United States
A Quest for Relevance
Since Kabul’s fall, Pakistan has struggled to maintain strategic relevance and its attempts to reengage the U.S. have been largely unsuccessful. Domestic political turmoil, the popularity of former Prime Minister Imran Khan and a rise in militant attacks have complicated this engagement, as have the country’s ties with China.
Hacking the Hackers
Cybercrime has long been a useful foreign policy tool for the Russian state. But observers now wonder if shifting geopolitics, including Donald Trump’s rapprochement with the Kremlin, will impact such activities, for better or worse.
How De-Banking Became a Conservative Rallying Cry
Without cause or recourse, banks in the U.S. and abroad abruptly close individual, business and nonprofit accounts. To hear conservatives tell it, de-banking is part of a culture war against the right. But the truth is that it threatens Americans across the political spectrum.
Batman vs. the British Empire (or, The Alfred Mystique)
From Batman’s reliance on his English butler Alfred to Gotham City’s origin in a legend from medieval Nottinghamshire, the Batman mythos offers a window into the bloody, gothic substrate of the Anglo-American relationship and the American appetite for British advice and encouragement.
Modi Is Placating Trump on Illegal Migration, Despite Opposition at Home
As increasing illegal immigration from India to the U.S. comes under the spotlight, New Delhi has been prompt in communicating that it intends to cooperate with Trump.
The Decline of the American Empire — with Robert Kaplan and Faisal Al Yafai
Journalist and author Robert Kaplan joins New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai on The Lede for a discussion on realism, the Iraq War and the causes behind the decline of the American empire.
Proposed Legislation Threatens a Backslide on U.S. Democracy
A “Stop Terror-Financing” bill that has passed in the U.S. House of Representatives has raised red flags for its similarity to “foreign agent” laws — a cornerstone of repression in Putin’s Russia and Orban’s Hungary. But with the incoming Trump administration, the bill has a good chance of becoming law.