Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy

This week, U.S. President Donald Trump rejected an Iranian peace proposal and ordered an extension of the blockade on Iranian ports, while Israel resumed military operations in Lebanon. In the Indo-Pacific, the U.S. sanctioned a Chinese importer of Iranian oil, threatening more sanctions against China’s banking sector, while Beijing blocked Meta’s acquisition of a Chinese AI company. In the Russia...

This week, U.S. President Donald Trump extended the ongoing ceasefire with Iran, while Iran rejected negotiations with U.S. Vice President JD Vance as the U.S. continued its blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz. In the Indo-Pacific, Japan removed export bans on lethal weapons, marking a shift in its pacifist policy, while Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te canceled a trip to Eswatini, a...

This week, the United States imposed a blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz during the ongoing two-week ceasefire observed by the U.S., , with talks to extend it and resume diplomatic negotiations in Pakistan currently underway. In the Indo-Pacific, the in the South China Sea, while China eased some trade restrictions against Taiwan following last week’s negotiations with In the Russi...

This week, the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire following President Donald Trump’s threats of targeting Iran's power plants and other infrastructure, while Israel escalated its bombing campaign against Lebanon. In the Indo-Pacific, South Korea met with representatives from Gulf countries to discuss securing energy supplies, and Taiwan’s opposition leader visited China, stalling Taipei’...

Student Fellow Riley Sullivan is joined by Dr. Kseniya Sotnikova, Ax:son Johnson Fellow with the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), to discuss women's roles in the war in Ukraine.  Learn more about Dr. Sotnikova: https://cepa.org/author/kseniya-sotnikova/ Learn more about New Lines' work on CRSV: https://newlinesinstitute.org/project/crsv/ Learn more about New Lines' work on Ukraine: http...

In this episode of Crime Beat Conversations, Rafaella Lipschitz talks to Adam Rousselle, illicit finance expert and founder of Between the Lines, to discuss Chinese money-laundering networks and their role as the financial backbone of Latin America’s drug cartels. They explore how China’s internal capital flight pressures have produced a shadow financial architecture that connects Chinese elites t...

In this episode, we continue to highlight our recently published 2026 Q2 forecast report on geopolitical hotspots around the world and their implications on global connectivity themes like trade, technology, energy, and climate. We discuss the internal destabilization happening in Iran, and review some of the main events that happened in Venezuela, the US, Afghanistan/Pakistan, and in conflicts in...

This podcast highlights our recently published 2026 Q2 Forecast report on geopolitical hotspots around the world and their implications on global connectivity themes like trade, technology, energy, and climate. In part 1 of this podcast, we discuss our outlook for global hotspots like the Middle East, Indo-Pacific, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, while in part 2 we cover the US/Americas and hotsp...

This week, the United States and Iran traded proposals for a diplomatic settlement to their war, with Pakistan working as an intermediary, while the U.S. sent an additional 2,000 troops to the region for a possible ground operation into Iran. In the Russia/Ukraine conflict, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that there was “irrefutable evidence” of Russian intelligence aid to Iran, whi...

This week, the conflict in Iran intensified as the U.S. bombed military facilities on Iran’s Kharg Island and Israel bombed key Iranian energy facilities, with Iran responding with attacks on energy infrastructure in the Gulf. Israel also committed troops for a possible ground invasion of Lebanon.  In the Indo-Pacific, U.S. President Donald Trump formally postponed a summit with Chinese President...

This week, the U.S. and Israel continued their military campaigns against Iran and Lebanon, while Tehran vowed to block oil exports from the region, leading to worldwide repercussions in the energy sector. Despite the strikes, China stated it would likely go ahead with an upcoming summit with President Donald Trump at the end of March, while the South Korean parliament approved the $350 billion in...

This week, the United States and Israel launched air- and naval-based attacks against Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran retaliated with strikes against neighboring Gulf states and by closing the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, talks between Russia and Ukraine have been postponed as the war detracted from diplomatic efforts in Abu Dhabi. In the Indo-Pacific, China held its annu...

