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.

Will Alexandar Vučić’s Presidency Explode? Botched Agent Running, Corruption Allegations Imperil Putin’s Balkan Ally

It is no small irony that a Belgrade brewpub named the “Black Sheep” should be the site of an artless Russian intelligence operation, the exposure of which, at one and the same time, reinforced Alexandar Vučić’s image as a...

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What North Korea’s Coronavirus Measures Say About Its System

The North Korean government response to the coronavirus has been extreme, but prudent and reasonable in context. It has closed the border to China almost entirely to both goods and people though surely some transports are still getting through....

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What the Iowa Caucus Means for Russia

The complicated political dance that is the Iowa caucus devolved into a flustered and chaotic disaster for the Democratic Party. Although human error and faulty technology are the culprits, the statewide failures in ballot reporting weaken trust in election...

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The Enduring Legacy of French and Belgian Islamic State Foreign Fighters

The Islamic State’s attacks in Paris in November 2015 and Brussels in March 2016 demonstrated ISIS’s reach from the heart of its “caliphate” in the Middle East to major European capitals. Foreign fighters from France and Belgium consistently proved...

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The Future of Russia’s Su-57: Few Customers and Little Interest Abroad

On December 24, Russia’s Sukhoi-57 (Su-57) fighter jet crashed in the country’s Far East dur-ing a test flight. The fighter, believed to be the first one serially produced from a program in de-velopment since 2002, is considered by Moscow...

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The Next Front: China and Indonesia in the South China Sea

“There is no territorial dispute between Indonesia and China,” has been an often-heard refrain from Indonesia’s leaders for decades. But reality belies the statement. While there may be no land dispute between China and Indonesia, there certainly is a...

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Myanmar in China’s Embrace

China’s challenge to America and its drive for global primacy will dominate international politics for the foreseeable future. This contest will play out across the full spectrum of international affairs: economics, politics, science and technology, ideology—and geographic/territorial control. With...

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Can Oman Survive Its Own Neighborhood After the Death of Sultan Qaboos?

The small Gulf state of Oman’s identity is closely—if not inextricably—linked with the person of Sultan Qaboos, who passed away on January 10 after nearly 50 years in power. He singlehandedly transformed the country from a sleepy, closed-off country...

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The Future of the Kuomintang in Taiwan: Reform, Recalibrate, or Stay the Course?

Once again, the future of Kuomintang (KMT), the political party headed by Chiang Kai-shek for decades and that favors a closer relationship with Mainland China, is in doubt due to the results of the recent presidential and legislative elections...

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What is the FISA Agenda as the New Decade Begins?

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) enters 2020 under the microscope in a way seldom seen in the four decades in which it has served as the touchstone for conducting foreign intelligence electronic surveillance in the United States. Consequently,...

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