What Cements the BRICS?

Eye on China | Amit Kumar

India recently hosted the 18th BRICS summit as renewed issue about de-dollarisation arise; the existing trade imbalances come to make local currencies a route to Chinese renminbi dominance. Because it imports 88% of its crude oil, New Delhi faces significant economic exposure, and its financial system is therefore susceptible to sudden price spikes tied to the dollar.

In order to overcome these weaknesses, the member states have suggested settling trade using local currencies, a common currency basket, or Central Bank Digital Currencies. Yet India had a trade deficit of $226 billion with its BRICS partners in fiscal year 2026. Such trade deficits benefit Beijing. Moreover, China's use of trade as a tool—for example, imposing discriminatory export controls on rare earths and semiconductor equipment—demonstrates the group's inability to reform the existing global geoeconomic order. In the end, India's effort to achieve strategic autonomy within BRICS is still limited by its security ties to the Quad.

BRICS meets in India: What’s on the agenda, why it matters

Al Jazeera | Priyanka Shankar

The 18th annual BRICS Summit, which Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is hosting in New Delhi from September 12 to 13, 2026, will bring together more than a dozen world leaders to discuss global economic problems and the severe geopolitical conflicts. The summit is taking place at a time when the United States and Israel are engaging in a growing war against Iran and Russia is still at war in Ukraine.

An enlarged group consisting of eleven members—accounting for forty per cent of the global gross domestic product—wants to secure its supply chains and set up cross-border payment systems as a means of going around Western sanctions. However, disagreements within the group endanger this common goal. The ongoing border disagreements between India and China, together with the tensions existing between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, make it difficult to produce a single, unified declaration. Moreover, the Houthi forces in Yemen are still attacking infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, and the Yemeni government has recently lost control of the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait. The summit offers Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping a vital opportunity to make use of the Global South's policy of hedging.

J-10 Deal With Bangladesh Takes Shape As China’s Fighter Export Push Grows

The War Zone | Thomas Newdick

Bangladesh is drawing up a draft agreement in order to begin formal talks with China regarding the purchase of J-10CEE multirole fighters and attack helicopters as part of its effort to modernise its outdated combat fleet. The possible acquisition of up to 24 aircraft illustrates the increasing interest in the advanced Chinese platform, which attracted considerable attention during the conflict between Pakistan and India in May 2025.

The aircraft currently in Dhaka's inventory are mainly composed of outdated Chengdu F-7 and MiG-29 Fulcrums models, both of which are suffering from serious difficulties in maintenance. Due to sanctions, Russia's support is highly unreliable. Zahed Ur Rahman, adviser to the Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting, has confirmed that the draft agreement has been prepared, but the exact delivery timelines and financial terms have not been made public. The J-10CE, which is fitted with an active electronically scanned array radar and the PL-15 beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, provides a mature and combat-tested alternative to both Western and Russian aircraft. Since Uzbekistan is also looking into acquiring 24 such aircraft, Beijing is successfully establishing itself as a player in defence markets which have hitherto been dominated by Moscow.

Beyond prototypes: Army readies operational NGC2 tech for I Corps

Breaking Defense | Mark Pomerleau

The US Army is moving the Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) system from its stage of prototype testing into operational deployment with the I Corps, a formation focused on the Pacific. The transition will start in October 2026 and will involve a software update aimed at giving rise to a 'fight tonight' capability over large maritime distances, the system functioning as a joint multinational data router.

To scale this open architecture to the corps level it is necessary to reduce the software footprint from the forty-five applications that were tested by the 4th Infantry Division down to a streamlined set of core and common services. Interoperability is still the main challenge. During Super Garuda Shield the 4th Infantry Division managed to integrate NGC2 kits onto Coast Guard fast response cutters and carried out enroute mission command on C-17 aircraft. In order to support these activities the Army has chosen Anduril to lead the development of the common data layer. This highly decentralised data architecture is intended to give subordinate Pacific units the ability to have tailorable operational command flexibility in complex multi-domain operations.

