While China’s many contested border areas may appear to have become more inflamed coincident with its rising global ambitions, the reality is that Beijing has long stoked and sustained borderland disputes as a tactic to win concessions on wider issues with its neighbours. Read Here | Asia Times
China and Russia are now integrally involved in Iran’s affairs, from its oil and port infrastructure to its defense capabilities. The result of this deepening collaboration has been to make Iran far less susceptible than it once was, either to Trump’s campaign of “maximum pressure” or to Biden’s hoped-for engagement. Read Here | Foreign Affairs
Today it’s technology that ties the world together, not the container ship. To be effective in leading the United States in the 21st century… If Biden really intends to get tough with China, he’ll have to double down on the U.S.-Chinese tech war that has seen Huawei crippled, Chinese semiconductor foundries put under severe pressure, and TikTok […]
Because a pandemic can be overcome only when it is overcome everywhere, embracing an every-country-for-itself approach would seem irrational. And yet, as the unseemly competition for vaccine doses indicates, that is exactly what many countries have done. Read Here | Project Syndicate
Many hope that, when US President-elect Joe Biden takes over in January, he can salvage, and even renew, the American-led post-1945 liberal world order. That’s an understandable desire, but it is entirely unrealistic. Read Here | Project Syndicate
China is undoubtedly a rival to the United States, and one with an ideology far afield from the values Washington purports to uphold. But that does not make it prudent to treat China as an enemy and move accordingly toward further economic or military conflict, the results of which could be catastrophic. Read Here | The National Interest
The Trump administration will draw down U.S. forces in Afghanistan and Iraq to 2,500 troops in each country before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration in January, acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller confirmed in a statement Tuesday, a move that will put the outgoing president at odds with Republicans in Congress and the incoming Biden team. Read […]
Third-rate think tank analysts, GOP nobodies, and absolute randos had no idea what opportunities were about to come their way when a reality TV star was elected in 2016 without a real team in place. We will not see their like again. Read Here | The National Interest
The signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the world’s biggest trade pact, by 15 Asia-Pacific countries Sunday represents a victory for multilateralism over unilateralism and free trade over protectionism. Read Here | People’s Daily Also Read | Welcome To The Might-Is-Right Global Trade Era
The sooner we get the COVID-19 pandemic under control, the sooner we can put the global economy back on track. At a virtual gathering this month, the G20 will have an opportunity to do precisely that, provided that world leaders are able to see the economic windfall that is staring them in the face. Read […]
looking beyond borders 