Editing Openai/6935aaed-f35c-8004-8137-e0b2dcf25c84 (section)

==== The simplified narrative is: ====
* Europe - Must spend most of its energy on being the firewall against Russia and managing internal political and energy stresses. - Has strong influence on rules (regulation, climate) but less room to quietly keep the whole system running in the background.
* Japan / East Asia Shield - Sits at a safer physical distance from the immediate Russia–Ukraine front, - Is deeply embedded in both US and European industrial and tech networks, - Is deliberately building a role as the place you cannot afford to lose if you want global supply chains to function.

Under this framing, the “next layer” of OS responsibilities—especially for keeping production and supply chains working—leans more toward Tokyo/East Asia Shield than toward Europe, even though Europe stays crucial in other dimensions (rules, climate, diplomacy).