President-elect Donald Trump and his family arrive at his election night rally. Photo: AP

United States

The main thing to watch in 2017 in the US and in the world is the Von Trump family presidency, as dad and the kids likely won't even wrestle with policy issues, because of their supreme confidence in their own grasp of issues like the Middle East and nuclear arms.

It would be great if the shock of the Trump presidency sparked genuine grassroots interest in fixing American's dysfunctional democracy -  only about 55 per cent of eligible voters bothered to go to the polls in 2016 and democracy is retarded by serial maladies, from gerrymandered electorates to state-driven voter suppression to the role of lobbyists to big political donations.

As for US-Russian relations, the fallout from Vladimir Putin's alleged interference in the US elections will likely play out in the first months of the Trump administration, as Trump himself encounters resistance from his own Republican camp on sweeping it under the carpet.

- Paul McGeough, Chief Correspondent

Jakarta governor Ahok sits on the defendant's chair at the start of his blasphemy trial in December. Photo: AP

Indonesia 

All eyes in Indonesia will be on the outcome of the February 15 election for Jakarta's governor, a position that is often a springboard for national politics.

The campaign is complicated by the fact one of the candidates, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama or Ahok, who is the first openly ethnically Chinese and Christian governor of Jakarta, is facing trial for allegedly insulting Islam. The outcome of his blasphemy trial will be seen as a test of Indonesia's pluralism and much-vaunted religious tolerance, amid fears he will be convicted to appease thousands of Muslims who have staged mass rallies demanding he be jailed.

Indonesian security authorities will also be on high alert for possible terror attacks as Islamic State fighters in Syria return to Indonesia with new combat skills. Approximately 800 Indonesians have travelled to Syria to join IS and more than 150 have been deported trying to reach the war-torn country.​

- Jewel Topsfield, Indonesia Correspondent

There is recent evidence Beijing has installed weapons on all seven of the islands it has built in the South China Sea, raising concern about the potential for, at the very least, a diplomacy break-down and at worst, a military conflict. Photo: Philippines Army/New York Times

China

One thing to watch in 2017 will be the political jostling and manoeuvring that will heat up ahead of a key Chinese leadership reshuffle at the 19th Party Congress to be held towards the end of the year. All eyes will be on any signalling of a potential future successor to President Xi Jinping, though speculation continues to firm that Xi plans to defy party convention and remain in power beyond the end of his second five-year term in 2022.

Taiwan looks set to pass a marriage equality bill allowing same-sex couples to wed, a move overwhelmingly backed by popular sentiment. Despite a stagnating economy and strained cross-strait relations, becoming the first Asian jurisdiction to legalise same-sex marriage will reinforce its reputation as one of the region's most progressive, vibrant and confident democracies.​

The South China Sea will remain the region's flashpoint with growing concern about the potential for conflict. Incoming US President Donald Trump has already raised questions about the "One China" policy after making a telephone call to Taiwan's leader. What happens in the strategic waters of the South China Sea, where most of Australia's trade passes, will depend on how Trump sets the parameters with China's thin-skinned communist rulers in 2017.

- Philip Wen, Beijing Correspondent; Lindsay Murdoch, South-East Asia correspondent

A Rohingya man living in Malaysia cries during a December 4 protest in Kuala Lumpur against the persecution of Rohingyas in Myanmar. Photo: AP

South-East Asia

South-east Asia is now as volatile as it was when the Asian financial crisis struck in 1997. Security analysts fear the region faces a potentially new phase of terrorism as battle-hardened jihadists recruited from countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines return from Syria and Iraq.

In Malaysia, Prime Minister Najib Razak is courting more hardline religious leaders and policies to boost his support among the majority Muslim/Malays, a dangerous game in his multi-race nation, as he struggles to fend off allegations of massive corruption. Najib, who has ruthlessly purged his critics, may call an early election in 2017, which could turn ugly.

Thailand faces a new uncertain era after the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej amid doubts the ruling military junta will allow democracy to return in 2017, leaving power in the hands of a conservative elite. Political freedoms have been squashed as the junta's muddled policies fail to instil confidence in its ability to handle the region's second largest economy.

The Philippines appears headed for a rough-ride after being Asia's rising economic star over the past couple of years. Newly-installed president Rodrigo Duterte has upended the country's foreign policies, raising serious questions about his country's relationship with the US, its long-time ally. While bodies continue to pile up in Duterte's war on drugs the foul-mouthed president will remain a pariah among Western world leaders.

In Myanmar, the government headed by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi faces bloody ongoing conflicts between the country's military and ethnic rebel groups in border areas and allegations of ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims in western Rakhine state. Myanmar's persecution of more than one million Rohingya is threatening to tear down the long-held principle in the Association of South-East Asian Nations that member states do not interfere in the affairs of other member states.

In Cambodia, there is growing alarm about strongman Hun Sen's ruthless crackdown on his political opponents, including exiled opposition leader Sam Rainsy, who was sentenced to five years jail in December. Corrupt cronies will remain firmly in control of one of the world's most impoverished nations.

- Lindsay Murdoch, South-East Asia correspondent

Marine Le Pen, leader of the French National Front, is considered an outside chance in next year's presidential election in France. Photo: Marlene Awaad/Bloomberg

Europe

Worst-case scenarios seem to have popped up quite a lot recently, which is a worry, because the worst-case scenario for Europe in 2017 is the effective collapse of the European Union. Under the continuing threat of terrorist attacks and the pressure of incoming refugees from Africa and the Middle East, politics is turning insular. Nationalism is on the rise.

