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Chinese firm collects data of US leaders, military

Social media and other online data on both prominent Americans and the U.S. military has been collected since 2017 by a Chinese technology company that purportedly markets itself to clients in the country’s military, government and commercial sector.

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Trump hails new 'dawn' for Middle East as Israel signs accords with Bahrain and UAE

President Trump declared the “dawn of a new Middle East” as he oversaw the signing of pacts between Israel and two Arab nations, an event he hopes will pave the way for increased stability in a volatile region and cast him as a peacemaker ahead of November’s election.

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How to Do More With Less in the Middle East

It has been clear for some time that the United States should do less in the Middle East, despite the attendant risks and costs—a case that we made in these pages last year (“America’s Middle East Purgatory,” January/February 2019). At the time, some welcomed this argument; others balked at it. …

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Foreign-policy sleepwalking: Wake up to Germany no longer being such a good ally

A line in the sublime Hilary Mantel trilogy of Henry VIII’s fixer, Thomas Cromwell, perfectly encapsulates the highest aspirations of the political risk profession. The goal must be always to “Study the world without despising it. Understand the world without rejecting it. Have no illusions, but have hopes. Do not …

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Expect U.S. election to have consequences for troops overseas

President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden both say they want to pull U.S. forces out of Iraq and Afghanistan. But their approaches differ, and the outcome of the Nov. 3 election will have long-term consequences not only for U.S. troops, but for the wider region.

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Russia’s quest to make itself indispensable in the Middle East

Although it has neither the desire nor the financial or military capacity to actually displace the United States in the Middle East, Russia has become adept at planting itself firmly in the middle of crises and conflicts and establishing itself as an indispensable intermediary at relatively little cost. This has …

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America’s War on Terror is the True Cause of Europe’s Refugee Crisis

Desperate refugees crammed into cockle-shell boats landing on the shingle beaches of the south Kent coast are easily portrayed as invaders. Anti-immigrant demonstrators were exploiting such fears last weekend as they blockaded the main highway into Dover Port in order “to protect Britain’s borders”. Meanwhile, the home secretary, Priti Patel, …

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