SECURITY, UNREST & WAR
STRATEGY & INTELLIGENCE
Xi Lashes Out in the Pacific and Africa, But to What End?
The jury remains out as to whether Beijing has a clearly thought-through agenda with the Pacific Islands Forum, meeting this week, or even in Africa, or whether it is just lashing out to show that it still matters. But, rest assured, it is lashing out.
CULTURE, PSYCHOLOGY & MEDIA
EARLY WARNING | Winning the War of Words Means Knowing When to Fall Silent
HISTORY
ESSENTIAL READING | The Worst Pandemic in History
DIPLOMACY, ALLIANCES & TREATIES
Ankara’s Mistake? The Turkey-Pakistan-Saudi Arabia Defense Agreement
CULTURE, PSYCHOLOGY & MEDIA
Strategic Messaging: The Frequent Point of Failure
Has the US’ patchy record in strategic messaging robbed it of the consistent strategic progress it could have had, and denied it the support of various societies around the world? This may be coming to a head in 2026. But first, how do we define “strategic messaging” in the 21st Century?
PERSONNEL
Key Transitions and Defense and Intelligence Appointments - 07/2026
Equatorial Guinea Vice-President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue said on June 16, 2026, that the Government of Prime Minister Manuel Osa Nsue Nsua had resigned after “failing to meet its objectives”.
SECURITY, UNREST & WAR
Why the Fighting in Ethiopia Matters
Ethiopia’s so-called civil war is very much a proxy war which is poised to transform the strategic balance in the greater Middle East, reducing the power of Egypt and the Suez Canal, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the Persian Gulf’s Hormuz choke-point.
DIPLOMACY, ALLIANCES & TREATIES
HISTORY | Haile Selassie and the Limits of Collective Security
Ninety years after Ethiopia's appeal to the League of Nations, the episode remains a case study in the gap between formal condemnation and effective deterrence.
CULTURE, PSYCHOLOGY & MEDIA
The Next Strategic Advantage: the Restoration of Literacy
Perhaps the “experiment” in universal, forced literacy, has been a failure, an historical blip. Literacy is in retreat because of technology and because inquiring minds challenge leadership patterns. Yet intellectual capacity— signified by literacy— determines strategic success. What is to be done?
GOVERNANCE & ELECTIONS
Senegal, a Key New Energy Supplier, May Not Yet be Stable
HARDWARE, WEAPONRY & TECHNOLOGY
How the New Multi-Polar Defense Industrial World Drives Geopolitical Evolution
Global defense industrial thinking is becoming far more entrepreneurial and creative as major defense forces break with absolute strategic integration with the US, or any other major power.