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The Slippery Slope Hazard Of U.S. Economic Sanctions
June 19, 2014 4 min. read

Russia is exploring settlement of trade payments in renminbi (China’s external currency).  U.S. sanctions on Cuba may require sanctions on Venezuela to remain viable.  And sanctions on Iran and Sudan led to criminal prosecution of BNP Paribas, and a spat with France. Policymakers may understand that military power is finite, but they seem to think American economic, trade […]

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GailForce: Miscellaneous Thoughts: Iraq, Intelligence Analysis, National Security Policy
June 16, 2014 12 min. read

“An old rule that I’ve used with my intelligence officers over the years, whether in the military, or now, in the State Department, goes like this: Tell me what you know. Tell me what you don’t know. And then, based on what you really know and what you really don’t know, tell me what you […]

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The FPA’s Must Reads (June 7 – June 13)
June 13, 2014 2 min. read

Our favorite long reads and blog posts from the past week.

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Beijing’s A La Carte Approach to Foreign Policy
June 13, 2014 4 min. read

Following the largely negative international reaction to its latest aggressive actions in Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam, Beijing may be trying a new approach in settling longstanding territorial disputes with its neighbors.  On Monday, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced China is prepared to resolve its border disputes with India by peaceful means, “Through years […]

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On Negotiations…with Terrorists and with Congress
June 12, 2014 10 min. read

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, a recently released prisoner of the Taliban, has become the target of one of Washington’s favorite games: shooting first and asking questions later. Much of what has been said  about Bergdahl is so blatantly partisan or so needlessly abusive as not to deserve comment. In the course of it, however, a couple of […]

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American leadership in the 21st century
June 10, 2014 5 min. read

President Obama’ graduation speech at the military academy at West Point sent mix signal about the priorities of American foreign policy and American leadership (read Michael Crowley’s analysis on the address). First of all, the central point of his speech dealt with his perceived principal threat to the U.S., radical Islamic terrorism. Many experts tend to […]

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Finance and BNP: How Do They Fit Our Geopolitics?
June 9, 2014 4 min. read

French bank BNP Paribas will likely pay up to $10 billion in penalties in a settlement with U.S. prosecutors for alleged transactions, dating back to 2002, with Iran and Sudan, countries sanctioned as terrorism sponsors.  Also, prosecutors want BNP to plead guilty to criminal charges. U.S. sanctions on terrorists and their enablers are appropriate, as […]

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Rock, Paper, Scissors in the South China Sea
June 6, 2014 8 min. read

photo: WN.com Rock, paper, scissors is a popular game among youth in China, and can be played anywhere and anytime between two people.  In the game, both participants count to three and then reveal their hand – a fist symbolizes a rock, a flat hand is paper, and two fingers signify scissors.  The winner is […]

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The FPA’s Must Reads (May 31 – June 6)
June 6, 2014 2 min. read

Our favorite longform articles and blogs from around the web this week.

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The FPA’s Must Reads (May 24 – May 30)
May 30, 2014 2 min. read

Our favorite longform articles and blog posts from around the web this week.

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Treat your LinkedIn profile as your workplace
May 27, 2014 5 min. read

LinkedIn is a wonderful tool for showing the professional that you are and bringing forth your body of work for employers, recruiters and colleagues to see. It is one of today’s most important social network tools of the work place. But remember this:  It is not Facebook.  Be careful of inappropriate pictures and an incomplete […]

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Vietnamese Woman Burns Self to Protest China
May 27, 2014 3 min. read

Protest continued in Vietnam this past weekend as a 67-year-old Vietnamese woman burned herself to death at the front gate of Reunification Palace in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday morning. Vietnamese authorities believe the suicide was the result of personal troubles and anger, as they discovered a bag at the scene containing seven banners […]

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