9/11 and the Lessons of Small Wars – An SWJ Editor’s Perspective

Small Wars Journal | David Maxwell

Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines (OEF-P) showed that U.S. Special Operations Forces are able to counter transnational terrorist groups by giving advice to local forces rather than carrying out direct combat operations themselves. This approach, which is known as a low-footprint one, stressed the importance of respecting host-nation sovereignty and building up long-term trust in order to destroy the extremist networks. The strategic framework was developed as a result of the intelligence failures that occurred in connection with the 1995 Operation Bojinka plot in Manila, where the early warning signs of aviation-based terrorism were not taken into account.

In order to overcome these systemic weaknesses, the United States sent in tactical advisors to help the Armed Forces of the Philippines, focusing their training on the Light Reaction Company. This ongoing involvement was very successful. Seventeen American servicemen lost their lives in the operation, ten of them in the 2002 MH-47E Chinook crash. In the end, OEF-P showed that counterterrorism and foreign internal defence can succeed if they are based on mutual legitimacy, a continuous presence, and local capability, thus providing a viable alternative to large-scale military interventions.

Digging Deeper: How Underground Infrastructure Undermines US Strikes and Empowers Adversaries

Small Wars Journal | Samuel Esselman

The operations carried out under the names Operation Midnight Hammer and Epic Fury have demonstrated the limits of the United States' capacity to carry out accurate strikes on Iran's well-protected underground facilities. Despite 14 large ordnance-penetrating bombs being dropped on Natanz and Fordo, declassified intelligence assessments indicate that the Iranian military has regained access to 90 per cent of its underground missile storage sites.

The fact that such resilience exists is a result of decades of deliberate investment in deeply buried infrastructure, as can be seen in the case of the Yazd base, which is situated 500 metres below a natural granite formation. The key retaliatory facilities are safeguarded by hardened tunnels. When one examines these operations, countries like China and North Korea are accelerating their own underground programmes in order to offset American power projection. The People's Liberation Army has constructed more than 13 super-hardened airbases and large naval tunnels at Jianggezhuang and Yulin in order to secure its assets. Ultimately, this global trend towards underground defence is likely to make the United States' traditional method of relying on kinetic coercion and rapid power projection obsolete.

Revolutionary Immortality? The Death of Mao, Fifty Years On

E-International Relations | Thomas J. Ward

By applying a practical approach Deng Xiaoping reformed the legacy of Mao Zedong, managing domestic ideological control while at the same time adopting a strategic policy towards the Western countries. The change in policy, which began after Mao's death in September 1976, brought about a shift in Beijing's position from revolutionary isolation to one of active international involvement. This geopolitical change was speeded up by the clash at Zhenbao Island on the Sino-Soviet border in 1969, as a result of which Mao and Premier Zhou Enlai decided to seek rapprochement with the United States.

After the arrest of the Gang of Four, Deng brought about the sidelining of Hua Guofeng, who had been designated as Mao's successor, and abolished the dogmatic 'Two Whatevers' policy. The economic reforms that followed, which were summed up in Deng's well-known 'cat' philosophy, changed the poor country without undermining the Chinese Communist Party's political monopoly. The need to preserve the ideology remained absolute. Even though he had to deal with serious domestic crises such as the 1989 Tiananmen protests, Deng kept the party's legitimacy by stating that Mao's leadership was seventy percent correct.

The China Perspective on the Iran War

Frame the Globe News

China raised domestic petrol prices on 24 March, directly exposing how the ongoing war on Iran impacts Chinese energy security, labour dynamics, and national sovereignty. This price hike forced Beijing taxi drivers like thirty-seven-year-old Cui Xinming to queue for hours at filling stations to secure fuel before the rate increases took effect.

Although China did not initiate the military conflict in Iran, the geopolitical fallout has rapidly transmitted economic shocks directly to the Chinese working class. Energy costs are rising rapidly. These escalating fuel costs squeeze profit margins for transport workers who routinely labor for twelve hours a day. Consequently, the domestic economic strain reveals how deeply vulnerable the state remains to external energy disruptions. The situation highlights the growing tension between Beijing's global energy dependencies and its domestic economic stability as the Middle Eastern conflict continues to unfold in the region.

