When countries struggle to repay their national debt, it often leads to a series of financial and economic challenges. I've seen that the government may face higher borrowing costs as lenders demand greater interest to compensate for the risk. This can trigger austerity measures—cutting public spending or raising taxes—which impact citizens directly. In some cases, countries negotiate debt restructuring or seek bailouts from international organizations to avoid default. A default can damage a country's credit rating and make future borrowing more difficult. On a personal level, witnessing countries go through this taught me how intertwined global economies are; a debt crisis in one nation can ripple across markets worldwide. It also highlighted the importance of sustainable fiscal policies and diversified economies to reduce the risk of falling into unmanageable debt.