After some success in the West Asia (Middle East), the efforts of the King of the North go into decline. This is a general failure of strength, but it probably also refers to the United States' failure to win its twenty-year war in Afghanistan. A rushed retreat and disastrous exit seriously exposed American weakness. The King of the North responds by focusing on a different direction.
And he will turn his attention to the coastlands and will seize many of them (Dan 11:18a).Daniel says that he will turn his attention to the "coastlands" or "foreign shores". There is no mention of the King of the South, so this does not refer to West Asia. The word "Ukraine" means "borderlands", "outskirts", or "marches". This suggests that the King of the North focuses on the area in Eastern Europe where Ukraine is situated.
This ruler will seize control of some of the nations in this region. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, NATO, which is connected to the King of the North, has extended its influence and control into Eastern Europe. When Russia objected that this was in breach of promises made when the Warsaw pact was dismantled, the American leaders responded arrogantly. When Russia asked for a better security agreement, they mocked it.
In 2014, NATO organised a military coup in Ukraine and installed a government that was sympathetic to the west. When the new government began persecuting the Russian-speaking people of Eastern Ukraine, two provinces broke away and established independent governments, but war broke out with the Ukrainian government.
A peace treaty called Minsk II ended the fighting, but NATO continued training and equipping thousands of Ukrainian troops, and their government began looking for an opportunity to seize back the breakaway provinces.
NATO has provided strong support for Ukraine, but Daniel warned that this situation would not last.
But a commander will put an end to his insolence; instead, he will turn his insolence against him (Dan 11:18b).This commander is Vladimir Putin. He stood up against NATO's encroachment on the border of Russia. He invaded Ukraine pre-emptively to prevent a Ukrainian invasion of the independent provinces. Russia is better equipped, and NATO's ability to give weapons to Ukraine is diminishing as existing supplies of weapons are used up.
The Ukrainian economy has collapsed, and the European Union and the United States will not be able to afford to rebuild it. The war will be a disaster for Ukraine and the nations of the west.
The failure of its proxy war in Ukraine will massively undermine the power of the King of the North. His arrogance and insolence will be turned back on his own head.
Daniel warns that the leader of the United States will switch his focus back to his own land.
So he will turn his back face toward the strongholds in his own land, but he will stumble and fall and not be found (Dan 11:19).As the war effort in Ukraine fails, violent forces will rise up in his own land. Daniel refers to strongholds that represent dissident groups who are willing to use violence to achieve their political goals. This will be the natural outcome of the abrasive political divisions that are wreaking havoc in the land. The major driver will be migration and the violent activities of ICE officers.
The political leader of the United States will attempt to quell these divisions and destroy those who are advocating violence, but he will fail. He will lose his place and not be found. This indicates that the president of the United States might be deposed from power. This is what happened to Joe Biden.
Another ruler will arise in his place. He will release oppression in his land (Dan 11:20).
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