All that is taken up here, in the complexity of open sources, does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Global Eye
TOPICS
- (Defense – Military – Security) Zamone Perez, Defense News. U.S. military power was weaker this year than the year prior, according to a new report by the Heritage Foundation, a think tank that analyzes the strength of the armed forces and the threats to America. US military in decline, threats from China ‘formidable,’ report says
- (Defense – Military – Security)
- (Defense – Military – Security) Guo Yuandan, Liu Xuanzun, Global Times. Chinese military experts urged on Tuesday that countries around the world should hold talks and negotiations over arms control in space in order to avoid weaponization of outer space and space wars amid wider deployments, more applications and expanding capabilities of satellites in wars, at a time when General Jay Raymond, the head of US Space Force, recently described the ongoing conflict in Ukraine as the “first war where commercial space capabilities have really played a significant role.”. Chinese experts urge avoidance of space weaponization amid commercial space capability deployment in Ukraine
- (Health & Innovation) Mark Melchionna, Health IT Analytics. A study published in JAMA Network Open concluded that a newly developed symptom-based screening tool could detect asthma risk levels among pediatric patients as well as persistent wheezing symptoms and healthcare burden. New Screening Tool Effective in Detecting Pediatric Asthma Risk
- (Refugee Education) Maysa Jalbout and Katy Bullard, Brookings. At a roundtable on the sidelines of the Transforming Education Summit and the September 2022 United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), refugee representatives, donors, UN agencies, and international organizations affirmed that refugee education must be at the heart of the transforming education and humanitarian agendas. The urgency of transforming refugee education: 4 opportunities to enable inclusion
WORLDS
- (Australia) Gill Savage, The Strategist. Fixing issues at the expense of positioning Australia for the future is likely to be a theme of the 2022–23 federal budget to be released later this month. It’s a case of focusing on the pressures of today often at the expense of longer term opportunities. The growing list of government reviews, including the royal commission into the ‘Robodebt’ scheme, the defence strategic review and the review of Covid-19 vaccine deals, reinforces a fixation with looking at the past through the rear-view mirror to find answers for the future. Australia’s defence review must embrace whole-of-nation thinking
- (China) Brookings. Eswar Prasad, a professor at Cornell University and senior fellow at Brookings, discusses China’s economic risks and opportunities with David Dollar as China’s 20th Communist Party Congress continues this week. Prasad and Dollar look at the general shape of China’s economy, it’s housing market, renminbi strength relative to the dollar, and whether President Xi Jinping will continue with a command-led economy that limits independence and innovation among enterprises. Checking in on China’s economy during the 20th Party Congress
- (China – Europe) Wang Qi, Zhang Changyue, Global Times. Highlighting China’s challenge and competition would exert a negative impact on the political atmosphere and economic cooperation between China and Europe, which will not benefit the European Union (EU) to stamp out its problems, Chinese experts said, following EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell’s recent remarks that the EU should treat China more as a competitor and reduce economic dependence on Beijing, in the run-up to a two-day summit in which EU leaders are expected to discuss a “fine-tuning” of ties with Beijing. Highlighting competition with China brings ‘no benefit’ to EU as Brussels seeks to ‘fine-tune’ ties with Beijing
- (China – MENA Region) John Calabrese, East Asia Forum. China’s engagement with the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is driven by the need to maintain access to vital energy supplies. Beijing is also motivated by its ambition to expand markets for Chinese products and investment, establish ‘trade hubs’ along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road — the sea-based component of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) — and enlist partners in efforts to revise the standards and norms of an international order no longer dominated by the United States. China’s digital inroads into the Middle East
- (China – Ukraine) Global Times. Chinese Embassy in Ukraine on Wednesday released specific evacuation guideline to instruct Chinese nationals to leave the country amid grim security situation in Ukraine. Chinese Embassy in Ukraine releases evacuation guideline for Chinese nationals to leave Ukraine
- (Europe and Central Asia) Nithin Umapathi, Brookings. The current energy cost shock presents a distinct and broad challenge in Europe and Central Asia (ECA). The crisis of surging energy prices will not only push many households into extreme poverty—it will also make it impossible for many nonpoor households to keep their homes warm. How to help people in Europe and Central Asia pay their energy bills
- (Iran) CSIS. Violent protests have raged across Iran since a twenty-two year old Kurdish-Iranian woman died in police custody after being arrested for immodest dress. According to the New York Times, more than 240 protesters have died since mid-September, but nationwide demonstrations continue. CSIS Middle East Program conversation on the unfolding situation in Iran, what it means for Iran and the region, and where things might go with Yeganeh Rezaian, Arash Azizi, and Kirsten Fontenrose, with opening remarks from Jason Rezaian. Is Iran on the Brink?
