Global Watch

Nuclear security in the post-Soviet world is no longer defined by a shared Soviet legacy. From Russia's emphasis on nuclear deterrence to Central Asia's growing focus on safety, civilian energy, and non-proliferation, former Soviet republics are pursuing increasingly different approaches to managing nuclear risks.   Turkmenistan's recent hosting of an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) workshop offers a glimpse into how these changi...

Germany's debate over Russian gas is no longer just about energy. It has become a political fault line touching on economic competitiveness, support for Ukraine, relations with Russia, and the future direction of German foreign policy.   The issue returned to the spotlight after Markus Frohnmaier, foreign policy spokesman for Alternative for Germany (AfD), met senior Russian officials in St. Petersburg and called for the Nord Stream gas pi...

Every few months, Europe sends satellites into space from one of the poorest corners of the French Republic.   The rockets rise from Kourou, in French Guiana, a small territory on South America’s northern coast that France once used as a prison colony and now uses as a key space launch site. The business brings in money and strategic power, not for locals, but for Paris.   Outside the shiny, high-tech spaceport, life looks ver...

Malaysia and Russia have announced a long-term energy supply agreement to secure a stable flow of oil and natural gas to Malaysia. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced the arrangement at the ASEAN-Russia Commemorative Summit in Kazan, Russia on June 18, 2026.   The agreement marks a shift from short-term annual and seasonal contracts toward multi-year commitments designed to improve supply stability. The move is expected to str...

The India-Oman Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) entered into force on June 1, 2026, at a moment of growing instability in West Asia. As the US-Israel-Iran war disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, India suddenly found itself confronting the issue of how to secure trade routes in an increasingly uncertain world.   New Delhi has presented the CEPA deal as a strategic breakthrough and the answer to the trade rout...