Analysis

Analysis offers a new angle on a contemporary or historical issue. These articles are policy-oriented and cover current developments around the globe that impinge upon American foreign policy and national security priorities.

The Shah’s Son and the Future of Iranian Opposition

On January 15, 1979, Iran’s Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, and his family left the country for the last time. After a short period of wandering in Egypt, Morocco, the Bahamas, and Mexico, during which the last shah passed away,...

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What Happens Next with the Wagner Group?

In a recent video released by Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, he stares into the camera and berates several of the Russian military’s top leaders, including Russian army general and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed...

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US-China Rivalry Exacerbates US Corporate Risk

Editor’s note: This is the first paper in the “Expanding the Focus” series in the National Security Studies program. In May 2023, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan observed that “the future of the United States is going to be...

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Macron’s Radical Reform to French Diplomacy

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article (“France, une grogne en cache une autre”) was published in Medias 24. Antonella Benedetto contributed to the translation from French to English.    On March 16, while French citizens were protesting...

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High North, High Tension: The End of Arctic Illusions

For a long time, the Arctic was seen as a zone free of geopolitical tensions. Apart from joint military drills between NATO members and Russia that were discontinued after Russia’s annexation of Crimea, “High North, low tension” was the...

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Democracy at Stake in South Africa

Flawed Democracy Since the end of Apartheid, the South African government has functioned as a one-party dominant democracy. The African National Congress (ANC) has provided political stability for an emergent nation that some feared would be torn apart by...

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Putin’s Holy Grail: Myth, Power, and the Retaking of Russian-Occupied Crimea

“Now, they will call you ‘Putin the Crimean.’” – Alexei Venediktov, editor-in-chief of the Echo of Moscow, to Vladimir Putin after the Russian annexation of Crimea   Following weeks of Kyiv’s warnings about an upcoming counteroffensive, Russian troops in...

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An EU Pivot to the Middle East

The changes in the global balance of power, and in particular, the challenges posed by a rising China, have made it necessary for Washington to shift more diplomatic and economic resources from the Atlantic to the Pacific. America’s allies...

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In Sierra Leone’s Elections, the Economy Is the Key Issue

The Youth Factor Sierra Leone, a West African nation of approximately 8 million people, is scheduled to hold general elections on June 24. Over 3.4 million people have registered to vote. People under 35 comprise nearly 60 percent of...

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Sustaining the Chinese Navy’s Operations at Sea: Bigger Fists, Growing Legs

In April 2023, a Chinese aircraft carrier battle group, led by the Shandong (China’s second aircraft carrier and the first that it built from the keel up), sailed through the Bashi Channel to an area about 400 kilometers east...

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