South East Asia

The recent assassination of Al-Qaeda’s Ayman Al-Zawahiri is likely to create a number of ramifications. Al-Zawahiri was assassinated by two Hellfire R9-X missiles from an MQ9 Reaper drone, that had flown over or originated in a third country, in the heart of Kabul, which the US evacuated from in August …

To make matters worse, the Chinese state has been open about its hostility to the United States. Among other things, in May 2019 People’s Daily, the Party’s self-described “mouthpiece” and therefore most authoritative publication in China, declared a “people’s war” on America. Many of those “different social systems”—especially the United …

As countries around the world cope with supply shortages of staple foods, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Israel, and India are creating an India-Middle East Food Corridor — a new West Asia value chain that harnesses the three states’ commercial and technological synergies to form what promises to be a …

MI5 Director General Ken McCallum’s joint address with the FBI Chief on 6 July saw a welcome rebalancing of the security service’s focus towards nation-state threats. Counterterrorism is an important function, but it was allowed to dominate for two decades while Russia, China and other belligerent states were insufficiently monitored. …

As evidence mounts that the Global South is leaning closer to the Russia–China position over Ukraine, the West needs to think hard about how to regain the initiative in the narrative battle. The Ukraine war has further entrenched and exacerbated the geopolitical rivalry between the West and the Russia–China camp. …

The killing of longtime al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri could accelerate a trend that has been consistently emerging in recent years—the factionalization and regionalization of the global jihadist movement. To survive, al-Qaeda adopted a franchising strategy which led it to expand worldwide and establish regional branches in the Levant, North Africa, …

Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was reportedly the second target of the Iranian regime. The IRGC member reportedly offered $1 million for his murder. The Biden administration remains silent and evidently continues to see “diplomacy” — read: appeasement — as the only path to deal with the Iranian …

The Marcos government does not face a choice between the US or China, amid Taiwan tensions. It faces a choice between military buildup or economic development, amid dimming global economic prospects. During his recent meeting with President Marcos Jr., Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US-Philippine “alliance” was strong, …

The [Harvard Belfer Center] report, “The Great Economic Rivalry: China Vs. the US,” predicts that at the current rate China will overtake the US economically within a decade. When it comes to trade, China has now displaced the US. “When this century began, China was knocking on the door of …

Beijing has “successfully completed” weeklong exercises around Taiwan, though additional military activity in the region can be expected, a Chinese military official announced Wednesday. China plans to continue “military training and preparations,” organize patrols in the Taiwan Strait and “resolutely defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Eastern Theater Command spokesman …