QUAD Plus can reinforce a Free and Open Indo-Pacific by expanding intelligence, technology, and maritime cooperation, reducing dependence on China and strengthening regional resilience against coercion.
Abiy Ahmed's political capital is shrinking as insecurity, inflation, elite fragmentation, and dependence on external patrons drive up the cost of power. Can Ethiopia's political marketplace sustain his rule much longer?
BRICS may not end dollar dominance, but it is accelerating a shift toward a more multipolar financial order where currencies, influence, and economic power are becoming increasingly contested.
Russia and North Korea’s “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” marks more than convenience—it hints at a long-term realignment reshaping Northeast Asia’s power balance. Pragmatism may be giving way to strategy.
Turkey’s “Anchor State” strategy turns ambiguity into balance. In the Black Sea, Ankara sustains NATO’s deterrence and U.S. credibility—not through dominance, but disciplined realism. Balance, not force, now defines power.
Pakistan–Saudi Arabia’s new “mutual defence” pact reshapes Middle East security. Beyond deterrence, it hints at a nuclear umbrella, strategic autonomy from Washington, and new risks of regional proliferation.
Peace in North Africa starts where reform begins — in Tunis. A free, open, and U.S.-backed Tunisia can anchor a Tunis–Rabat corridor of prosperity, breaking Algeria’s grip and making peace truly infectious.
East Asia risks repeating 19th-century Europe’s mistakes. Like Bismarck’s failed Reinsurance Treaty, ad hoc diplomacy won’t secure peace — only durable, institutional U.S.–Japan–South Korea cooperation can.
Trump’s greenlight for CIA operations in Venezuela marks a dangerous escalation. What begins as covert action could soon become open invasion — with echoes of Iraq and Libya.
Azerbaijan is emerging as Eurasia’s logistics powerhouse — linking East and West through the Middle Corridor and the new Zangezur route, turning geography into opportunity and trade into lasting regional connectivity.
The Saudi–Pakistan nuclear pact mirrors NATO’s Article 5 but raises serious legal dilemmas—can “shared deterrence” justify collective violations of the UN Charter’s prohibition on force?
India-China ties are improving, but border tensions, strategic rivalry, and Indo-Pacific competition require realistic expectations. Cooperation can grow, yet enduring differences will continue shaping the relationship.
QUAD Plus can reinforce a Free and Open Indo-Pacific by expanding intelligence, technology, and maritime cooperation, reducing dependence on China and strengthening regional resilience against coercion.
Canada's submarine choice highlights a key lesson: modern arms sales depend not only on capability and price, but also on alliances, strategic trust, and long-term security partnerships. South Korea must sell relationships, not just weapons.
Abiy Ahmed's political capital is shrinking as insecurity, inflation, elite fragmentation, and dependence on external patrons drive up the cost of power. Can Ethiopia's political marketplace sustain his rule much longer?
BRICS+ offers vast potential in trade, technology and local currency cooperation, but geopolitical rivalries and divergent strategic priorities will shape whether it emerges as a cohesive force or remains a loose coalition.
