Bi-Weekly Geopolitical Report
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Approaching a Traffic Light in Germany (November 1, 2021)
by Patrick Fearon-Hernandez, CFA | PDF Germany’s parliamentary elections in late September were momentous for several reasons. Perhaps most important, the elections set the stage for a new leader to take power as Chancellor Angela Merkel decided not to stand for another term after leading Germany since 2005. However, even though the retiring Merkel is… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Here Comes China! (October 25, 2021)
by Thomas Wash | PDF Following President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Transpacific Partnership (TPP) in January 2017, it was believed that the agreement would die a quiet death. However, with the leadership of Japan and Australia, the agreement found new life and the remaining members decided to move forward with the deal. Although the… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Revisiting Thucydides (October 18, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF The Thucydides Trap is an idea that comes from the ancient Greek historian of the same name who described a situation where the incumbent superpower of the time, Sparta, was faced with an insurgent power, Athens. The two powers ended up in a ruinous war. Thucydides postulated that when an… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – AUKUS (October 11, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF On September 15, the leaders of the U.S., U.K., and Australia announced a new security relationship which includes a nuclear submarine arrangement with Australia. Although it will likely take a couple of decades before Australia will have its own indigenous nuclear propulsion vessels, the treaty means that the U.S. and… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Afghanistan, Part IV: China (October 4, 2021)
by Thomas Wash | PDF In Part I of this report, we reviewed the history of Afghanistan and why great powers have fought over it for centuries. Part II examined how the United States exit from Afghanistan will affect Pakistan, India, and Iran. Last week, Part III focused on how the U.S. exit will play… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Afghanistan, Part III: Russia and Central Asia (September 27, 2021)
by Patrick Fearon-Hernandez, CFA | PDF In Part I of this report, we reviewed the history of Afghanistan and why great powers have fought over it for centuries. In Part II, last week, we examined how the United States exit from Afghanistan will affect Pakistan, India, and Iran. This week, our focus is on how… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Afghanistan, Part II: Pakistan, India, and Iran (September 20, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF Afghanistan is a landlocked nation that sits at the crossroads of central Asia. As our history noted last week, it was part of the “Great Game” in the 18th and 19th centuries when imperial powers Russia and Britain vied for control of the region. It continued to hold that role… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – Afghanistan, Part I: History (September 13, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF The American exit from Afghanistan has created a crisis in the region. For two decades, the U.S. has propped up a government in Kabul. The U.S. withdrawal has led to the rapid collapse of that government and the restoration of the Taliban. The media has been closely tracking the situation… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Storm Before the Calm: A Review (August 30, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF (N.B. Due to the Labor Day holiday, the next report will be published on September 13.) Although we maintain an official reading list with capsule reviews, occasionally we come across a book that we think is important enough to review as a report. George Friedman’s newest book, The Storm Before… Read More »