Replete with a composite photo of William Shakespeare, Gen. George S. Patton and Pompeo…and a PhotoShopped State Department seal now ringed by the words DEPARTMENT OF SWAGGER, the not-so-soft relaunch is the diplomatic version of New Coke. Put aside the fact that the department’s catchphrase sounds more like a product line of Old Spice deodorant than a label for a venerated […]
Where do Britain and the EU go from here on Brexit? Can and should Britain stay in the EU (from a legal, political, public opinion, or another standpoint) or is separation best? Should Britons get another vote on Brexit or on the final deal? What will Britain’s future relationship with the EU look like, and […]
Collecting intelligence for someone who doesn’t want it is at best a waste of money, and at worst a prescription for disaster. Again, the Soviet example is a good one. In the lead-up to the second World War, and repeatedly during the war years, the Soviet Union squandered intelligence from the best spy network ever. […]
For the past two years, the secretary-general of the United Nations, António Guterres, has watched as President Donald Trump upends American foreign policy, engaging in trade wars while simultaneously disengaging from international agreements and alliances. And now Guterres has reached a verdict: The United States, once the guarantor of global stability, is losing its ability […]
In 1947, the British Raj bequeathed to the Muslims of India a tightly administered state. But next door Afghanistan couldn’t be called a normal state. It couldn’t prevent penetration of its territory and it couldn’t collect taxes. But the great proxy war in Afghanistan was approved by the West, fighting its decisive battle with the […]
Ten years ago this week, Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, and the world suddenly changed. That date, Sept. 15, 2008, was hardly the starting point of the Depression-sized financial crisis that would soon threaten to sink the entire world economy; it had begun more than a year earlier. But most scholars agree Lehman’s failure marked […]
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have vowed to bolster Sino-Russian ties and oppose unilateralism, as the two nations seek to counterbalance the United States’ power on the international stage. The two leaders met for the third time this year on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok. […]
Are America and Pakistan finally breaking up? The short answer is no. As much as both states are fed up with each other, they remain far too co-dependent to simply walk away. What we are seeing instead is a tough and protracted re-negotiation over the terms of the relationship. The question of Pakistan’s role in Afghanistan is not necessarily […]
Economic fundamentals have been kind to dollar bulls since early spring, but there is no guarantee of the rally’s life expectancy, especially if “crazy town” politics gain ground in Washington. Beijing had better be prepared to ride the coming storm as it might provide a valuable opportunity. Read Here – South China Morning Post
For China, the original idea behind MIC2025 was simply to catch up with other countries, a tall order even by its own admission. Look no further than the new-generation information technology sector, one of the plan’s 10 target industries. After more than two decades and billions of dollars spent, China has yet to commercialise a […]
looking beyond borders 