This week, tensions between Iran and the U.S. continued to rise despite ongoing negotiations, with Iran threatening repercussions if the U.S. were to attack and Israel threatening Lebanon with strikes against civilian infrastructure if Hezbollah acted in defense of Iran. In the Indo-Pacific, China restricted rare earth exports to Japan, and U.S. aerospace manufacturers warned of dwindling rare ear...

This week, the U.S. continued its buildup of naval and air forces near Iran for a potential military operation, while Iranian officials reported progress in diplomatic talks. In the United States, the Supreme Court invalidated tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, dealing a major blow to the administration’s trade policy. In the Russia/Ukr...

In this episode of Crime Beat Conversations, Rafaella Lipschitz sat down with Stefano Ritondale again, to discuss the dynamics of the Sinaloa cartel civil war and emerging alliances between Los Chapitos, a faction of the Sinaloa cartel, and CJNG, Sinaloa’s historic rival. Stefano breaks down how the Sinaloa civil war has reframed how we should understand Mexican cartel alliances. We examine some o...

This week, U.S. President Donald Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington, after which Trump insisted that negotiations with Iran would continue, while Israel is reportedly preparing for a ground offensive in Gaza against Hamas. In the Indo Pacific, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is considering constitutional reform following her party’s victory in parliament,...

This week, the U.S. and Iran held talks in Oman over Iran’s nuclear program amid rising tensions following U.S. forces shooting down an Iranian reconnaissance drone in the Arabian Sea. In the U.S., the federal government reopened after a partial shutdown following commitments by the Trump administration to reduce the number of federal law enforcement officers in Minnesota. In the Indo-Pacific, the...

This week, in the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump continued to weigh options for possible intervention in Iran and ordered military assets to be deployed in the region. In the U.S., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer continued to negotiate a deal that would avert a U.S. government shutdown in exchange for restrictions on immigration enforcement, while U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio...

This week, world leaders gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos, an event dominated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to annex Greenland, which he later walked back following discussions with NATO. In the Middle East, Trump inaugurated his “Board of Peace” and ordered the Department of Defense to draw up plans for a possible intervention in Iran. In the Russia/Ukraine conflict, top U...

This week, the White House ramped up pressure on Iran as the regime’s protest crackdown led to thousands of protestors dead according to varying accounts. Denmark and Greenland sent their top diplomats to negotiate with the U.S. over Greenland’s status, while European countries have sent small troop contingents to the island ahead of planned joint military exercises to assess how to ensure the cou...

This week, the United States conducted a major military operation against Venezuela resulting in the capture of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, with implications throughout the Americas and globally. In the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to intervene militarily in Iran as the country faces large-scale anti-government protests, while Saudi Arabia conducted strikes agains...

In this episode of the New Lines Contours Podcast, host Eugene Chausovsky sits down with Farid Shafiyev, the chairman of the Center of Analysis and International Relations and former ambassador for Azerbaijan to Canada and Czechia. Together, they discuss the developments over the last year in diplomatic relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the economic interests foreign powers have in the reg...

In this episode of the New Lines Contours Podcast, host Eugene Chausovsky sits down with Richard Giragosian, the founding director of the Regional Studies Center and a guest lecturer for the NATO Defense College in Rome. Together, they discuss the developments over the last year in diplomatic relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the influence foreign powers have in the region, and how the Sou...

In the last Global Hotspots episode of 2025, Milos and Andrew sit down with New Lines student fellows Ashley Nunes and Sebastian Dittgen. Together, they discuss the other hotspots covered in 2025, includng Venezuela, the DRC, and the wave of Gen Z protests around the globe. Read the 2026 Forecast - https://newlinesinstitute.org/analytical-products/2026-annual-forecast/ Marxist Arrow by Twin Musico...

A global adaptation to a new state of the world driven by the White House’s approach to international relations will headline 2026. Efforts to de-escalate the war in Ukraine will persist and gain some traction. In the Middle East, the fragile ceasefire in Gaza will hold as tensions among Israel, Syria, and Iran continue to mount. A U.S.-China trade truce will keep the Indo-Pacific relatively stabl...