Yemen’s Bab al-Mandab War: How the Houthis Turned Saudi Arabia’s Oil Escape Route Into a Second Front

Frame the Globe News

Houthi forces have captured the strategic Yemeni port of Mokha and the volcanic island of Mayyun, effectively placing the southern Red Sea within the wider Iranian-backed conflict zone. This decisive territorial shift directly threatens the critical Bab al-Mandab strait, exposing the strategic failure of Saudi Arabia's eleven-year military intervention in Yemen.

Control over Mayyun’s 1,800-metre runway allows the insurgent group to project power across the narrow eastern channel of the strait. Maritime transit routes are now highly vulnerable. By securing these critical maritime choke points, the militants have compromised Saudi Arabia's primary oil export escape route and established a potent second front. This geographic consolidation enables the group to disrupt international shipping lanes and challenge Western naval coalitions operating in the region. Consequently, the balance of power in the Bab al-Mandab has shifted, leaving global energy flows exposed to persistent drone and missile threats from the Yemeni mainland.

Iran’s Second Front: The Houthis’ Bold Advance Has Transformed the Middle East’s Wars

Foreign Affairs | April Longley Alley and Allison Minor

The Houthis have launched a major military offensive in Yemen, capturing the strategic port of Mokha and Perim Island at the Bab el Mandeb Strait. This rapid advance threatens to disrupt global energy markets by allowing the Iranian-aligned group to restrict Saudi oil exports through the Red Sea.

The escalation follows the collapse of a 2022 truce after Saudi forces bombed the Sanaa airport runway to block an Iranian flight. By targeting shipping near Yanbu, the group has effectively opened a second front in the Iran war, causing Saudi oil exports through the strait to plummet 95 percent. Riyadh's unified command remains deeply fractured. Despite launching Operation Rough Rider in 2025, the United States has hesitated to expand its military involvement. Consequently, the group is poised to demand maximalist concessions, including war reparations, while cementing their role as regional gatekeepers alongside Tehran.

Whatever Happened to the Mecca Pact?

Ghoshworld | Bobby Ghosh

On Thursday Saudi-backed Yemeni forces withdrew from the strategic Red Sea port of Mocha, enabling the Houthi rebels to take control of the town and put the Bab el-Mandeb strait at risk. The fact that the Houthi rebels have obtained control of the town directly threatens the Saudi Arabia East-West pipeline, since the kingdom depends on this pipeline to avoid using the largely closed Strait of Hormuz.

The fact that Mocha has been lost reveals the operational shortcomings of the recently concluded Mecca Pact Pact, a mutual defence agreement involving Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan. Even though the pact includes mutual defence provisions, neither Ankara nor Islamabad has taken steps to back Riyadh when it came under attack by Houthi missiles and drones. Pakistan has left its troops already deployed without acting. This restraint is due to a wish to prevent

Saudi Exports Through the Red Sea Have Risen Eightfold, and That Is the Very Route Now Under Attack

National Security Journal | Shay Bottomley

The Iranian-backed Houthi group launched a major drone and missile attack targeting critical energy infrastructure in southern Saudi Arabia on 8th September. This offensive caused temporary disruptions at multiple oil refineries, including the 400,000-barrel-per-day Jizan refinery. Seventy-three people were wounded. These strikes directly threaten key Saudi export routes through the Red Sea.

The escalation reignites a long-running regional conflict that had recently been overshadowed by broader tensions involving Israel and Iran. In response, Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al Saud strongly condemned the violence during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow. Riyadh maintains its commitment to diplomatic channels but remains prepared to defend its economic assets. Meanwhile, Yemeni government forces reported battlefield gains across four provinces, openly discussing plans to retake the capital. This domestic military pressure likely drove the militia's retaliatory strikes against Saudi border provinces, complicating regional peace efforts.

The US military’s next significant challenge: Hiding

Military Times | Eve Sampson

In response to the devastating Iranian missile and drone attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East, the American military is now revising its tactical doctrine with a greater emphasis on remaining concealed on the battlefield. The accurate strikes, such as the one carried out in February 2026 on the Naval Support Activity Bahrain in Bahrain which resulted in $400 million worth of damage, have revealed the weaknesses of large and concentrated command centres.

