Joshua Stowell

Published: July 14, 2026 The announcement of a mid-June 2026 agreement between the United States and Iran on a framework for resolving the conflict that began on February 28 promised immediate relief for transit through the Strait of Hormuz and raised hopes of unblocking international maritime trade and reducing oil prices. The conflict with Iran, or Operation Epic Fury, has become a defining moment for global security, injecting volatility into an already fragile international system.

Published: July 13, 2026 The central issue underlying the 2026 Beijing summit was not trade, agriculture, or aircraft purchases, but the future of Taiwan and the evolving structure of U.S.-China relations in the Indo-Pacific. For Beijing, the commercial agreements reached during the summit represented part of a broader strategic effort to influence Washington’s posture toward the Taiwan Strait. For decades, the United States has maintained a policy of strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan.

Published: July 7, 2026 Abstract Artificial Intelligence (AI)-assisted hybrid warfare increasingly relies on information-influence engineered to appear legitimate. The objective is not mass persuasion through provocatively aggressive propaganda, but the slow erosion of trust in the systems that coordinate production, finance, logistics, standards, and alliances.