International

A fifty-year veteran of American intelligence recently told me how once, as a young officer, he had blurted out that a situation he had been […] More

Kurdistan is a transnational patchwork quilt of territories spread across Turkey, Iran, Syria, and Iraq. Though only six million out of a total of 32 […] More

The recent infusion of Russian weapons and other military materiel into Syria has gotten the chattering class in Washington in a tizzy. “Inside-the-Beltway” policy experts, […] More

Latin America and the Caribbean’s (LAC) relationship with China has passed through many stages in the last few decades. It is only after the 1990s […] More

China’s rise has exerted a well-documented economic impact in Latin America. South American economists worry about the loss of value-adding industries as raw materials like […] More

In an interview with The Cipher Brief, Boston University Professor Kevin Gallagher sees Chinese and American interests in Latin America as complementary. The Cipher Brief: […] More

The global oil industry is going through a lesson in Economics 101:  When supply increases, prices go down.  Crude oil prices are currently hovering around […] More

In the seven months since arriving on the throne, new Saudi King Salman has brought fundamental changes to the Saudi power line-up and to succession […] More

The business and geopolitical history of the 20th century was written in oil…black gold…Texas tea. Indeed, the need to secure abundant energy supplies has been […] More

The old saying goes that there are only two guarantees in life: death and taxes.  But if you’re a Chief Security Officer, you may as […] More

The Cipher Brief spoke with Peter Piazza, Vice President for Strategic Operations at ASIS, who discussed changes in the security industry, ASIS’ role in educating […] More

Chip Burrus is the Vice President for Corporate Security for Penske. Previously, he worked as an FBI agent for 25 years and retired as the […] More

China’s exploitation of national security concerns to shield its technology companies from foreign competition has shifted the global competitive landscape. American companies, hindered by China’s […] More

Unstable, corrupt, plagued by scandal—these describe Brazil’s current economic and political climate, a big transformation from its image of an advancing economy with secure investment […] More

The Cipher Brief discussed the political dynamics of Brazil with Phil Chicola, a former Chargé d’Affaires to Brazil from 2005 to 2006. Chicola discussed the […] More

Optimism is in short supply here in Brazil and for good reason. Consumer confidence is at its lowest level in 10 years; both inflation and […] More

President Barack Obama continues to pave the way for improved U.S.-Cuban relations, as changes to U.S. travel to and business with Cuba took effect on […] More

CIPHER SNAPSHOT: Turkey is a critical country for U.S. interests. Recent developments in Turkey’s domestic politics, economic outlook, and foreign policy have significant ramifications for […] More