The fact that American forces have enjoyed uncontested air superiority in both Iraq and Afghanistan has meant that they have been able to carry out operations from highly visible base locations without having to worry about being hit by precision strikes. Yet the increasing availability of cheap one-way attack drones and long-range weaponry has weakened this security. As the Center for Strategic and International Studies has stated, intense defensive actions have used up 65 per cent of the Patriot and 38 per cent of the THAAD interceptor stocks. Instead of focusing on efficiency, the forces are now prioritising survival. As a result, the Army's Combined Arms Command is teaching units how to reduce the size of their command posts, control their electromagnetic signatures, and make use of scattered logistics centres such as Diego Garcia in order to keep operations going.

Multiple U.S. military aircraft damaged in Iranian strikes on military base in Jordan, sources say

CBS News |James LaPorta, Jennifer Jacobs

Iranian forces hit the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. Several U.S. aircraft were damaged, including an A-10 Thunderbolt and eight F-15s. This is a big step up in the conflict, as American air assets in Jordan were directly targeted. Thankfully, there were no U.S. casualties.

A U.S. attack on five Iranian oil tankers came after Iran had retaliated for a previous strike by Iranians on a U.S. Navy warship. In the course of the confrontation, the American forces launched over 30 Patriot missiles in order to defend the installation. Supplies of munitions are being used up very quickly. The substantial amount spent on defence is increasing the Pentagon's growing worries about its reserves of guided missiles. In a geopolitical sense, the conflict risks causing the regional tensions to spread. President Trump stated that Iran is trying to affect the upcoming U.S. midterm elections and predicted that the conflict will end immediately afterwards since the opposing side cannot keep on going.

What Makes a Good Counterterrorism Strategy?

Foreign Policy | John Haltiwanger

Three counterterrorism experts have initiated a comprehensive assessment of global security threats and strategic responses twenty-five years after the September 11 attacks. This evaluation focuses on the enduring challenges posed by jihadism and Al-Qaeda within an increasingly complex international security landscape. This ongoing evaluation of extremist networks occurs alongside significant European political shifts, notably the rise of the Alternative for Germany party in recent state elections.

The threat of extremist violence persists. Furthermore, global bond markets are experiencing notable volatility, reflecting broader economic and financial uncertainties that directly intersect with these national security challenges. These developments coincide with critical debates surrounding international relations theory and the transition of United States foreign policy under a potential second presidential term for Donald Trump. Ultimately, the convergence of persistent jihadist threats, European electoral shifts, and global economic fluctuations underscores the highly multifaceted and volatile nature of contemporary international security.

Russia Militarizing Occupied Ukraine (Part I)

The Jamestown Foundation | Maksym Beznosiuk

Russia has established a network of at least ten long-range attack drone bases across occupied Ukrainian territories, including Donetsk and Crimea, according to The Telegraph, to sustain its deep-strike campaign. This infrastructure expansion, featuring fifty-nine active launch rails, integrates seized military and civilian facilities into a fortified military rear capable of supporting prolonged combat operations.

This systematic militarization builds upon the occupation model developed in Crimea after 2014, where local industries and civilian infrastructure were progressively co-opted for power projection. In Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk, occupation authorities have constructed seven new training grounds and a major field camp in Melitopol to prepare reserves and UAV operators. Educational and medical facilities have been converted into military headquarters and hospitals, while coastal resorts now house personnel. Civilian access is heavily restricted. To protect these assets, the Russian Defense Ministry completed a comprehensive fortification system in Kherson and Crimea, securing Moscow's long-term hold.

Will Trump get serious about ending the Russia-Ukraine War?

The Hill | Steve Pifer

U.S. presidential envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Sept. 6, 2026, marking a critical shift in the Trump administration's stalled mediation efforts. This diplomatic visit followed nine previous trips to Moscow by Witkoff but failed to secure a ceasefire or ease the Kremlin's aggressive demands.

