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E-Notes
FPRI’s E-Notes are policy-oriented articles covering current developments around the globe that impinge upon American foreign policy and national security priorities. Through Email, and Social Media, they are circulated to more than 250,000 individuals in virtually every country around the world, and reach thousands more on our website.
Prior to 2005, E-Notes were known as FPRI Wires. For a list of all available FPRI Wires, please click here.
Operation “Peace Spring” and U.S. Strategy in Syria
On October 4, President Erdogan of the Republic of Turkey announced a major Turkish military incursion into northeast Syria. In Erdogan’s words, his goal is to “neutralize terror threats against Turkey and lead to the establishment of a safe...
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Mackinder’s Nightmare: Part Two
The United States has never faced a great power competitor with the range of economic capabilities now possessed by the People’s Republic of China. Americans need to come to grips with the fact that they could actually lose this...
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‘Pyongyang Coin’ and the Future of U.S. Sanctions on North Korea
On September 13, the United States Department of Treasury announced a new round of sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, this time specifically targeting three state-sponsored hacking organizations: Bluenoroff, Andariel, and, most infamous, Lazarus Group. Five days...
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Mackinder’s Nightmare: Part One
The stunning growth in the capabilities of the People’s Republic of China during the past 30 years has created a severe geopolitical challenge for the United States and its allies. The U.S. faces a near-peer competitor with the potential...
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Coal Mines, Land Mines and Nuclear Bombs: The Environmental Cost of the War in Eastern Ukraine
The war in eastern Ukraine has raged for five years, killed over 13,000 people, and displaced millions. It has affected Ukraine’s political system, economy, society, and security situation. It has caused a rupture in relations between Russia and the...
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Playing Both Sides: How Oligarchs in Eastern Europe Maintain Power and Control
Geopolitical competition between Russia and the West has polarized politics in the vulnerable lands in between Russia and the European Union, breaking voters and parties into pro-Russia and pro-Western camps. But there is a paradox. In this context of...
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The Real Problem with the Trump Foreign Policy
The real problem with the Trump administration’s foreign policy is not its disparaging attitudes toward the United Nations, inherited arms control agreements with the USSR-cum-Russia or Iran, or other international legal instruments such as the Paris Accords on Climate...
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Running Out of Gas: Philippine Energy Security and the South China Sea
About 80 km off the northwest coast of Palawan Island in the South China Sea is the Malampaya natural gas field, the Philippines’ main domestic source of energy. Once piped ashore, its natural gas fuels five power plants, which...
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Irish Phoenix? The Unexpected Winner of Brexit
In his Divine Comedy, Dante drew on ancient mythology to write: “The phoenix dies, and then is born again.” Brexiteers, neo-imperialists, and English nationalists predicted a similar rebirth for Britain once they voted to leave the European Union in...
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Hong Kong’s Summer of Discontent
In the summer of 2019, Hong Kong once again plunged into political crisis over a legal issue. Veteran observers across a wide political spectrum characterized it as the worst such episode in Hong Kong in many decades. ...
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