is being expanded. 20. The critical condition of the physical intactness of dangerous facilities and materials, particularly in states with an unstable domestic political situation, and the uncontrolled proliferation of conventional weapons are increasing the likelihood of them falling into terrorists' hands. 21. The intensifying confrontation in the global information arena caused by some countries' aspiration to utilize informational and communication technologies to achieve their geopolitical objectives, including by manipulating public awareness and falsifying history, is exerting an increasing influence on the nature of the international situation. 22. New forms of unlawful activity are emerging, particularly those involving the utilization of informational, communications, and high technologies. Threats linked to uncontrolled and illegal migration, human trafficking, drug trafficking, and other manifestations of transnational organized crime are intensifying. 23. The world's demographic situation and problems relating to the environment and food security are becoming more complex. The shortage of fresh water and the consequences of climate change are becoming more tangible. Epidemics are becoming widespread, many of them caused by new and previously unknown viruses. 24. The growing influence of political factors on economic processes and also attempts by individual states to utilize economic methods and instruments of financial, trade, investment, and technological policy to resolve their own geopolitical tasks are weakening the stability of the system of international economic relations. A high risk of a repetition of large-scale financial and economic crises persists against the backdrop of structural imbalances in the world economy and financial system, growing sovereign debt, and volatility in the energy market. 25. In response to the growth of international instability, states are increasingly frequently assuming responsibility for matters in their regions. Regional and sub-regional trade and other economic agreements are becoming one of the most important means of protection against crisis phenomena. There is a growing interest in the utilization of regional currencies. UNCLASSIFIED