InterRegional for Strategic Analysis

In late July 2021, Republican Congressman Bryan Steil pressed the US administration to brief Congress on its decision, announced by the Department of Defense in mid-June 2021, to withdraw US military equipment from the Middle East. After having worked to strengthen them during 2019 and 2020, the Department of Defense announced the removal of US air defense systems located in the Middle East. In a statement, Pentagon spokesperson Jessica McNulty disclosed that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin had "directed the Commander of U.S. Central Command to remove from the region this summer certain forces and capabilities, primarily air defense assets".

The Repercussion of Pulling US. Defense Systems out of the Region

Strengthening Rivals:

Many reports have examined the new legislation that Republican members of Congress have introduced. The bill calls for greater disclosure of foreign funding sources for US think tanks and cultural institutions, with a particular focus on funding from the Chinese government. Some reports have accused the Chinese of providing generous funding to think tanks with the goal of shaping US discourse and attitudes towards China, and influencing US policymakers. Despite the importance of this legislation, it is expected that it will encounter strong resistance from think tanks, which do not want their funding and research activities to be affected. The main characteristics of the new legislation, which calls for increased transparency about foreign funding sources for US think tanks and cultural institutions, as well as the ensuing controversy, are as follows:

Will Washington succeed in undermining Chinese funding for US think tanks?

Pushback Expected:

Why a Number of Legislators Oppose Biden’s Infrastructure Plan?

Partisan Showdown:

On 26 January 2021, the US Senate approved the appointment of Janet Yellen as Treasury secretary. Yellen, the former chair of the Federal Reserve, is the first woman to hold this position. She has a distinguished career and significant accomplishments in the field of monetary and banking policy. Yellen also taught economics at the University of California, Harvard University, and the London School of Economics, and she spent years in Washington as the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, the second woman to hold this position.Through many policies, Yellen has been deeply involved in some of the most important changes in the Federal Reserve in its over 100-year history, most notably full employment without inflation and avoiding internal and external pressure on the Federal Reserve to retreat from zero rates after the global recession and its impacts on the American economy.

Public perceptions of the first woman to hold the position of US Treasury Secretary

Janet Yellen:

In April the US Intelligence Community released its annual report, detailing a number of threats to the interests of the United States and its allies around the world. They can be summarized as follows:

The Main Trends in the US Intelligence Community’s Annual Report

Threat Assessment:

The infographic reveals the tremendous advantages enjoyed by F-35 fighters, particularly their fifth-generation multi-functionality. They have advanced technologies that represent a force multiplier in any military operation, especially with regard to their ability to evade radar, their remote sensing and jamming of enemy radar, and their ability to process data at a speed of 400 billion operations per second.

A quality fighter that changes the balance of regional power

F-35:

The Strategic Cooperation Agreement signed between China and Iran has sparked extensive controversy, especially given the agreement’s comprehensiveness and long-term duration, its ambiguous and secret terms, and its overall promotion of partnership and cooperation between Beijing and Tehran in the long-term and at all levels, amid the two countries’ mutual gains.

Features and implications of the Strategic Cooperation Agreement between China and Iran

Extended Partnership:

The infographic shows the changing trends in military spending throughout the world during 2020. The US continued to have the highest defense budget in the world, followed by China, India, the UK, and Russia. With regard to global defense spending per region, North America was in first place, followed by Asia.

InterRegional for Strategic Analysis

InterRegional for Strategic Analysis

MIR Book Store

Most Visited