The Developing Relationship Between Russia and Turkey

By: Vahe Mirikian On April 3, 2018, President Putin and President Erdogan agreed for Russia to build a nuclear power plant for Turkey in the southern province of Turkey in Mersin. At first glance, this story is surprising because Turkey is a significant NATO ally of the United States and the West. This new relationship……

As the United States Questions Trade Agreements, China Continues to Expand Its Reach

By: Vahe Mirikian On January 22, 2018, Reuters reported that China is inviting Latin America and the Caribbean to join its “One Belt, One Road” initiative (BRI). China is enticing Latin America and the Caribbean to join its Initiative so it can deepen economic and political ties in a region where the United States has……

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Jerusalem: The Impact of Trump’s Decision to Move U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem

By: Vahe Mirikian On December 6, 2017, President Donald Trump caused an international political earthquake by announcing the United States would be moving their embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, therefore, recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. This breaks 50 years’ international consensus on the status of Jerusalem. The move of the Embassy would……

Olympic Diplomacy on the Korean Peninsula

By: Robert Dunbar On 9 January 2018, North and South Korea held direct talks about the upcoming Winter Olympics, to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea. This was the first time the two states had held direct talks in over two years. The two countries agreed to have North Korean athletes, as well as an……

The AI Race

By: Morgan Speece Artificial Intelligence (AI) has come a long way since the term was coined by John McCarthy in 1955. After years of over-dramatized claims of what AI could eventually do, we now find ourselves experiencing what it can do while becoming more knowledgeable about its impressively rapid development rate and potentially devastating impacts.……

Bridging the Divide in the United States

By: Vahe Mirikian The United States is experiencing a dramatic political divide. There are people on the left who do not wish to associate themselves with those on the right and vice-versa. The political divide has resulted in people avoiding participating in political conversations on public issues plaguing the United States and the world. Many……

The Fractured Republican Congress & The Fate of GOP Leadership

By: Brandon Bratcher The 115th Congress is as divided as the electorate. The Republican Party is split between two factions within its own ranks with conflicting visions. On one side there is the “establishment Republicans, ” and on the further right, we have a coalition of the “Tea-Party” and “Freedom Caucus.”  This disunity has paralyzed……

Incentivizing FDI and Portuguese Power

By: Robert Dunbar In 2011, at the height of the Eurozone financial crisis, the Portuguese Republic received a 78-billion-euro bailout package from the European Commission, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund, also known as the Troika. In May 2017, Reuters published an article about Portugal formally exiting the “excessive deficit procedure” laid out……

Former Trans-Pacific Partners Moving On, Leaving the United States More Isolated

By: Vahe Mirikian While President Trump was making his first tour around Asia, the remaining 11 members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreed on “core elements” to continue the trade agreement without the United States. The agreement is a significant statement made by the remaining members of the TPP to the United States and the……

American Courage

By: Michael McCree November 3, 2017, was the thirtieth birthday of Colin Rand Kaepernick. In 2013, if I was to ask you the questions, “Who is Colin Kaepernick? What will he be known for when we look back at the end of this decade?” If you follow football in the United States, most likely you……