Iraqi premier and militias in slow-burn confrontation

Significance He has moved to roll back some of their penetration of state structures and revenue streams. However, they are striking back, with ongoing rocket attacks targeting US interests and probable responsibility for the assassination of a prominent security analyst. Impacts As cyber and covert tensions escalate between Israel and Iran, Tehran could use Iraqi militias as a tool to strike back. If US-led coalition troops were to withdraw under pressure, that would in turn undermine the residual US military presence in Syria. Austerity measures and power cuts could bring renewed mass protests, again shifting political incentives. An early election scenario would intensify political focus on flaws in the new electoral law.

Significance BALTOPS 16 will be the largest NATO maritime exercise in the Baltic Sea in recent years. The exercise is also held mere weeks before NATO's July 8-9 summit in Warsaw, and therefore serves as a tangible prelude to the alliance's intent to address renewed Russian security challenges in the region. Impacts Improvements in Western missile defence systems will make it more difficult politically to undergo arms control cooperation with Moscow. Poland's military modernisation programme will boost its ability to be a security partner of the Baltic states. Washington is unlikely to approve a permanent US military presence in the Baltic states in the near-to-medium term.


Significance The case investigates whether Lula illegally used his overseas connections to assist Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht, which has considerable African investments. Expanding influence into Africa began under Lula. It has since been at the heart of Brazil's broader push to advance its global and regional credentials. The economic slowdown raised doubts about its ability to sustain this push. The Petrobras corruption scandal has accelerated such scepticism, threatening to reduce significantly the scope of Brazil's foreign policy in the region. Impacts Ties with smaller Lusophone states in West Africa prioritise security, reflecting that sub-region's geostrategic position for Brazil. Brazil plays prominent international law and justice roles in those states but through UN structures -- limiting the financial impact. Brazil's small military capacity constrains its scope to rebuff US military presence in the smaller Lusophone states.


Subject Chinese military bases in the Indian Ocean. Significance China relies on shipping through the Indian Ocean for its energy. A large and growing number of Chinese nationals live in unstable countries in the region. These concerns are driving China to expand its military presence there. A network of bases would increase Beijing's options should it ever need to protect shipping from interdiction or protect Chinese nationals caught up in a civil war. Impacts India will respond to China’s growing presence by accelerating its security partnerships and military bases in the Indian Ocean. US military dominance in the Indian Ocean is being eroded. Competition for regional influence will grow among China, India, the United States, and potentially some middle players.


Significance The operation, authorised by US President Donald Trump, killed Qassem Soleimani, longstanding chief of the Quds Force -- the external action wing of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC). Others also died, notably Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the leader of Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kata’ib Hezbollah, which had been targeted in earlier US strikes. Impacts Baghdad’s parliament will consider a bill to evict the US military presence. The confrontation with Iran will undermine efforts to combat the residual Islamic State presence. As the responses play out, oil prices are likely to rise further. The 2015 Iran nuclear deal could at last collapse. Damascus may increase its dependence on Moscow in the absence of Soleimani’s personal networks.


Subject South Korea's international relationships. Significance South Korea’s government is celebrating the success of its response to COVID-19, but the country’s four key foreign relationships all face difficulties -- those with the United States, China, Japan and North Korea. No other countries or regions are vital to Seoul, despite vaunted ‘Southern’ and ‘Northern’ initiatives. Impacts A prolonged deadlock on funding the US military presence in South Korea could push Seoul closer to Beijing. If President Xi Jinping visits South Korea later this year, Washington could easily misread this. Substantial fence-mending with Japan may have to await new leaderships in both countries. South Korean President Moon Jae-in may have tacitly given up on North Korea, which has visibly given up on him.


Significance The Vietnam analogy implies that President Joe Biden’s decision to leave Afghanistan will have deeply negative consequences for the United States. However, Afghanistan is not Vietnam and the Biden withdrawal needs to be considered within the wider context of his administration’s review of US commitments abroad. Impacts The White House will be pressured to clarify the future of other US military commitments, particularly in Iraq. Biden will seek to reassure allies, particularly those in NATO, that his commitment to multilateralism will not diminish. Biden may seek an opportunity for a military show of force, possibly in the Middle East, to refute accusations of weakness.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 3.1-3.12
Author(s):  
N. Mahina Tuteur

This article examines the environmental impacts of the US military presence in Hawaii, looking specifically at the federal government’s power to condemn land for a ‘public purpose’ under the US Constitution. In 2018, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that the State of Hawaii failed its duty to properly manage 23,000 acres of lands leased to the military at Pōhakuloa and must take an active role in preserving trust property. With the expiration of this lease (and several others) approaching in 2029, controversy is stirring as to whether the military will simply condemn these lands if the cost of clean-up is greater than the land’s fair-market value at the expiration of the lease. In other words, as long as it remains cheaper for the military to pollute and condemn than it is for it to restore, what options do we have for legal and political recourse? Considering grassroots movements’ strategic use of media and legal action through an environmental justice lens, this article provides a starting point to consider avenues for ensuring proper clean-up of these lands, and ultimately, negotiating for their return to Kānaka Maoli.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 15-17

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings This case study concentrates on General Motors (GM) product and innovation trajectory over a period from 1990 spanning into a future where electric vehicles become mainstream. Reducing the number of models being manufactured and introducing service-based recurring revenue streams such as the “OnStar” in-vehicle communication service were among the crucial elements that allowed GM to survive against intensifying competition in their market. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives, strategists, and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.


China Report ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 201-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raghav Sharma

This article analyses the trajectory that Sino-Afghan relations have acquired since 2001. In doing so it undertakes an analysis of China’s key interests in the commercial, security and political arena in Afghanistan and the policies adopted by Beijing to secure these interests. The analysis particularly takes into account four factors which have left a crucial imprint in moulding the contours of Beijing’s engagement with Kabul, namely, the Indo-Pak equation, implications of a large US military presence in the region, consequences of growing drug proliferation and its linkages with pan-Islamist groups which in turn could potentially stir trouble in Xinjiang and adversely impact upon China’s desire to expand and secure its commercial interests in the region. The article analyses the impact that events in Afghanistan are likely to have on China’s own internal challenges in Xinjiang as also its larger interests in South Asia and argues that given Beijing’s growing international profile and the increasingly transnational nature of the events unfolding in Afghanistan, China will need to recalibrate its current strategy.


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