Recent Publications

Paraguay: A Promising Government Navigating a Perilous Path
May 1, 2024 — The greatest gift that Cartes can give the country and President Peña is to empower Peña to take the real and symbolic steps to frontally tackle corruption. Paraguay, a land-locked country at the heart of South America, is strategically important for the region, the U.S., and even the Indopacific, in ways that exceed the attention given to it by Washington D.C. Larger than Germany, Paraguay’s geographic centrality means that the country’s commercial and political dynamics... ... MORE

Paraguay: A Promising Government Navigating a Perilous Path
The greatest gift that Cartes can give the country and President Peña is to empower Peña to take the real and symbolic steps to frontally tackle corruption.
https://globalamericans.org/paraguay-a-promising-government-navigating-a-perilous-path/

The Case for Containing, Not Coddling, Maduro
March 4, 2024 — From 2019 to 2020, I had the honor of serving on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s policy planning staff (S/P). One of my priority focus areas was the dictatorship of Nicholas Maduro and the dangers it posed to the Venezuelan people and to the region. The Maduro regime’s expulsion of the office of United Nations High Commission for Human Rights from the country, and the arrest and forced disappearance... MORE

The Case for Containing, Not Coddling, Maduro
The inability of the U.S. to facilitate a return to democracy in Venezuela does not justify accommodating dictatorship in the name of engagement. by R. Evan Ellis

Germany Has a Math Problem, and It’s about to Get Worse
September 9, 2021 — Dr. Sarah Lohmann, 2021, American Institute for Contemporary German Studies (AICGS)What the numbers say about the energy landscapeIn this traditional state of Bavaria where election banners offering defense of “Heimat” (Homeland) seized the day in the last election, the posters wedged between ancient church domes on cobblestone streets now tout... MORE

Cover for Germany Has a Math Problem, and It’s about to Get Worse

China’s Economic Statecraft in Europe during the Pandemic
October 9, 2020 — Dr. John R. Deni and Jake Shatzer, Oct 2020 in War on the RocksThe novel coronavirus pandemic has unleashed an immense shock to the global economy. In Europe, the gross domestic product among the countries that use the euro has dropped by over 12 percent while unemployment rates have risen to nearly 8 percent. Many countries are unlikely to reach... MORE

Cover for China’s Economic Statecraft in Europe during the Pandemic

Senior Conference 55—The Emerging Environment in the Indo-Pacific Region: Drivers, Directions, and Decisions
March 4, 2020 — Editors: Dr Terry Babcock-Lumish, COL Tania Chacho, MAJ Tom Fox, MAJ Zachary Griffiths As the Indo-Pacific region enters a period of uncertainty, this monograph details the proceedings of West Point’s 2019 Senior Conference 55. Scholars and practitioners convened to discuss and debate strategic changes, and experts shared thoughts during keynote... MORE

Cover for Senior Conference 55—The Emerging Environment in the Indo-Pacific Region: Drivers, Directions, and Decisions

Operationalizing Counter Threat Finance Strategies
December 1, 2014 — Author: Dr Shima D KeeneView the Executive Summary This Letort Paper describes effective Counter Threat Finance strategies as a specific area where the capability of U.S. and allied militaries can be augmented for the purpose of targeted action against adversaries. With appropriate analysis and exploitation, financial data can be used to reveal... MORE

Cover for Operationalizing Counter Threat Finance Strategies

China’s Military Potential
October 1, 1998 — Author: Dr Larry M Wortzel This monograph provides an appraisal of the ability of the People's Republic of China (PRC) to build a credible military force in the 21st century. The author examines a complicated set of factors, which when taken together, equates to potential military power in China's case. Perhaps foremost among these factors is the... MORE

The Economic Crisis and ASEAN States’ Security
October 1, 1998 — Author: Dr Sheldon W Simon Asia's financial crisis has quickly become a global one. Its implications far transcend purely economic or financial considerations. In fact, the crisis that began with the fall of Thailand's Baht in 1997 now embraces the entire world and has caused governments to fall in Asia and Russia. To understand the dynamics of the... MORE

China’s Quest for Security in the Post-Cold War World
July 1, 1996 — Author: Dr Samuel S Kim In April 1996, the Army War College's Strategic Studies Institute held its Seventh Annual Strategy Conference. This year's theme was, "China Into the 21st Century: Strategic Partner and . . . or Peer Competitor."Dr. Samuel S. Kim of Columbia University argues that, while post-Tiananmen China is a growing regional military... MORE

International Politics in Northeast Asia: The China-Japan-United States Strategic Triangle
March 1, 1996 — Author: Dr Thomas L Wilborn The United States has vital security and economic interests in Northeast Asia, one of the most dynamic regions of the world. This monograph focuses on the three bilateral relationships, those connecting China, Japan, and the United States to each other, which will dominate the future of the region. Dr. Thomas Wilborn... MORE

Reform and the Revolution in Russian Defense Economics
May 19, 1995 — Author: Dr Stephen J Blank As Russia's invasion of Chechnya shows, the Russian armed forces are suffering from tremendous shortages of capable leaders and soldiers. These problems, among others, relate directly to the shortage of funds for the military. Yet Russia cannot afford to spend more than it is now spending on the armed forces. This is the... MORE

Energy, Economics, and Security in Central Asia: Russia and Its Rivals
March 1, 1995 — Author: Dr Stephen J Blank The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 led to the creation of five new states in Central Asia. These states: Kazkahstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan, have become both the object of international rivalries in Central Asia and the sources of new political forces as they act to enlarge their... MORE