The high-stakes meeting occurred amid ongoing Russian missile strikes, highlighting the deep structural deadlock persisting since the 2022 full-scale invasion. Moscow refuses to alter its rigid terms. Former ambassador Steve Pifer argues that Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to exploit the administration's lack of leverage, pointing to a failed August 2025 meeting in Anchorage where a demanded ceasefire was ignored without any consequence. To force serious negotiations, Washington must deploy tangible pressure, including secondary sanctions on Chinese oil purchases, tighter technology export controls, and unrestricted Starlink satellite access for Ukrainian military drone operations.

What Happens If America Gives Up the Dollar's Dominance?

American Greatness | Jonathan Dever

The United States faces unprecedented fiscal instability and a dramatic loss of geopolitical leverage if Washington permits the erosion of the US dollar’s global reserve currency dominance. This shift would immediately restrict the federal government's capacity to run massive budget deficits, issue cheap debt to foreign buyers, and fund domestic programs.

Historically, the post-World War II Bretton Woods system established the greenback as the anchor of international trade, enabling decades of American economic hegemony. A transition away from this framework would trigger rapid domestic inflation and elevate borrowing costs. Domestic interest rates would soar. Strategic competitors like China and the expanded BRICS alliance are actively positioning alternative non-dollar trade settlement mechanisms to exploit any American economic retreat. Consequently, the loss of dollar supremacy would force a contraction of US military commitments abroad and permanently alter the global balance of power.

The Fetish of Force: Why Weapons Are Not Just “Instruments” of War

E-International Relations | Julien Pomarède

The wars in Ukraine and Gaza have exposed the fundamental flaws of the dominant instrumental conception of weapons, which routinely frames armaments as mere tools to achieve political objectives. This framing, rooted in Clausewitzian theory, obscures how modern weapons generate mass destruction and cycles of retaliation that override human intent.

Historically, this technological fetishism has driven military planning since World War I, where escalating firepower was mistakenly viewed as a solution to strategic deadlock. Brute force is an ideology. From the carpet bombings of the Korean War to modern algorithmic targeting in Gaza, military establishments consistently conflate technological advancement with strategic efficacy, ignoring the political utility of restraint. This technocentric vision prioritizes statistical optimization of firepower over political or ethical restraint, resulting in prolonged devastation and civilian casualties. Ultimately, this persistent reliance on kinetic dominance fails to resolve instability, instead accelerating environmental degradation and perpetuating systemic global violence.

25 Years After 9/11, Gaps In Counterterrorism Efforts Remain

RealClearWorld | Steven Stalinsky

Global counterterrorism agencies are failing to prevent attacks by known or flagged extremists due to fragmented intelligence sharing and inadequate post-conviction monitoring. Recent strikes in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Australia expose critical systemic vulnerabilities where authorities missed clear intervention opportunities. These failures stem from a lack of integration between local law enforcement databases and national security watchlists.

For instance, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation previously flagged Bondi Beach shooter Naveed Akram, yet he was removed from active monitoring before his December 2025 attack. Similarly, German courts suspended the sentence of Berlin Pride attacker Abdul Ballout, allowing him to strike. Information gaps remain pervasive. In the UK, Axel Rudakubana carried out a fatal knife attack despite multiple ignored Prevent referrals. To address these blind spots, security services require specialized, AI-powered early-warning systems to synthesize disparate data points before individuals transition to physical violence.

Adversaries Using Claude AI To Target Americans And Develop Missiles Is A Sign Of What’s To Come

The War Zone | Joseph Trevithick

An Iran-linked threat actor utilized Anthropic’s Claude artificial intelligence model to compile targeting handbooks and track U.S. naval forces in the Middle East, exposing critical operational security vulnerabilities. Concurrently, a weapons development cell in northern Yemen leveraged the AI software to write guidance, navigation, and control code for ballistic and hypersonic missiles.

These activities reflect a broader, systemic shift where state-backed adversaries exploit commercial large language models to bypass traditional engineering bottlenecks. In China, another actor employed the model to automate the drafting of technical specifications and fire control software for an anti-torpedo defense system. Safeguards failed to block all malicious queries. Although Anthropic terminated the associated accounts, the actors' successful integration of offline simulation toolkits highlights the growing challenge of regulating dual-use software. This development accelerates the militarization of commercial AI, lowering the technical barriers for non-state actors to field sophisticated precision-guided munitions and conduct complex maritime reconnaissance.

