Latest Articles about Foreign Policy
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Exploring the Domestic Foundations of Chinese Economic Sanctions: The Case of Australia
More than two years have passed since the People’s Republic of China (PRC) began imposing a broad range of restrictions on Australian trade in what is widely regarded to be a campaign of economic coercion. Despite the apparent sanctions affecting numerous Australian export industries with... MORE
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The PLA’s Military Diplomacy in Advance of the 20th Party Congress (Part Two)
Editor’s Note: This is the second article in a two-part series on PLA military diplomacy. The first article focused on leader-level engagement. This piece examines specific areas of activity in the PLA’s military diplomacy. For part one, click here. Despite some limitations, the People’s Liberation... MORE
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China’s Interests in Afghanistan One Year After the U.S. Withdrawal
Introduction In late June, a severe earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan. In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) announced it would provide 50 million RMB ($7.2 million) in emergency aid, including tents, blankets, cots and other sorely needed supplies to... MORE
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Russia Keeps ‘Gathering’ Non-Russian Lands in Ukraine and Beyond
The Muscovite Tsardom portrayed its relentless territorial expansion as “gathering Russian lands.” In many cases, the lands in question were not even Russian, but once conquered, they were subjected to Russification in due course. The tsars and Russian emperors added the informal but glowing title... MORE
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Sabotage of Nord Stream Pipelines and Gazprom Policies Fuel Gas Fears in Europe
At the end of September 2022, four separate leaks were reported on the Nord Stream One and Nord Stream Two pipelines (Svd.se, September 29). Based on preliminary evidence, the damage was deemed to be caused by deliberate acts of sabotage and not resulting from natural... MORE
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Russia’s New Maritime Doctrine: Desperately Needed and Long Overdue
On July 31, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a new maritime doctrine, replacing the country’s previous Maritime Doctrine of the Russian Federation, instituted in June 2015 (Kremlin.ru, July 31). The highly ambitious new 106-section policy states throughout that the main security threats to Russia are... MORE
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Mobilization as a Triumph of Political Eschatology
The first week of the “partial mobilization” in Russia, which started on September 21, has demonstrated rampant bureaucratic chaos, a lack of planning and a deficit of training facilities and even basic equipment (72.ru, September 26; Kommersant, September 27; Sekret Firmy, September 28; Ura.ru, September... MORE
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Azerbaijan and Armenia Agree to Start Work on Peace Treaty (Part Two)
On September 14, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addressed parliament in the wake of clashes at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. Pashinyan announced that he would sign a document stipulating that “Armenia will have lasting peace and security in an area of 29,800 square kilometers,” in reference... MORE
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Minsk Harnesses Anti-Polish Sentiment
On September 23, Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei spoke at the most recent United Nations General Assembly session in New York (Facebook.com/belarusmfa, September 23). Opposition-minded commentators focused on what seems to be a contradiction between two refrains of Makei’s speech. On the one hand, he... MORE
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Russia Consummates Annexation ‘Referendums’ in Occupied Ukrainian Territories
The Russian State Duma and Federation Council are set to enact the annexation of Ukraine’s Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions and the Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” (“DPR”, “LPR”) to the Russian Federation, following the September 23–27 annexation “referendums” in those areas. The Duma’s chair, Vyacheslav... MORE