- (Iran) Nicholas Carl, Zachary Coles, Johanna Moore, and Frederick W. Kagan, ISW. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s refusal to concede on the mandatory hijab law is likely driving fissures among the political elite. Iran Crisis Update, October 18
- (Iran – Iraq) Kali Robinson, CFR. Iran has built considerable political clout in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime. Its wide sphere of influence could be expanding, raising domestic tensions and alarming U.S. policymakers. How Much Influence Does Iran Have in Iraq?
- (Iran and Russia) Barbara Slavin, Atlantic Council. From a societal level, Russia and Iran would seem to have little in common. To put it simply, Russia is a secular ex-Communist state whose citizens dress as they please and are fond of vodka; Iran is an Islamic theocracy that forces women—at pain of beating or worse—to cover their hair and bodies and outlaws alcohol. Ex-empires Iran and Russia forge new bonds as both blame their woes on the West
- (Iran – Ukraine) Umud Shokri, The Jamestown Foundation. At present, Iran is struggling mightily with Western sanctions and the resulting economic pressures due to its nuclear program. With the killing of 22-year-old Mahsa Amin, the country has witnessed widespread protests and violence (Al Jazeera, September 27). Regarding nuclear negotiations with the West, some interpret Iran’s activism as treading on Russia’s toes. Some also claim that Iran’s foreign policy stance has been rather passive and argue that its role in trying to mediate the conflict in Ukraine has served to elevate disputes between the United States and Russia (Radiofarda.com, September 4). Even before the war, Iranian-Ukrainian relations had faced serious tension following the downing of a Ukrainian plane by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in January 2020. The Future of Iranian-Ukrainian Relations
- (Russia) Paul Globe, The Jamestown Foundation. No policy Russian President Vladimir Putin has ever announced, including his increasing of the pension age in 2018, has caused more public anger and protest than the partial mobilization he declared on September 21 to fill the depleted ranks of his invasion force in Ukraine. Circassian Protest Plays Key Role in Killing Putin’s Mobilization Program
- (Russia – Ukraine) Robert Horvath, The Interpreter. No event since the end of the USSR has shaken the global order as violently as Russia’s war against Ukraine. The trampling of international norms, the devastation of cities, the massacres of civilians, the flight of millions of refugees, and the possibility of a nuclear catastrophe, are all consequences of Vladimir Putin’s decision to unleash his “Special Military Operation” on 24 February this year. The banality of Putin’s evil
- (Russia – Ukraine) Karolina Hird, Katherine Lawlor, Grace Mappes, George Barros, and Mason Clark, ISW. Russian forces continued to target critical Ukrainian civilian infrastructure with air, missile, and drone strikes on October 18. Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, October 18
- (Turkey) Aslı Aydıntaşbaş, Brookings. If you are in Turkey, think twice about tweeting this article. With a new controversial social media law, Turkish authorities now have the right to control and, if necessary, restrict online free speech in ways that would be unthinkable in any democracy — or even in Turkey a few years ago. Turkey’s new media law is bad news – but don’t report it
- (Turkey – Russia – Ukraine) Sine Ozkarasahin, The Jamestown Foundation. As pressure increases, Turkey’s middle-man position in the Ukraine crisis is becoming harder to maintain. “Compartmentalization,” meaning separating divisive political, strategic and economic affairs from establishing a working relationship, has been the defining aspect of contemporary Turkish-Russian relations. Walking on Thin Ice: Will Turkey’s ‘Compartmentalization’ Work in Ukraine? – Jamestown
- (USA – Australia) Charles Edel, The Strategist. Last week, US President Joe Biden released his administration’s long-delayed national security strategy. It opens with a sense of urgency, declaring this a ‘decisive decade for America and the world’ to outmanoeuvre global competitors and address the shared threats of climate change, pandemics, food security and terrorism. The US national security strategy and what it means for Australia
- (USA – China) Jenny Wong-Leung, The Strategist. In August, the US government made a major commitment to America’s semiconductor manufacturing sector with the announcement of US$50 billion in funding under the CHIPS and Science Act. Bolstered by this move, memory chip manufacturer Micron announced a US$40 billion investment with the potential to create 40,000 new jobs in construction and manufacturing. Seismic shifts underway in global semiconductor market as US accelerates decoupling from China
- (USA – China) CFR. U.S. Senator and Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee Jack Reed discusses how the United States can best leverage its military and economic power to compete with China on the global stage. A Conversation With Chairman Jack Reed
- (USA – Europe) Ilke Toygür, Max Bergmann, CSIS. Since the war has started, leadership of Europe is in question. The German government has struggled to fill Angela Merkel’s shoes on the European stage—a task that became exceptionally more difficult as Merkel’s legacy collapsed when Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine. Who Should the United States Call in Europe?