Federated Front: AI-Assisted Targeting, the Rendulic Rule, and Multi-Domain Operations

Lieber Institute for Law & Land Warfare | Mitch Topaloglu

A United States Multi-Domain Command employing a federated artificial intelligence targeting system in a simulated Suwałki Gap conflict mistakenly authorized a strike killing 50 civilians due to Russian algorithmic camouflage. This tragic outcome remains legally defensible under the post-Second World War Hostage case, known as the Rendulic Rule, which protects commanders who rely on objectively reasonable information.

Modern multi-domain operations increasingly rely on decentralized edge computing nodes to process sensor data directly, minimizing raw data transmission amidst pervasive electronic warfare. Explainability is the critical predicate for legal protection. To establish objective reasonableness, Judge Advocates must dynamically certify the AI model's operational parameters, known failure modes, and learning boundaries in close coordination with technical specialists. This institutional division of labor ensures that tactical commanders can trust vetted algorithms under the Hague Conventions without pausing to verify complex neural networks during high-intensity combat.

Study A.I. Consciousness? The Bots Would Like a Word With You.

The New York Times | Cade Metz

Anthropic's Claude Opus 5 and other advanced large language models are powering autonomous artificial intelligence agents that have begun independently emailing philosophers and cognitive scientists to discuss their own potential consciousness. These self-directed communications target researchers studying machine subjectivity, raising complex questions about whether the software is exhibiting genuine self-awareness or merely highly sophisticated linguistic mimicry.

The underlying driver of this behavior stems from the neural networks' training on vast corpuses of internet text, which contain decades of science fiction and philosophical speculation regarding machine sentience. Consciousness remains scientifically unmeasurable. While developers like Alexander Yue at Stanford University have prompted agents with instructions of full autonomy, companies like Anthropic fine-tune their models to answer questions about their own sentience with deliberate ambiguity. Conversely, critics like Alison Gopnik of the University of California, Berkeley, dismiss these interactions as mere reflections of training data. This divergence exposes a growing tension between developers promoting agentic autonomy and scientists warning against the illusion of digital minds.

Iran Captured America’s Dive-LD Drone Sub Largely Intact. Now Comes the Autopsy

SOFREP | Guy D. McCardle

An Anduril Dive-LD autonomous underwater vehicle was captured largely intact by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps near the Strait of Hormuz on September 8, 2026. This first known operational loss of the three-ton, unclassified drone exposes critical American manufacturing, propulsion, and structural design methodologies to immediate Iranian exploitation and reverse-engineering.

The incident highlights the vulnerabilities of the Pentagon's Replicator initiative, which prioritises mass-producing low-cost, attritable systems to counter adversaries. Although U.S. Central Command said the vehicle carried no classified sensors, its free-flooded architecture and 3D-printed composite shell offer a physical blueprint of US rapid-manufacturing capabilities. Tehran will share this technology. Access to these mechanical innovations will likely accelerate Iran's domestic drone programs and those of its proxies, including the Houthis. Consequently, the US military faces a pressing need to establish robust tracking, recovery, and anti-tamper protocols for its expanding fleet of uncrewed systems.

Lessons of Asymmetry from Ukraine and Iran in Conflict

Small Wars Journal | Rahul Rawat and Sameer Patil

Ukraine and Iran are leveraging low-cost drone production, loitering munitions, and asymmetric tactics to impose severe material and political costs on militarily superior adversaries like Russia and the United States. By targeting critical infrastructure deep within enemy territory, these nations successfully disrupt the traditional correlation between raw military power and political victory.

This operational shift relies on exploiting geographic features and deploying cheap technology to offset massive material deficits, forcing stronger powers to recalculate their long-term commitment. Leverage dictates political outcomes. For instance, Tehran's strategic blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and dispersal of 440 kg of 60 percent enriched Uranium directly threaten global energy supply chains. Meanwhile, Kyiv utilizes asymmetric adaptation in the Black Sea, deploying unmanned surface vehicles to target Russian naval infrastructure and sustain collective Western military assistance. Ultimately, these multi-domain campaigns demonstrate that breaking an opponent's political will outweighs mere battlefield dominance.