On the eastern front, European states will continue to openly flirt with Russia, or bristle with worry about Donald Trump's commitment to NATO and their security.

Key elections will test whether the mood is merely grim or actually apocalyptic. Geert Wilders' anti-Islam, anti-immigration party will threaten to seize a share of power in the Netherlands, and the National Front's Marine Le Pen is likely to go head-to-head with social and economic conservative Francois Fillon in the French presidential race.

Italy may also go to the polls, with the anti-euro Five Star party in rude electoral health.

Then later in the year, Angela Merkel faces a tough fight to prove Germany's political centre can still command a majority.

Meanwhile, Britain will continue to tie itself in knots over what Brexit is going to involve, and how on earth it can actually be turned from a radical idea into a not-complete-debacle.

Oh, and, Eurovision is in Kiev this year. That's going to be weird.

- Nick Miller, European Correspondent

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim in Ankara on Friday hoped the ceasefire in Syria holds and turns into lasting peace. Photo: AP

Middle East

The incoming Trump administration has made no secret of its plan to return to unqualified support of Israel, a position that will bring the White House into line with Congress and US conservatives, especially on the religious right, but will put Washington at odds with its European, Middle Eastern and Muslim allies.

The advent of a Trump administration also puts in doubt the Obama administration's main diplomatic achievement in the Middle East - the historic six-nation nuclear accord with Iran. Here too the international consensus is likely to be tested, especially if Trump accepts the Israeli government's stated view - one not shared by its military - that what he has called  "the worst deal ever negotiated" was a strategic mistake.

Obama sold more weapons to the Middle East than any president since World War II, yet such largesse did not seem to give his administration influence over key issues. It now seems that Russia, Turkey and Iran will decide what happens in Syria and that the Arab regimes will continue to beat back calls from their own populations for regime change.  Yet the fact remains that 60 per cent of the Arab world's population are under the age of 30. Their aspirations were neglected under decades of autocratic rule and even in a political landscape riven by displacement and lethal violence they will continue to make themselves felt.

- Farid Farid, Cairo

India's opposition Congress party vice-president Rahul Gandhi waves at his supporters. Photo: AP

India

Can Rahul Gandhi finally cut the mustard? The heir of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty has been a political apprentice for so long, it looks as though he's never going to graduate. As vice-president of the Congress Party he has effectively taken over the daily running of the party from his mother Sonia Gandhi but has been unable to make his presence felt in politics. Few take him seriously; he has developed no core ideology; he scampers from one controversy or issue to another, thundering and booming in the hope of getting some traction but none of it amounts to anything significant. However, the last few months have been a new Gandhi in one respect – he is coming across as more vocal, confident, and persistent. If he can hook these new traits to a fundamental cause or idea in 2017, he may just come good and that will be a good thing as India needs an effective opposition to counter a rather smug government.

In 2017 India will implement its biggest tax reform in 25 years - the new Goods and Services Tax which will be a game changer for the economy. Till now, the country has had an intricate mosaic of taxes, duties and rates in its 29 states, making life a nightmare for anyone running a business. The new tax will be uniform for the entire country creating a single common market. It is unlikely to be implemented by April 1, however, there is too much preparatory work left to do. But after a six-year delay, it will be great news for the economy. Experts say it may add 1-2 per cent to the nation's GDP.

- Amrit Dhillon, Delhi

A pedestrian walks across the Simon Bolivar Bridge from Colombia into Venezuela. The border has been reopened after Venezuela stopped citizens shopping on the other side. Photo: Bloomberg

Latin America

​Central and South America will also not escape the Trump factor in 2017. In Mexico, relations with the US are on notice ever since Trump promised to deport thousands of migrants and build a border wall at Mexico's expense. His vow last week to "buy American and hire American" will make Mexico and Mexicans - a large labour force supplier to the US - nervous with possible negative consequences to the Mexican economy.

In Cuba, the death of Fidel Castro and the election of Trump who has expressed disdain for the US rekindling its relationship with the country, will be factors in 2017. While Raul Castro is unlikely to change the government course of recent years, wider exposure to the US market and the world will likely make an impact on the Cuban population and economy.

With its state-run economy in meltdown, socialist Venezuela will continue to find it difficult to make ends meet in 2017. With a shortage of food and medicine, and crime and misery on the rise, the country has turned to the military which in turn are believed to be undertaking increasingly violent measures to maintain order. Analysts fear a grim outlook, with crackdowns on democratic freedoms and political opposition as President Nicolas Maduro clings to power at least until elections in 2018.

In Brazil the political climate will continue to be dictated by widespread corruption investigations into hundreds of politicians, including President Michel Temer,  and government suppliers. Temer will attempt to improve the economy after several cost-saving measures were approved in 2016, but may be forced out of office before late 2018 elections, triggering Congress to appoint a successor until the end of his term. Unfortunately, no improvement to law and order are immediately forecast for the high-crime rate country this year.

The expectations are better in Colombia where, after a historic peace deal with FARC guerillas was finally approved, public spending is likely to give the economy and the national mood a little lift. Expect some struggle as the government adjusts to the process of allowing former rebels to participate in the democratic process. The country will also be watching what a Trump administration will do its traditionally substantial aid funding from the US.

- Lia Timson, Foreign News Editor