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On Security

Ecuador

Mexico

Venezuela

Syria

North Korea

Belgium

Netherlands

Seized marijuana bricks are incinerated in Guadalajara, Mexico.

While narco-states exist on a spectrum of severity, they can all have dramatic geopolitical, operational and tactical impacts that raise a wide variety of risks.

What Is a Narco-State, and Why Does It Matter?

Assessments

United States

China

Japan

Workers at an ASML factory move parts of a chipmaking machine before shipment in Veldhoven, the Netherlands, in 2018.

Environment, Science & Technology

The latest potential export controls indicate the U.S. and its allies’ intent to wage an increasingly disruptive assault against China’s semiconductor industry.

The U.S., Japan and the Netherlands Mull New Restrictions on China's Tech Sector

U.S.-China Relations

An employee makes a chip at a factory owned by the Jiejie Semiconductor Company in Nantong, China, on March 17, 2021. 

Politics

Given the potentially devastating blow to its tech ambitions, Beijing will likely retaliate against the U.S.’s push to further curb sales of Western-made chipmaking tools to China.

To Slow China’s Semiconductor Sector, the U.S. Eyes More Export Bans

Guidance

Greece

Cyprus

Austria

Turkey

United Arab Emirates

Egypt

Argentine President Alberto Fernandez speaks during a rally in Merlo, Argentina, on Nov. 11, 2021, ahead of the country’s upcoming midterm elections. 

Economics

Military & Security

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended Stratfor articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Midterm Elections in Argentina, a Virtual Biden-Xi Summit

COVID-19

Europe

Environmental activists covered in black paint take part in a demonstration at a Shell gas station in The Hague, Netherlands, on May 18, 2021. 

Energy

A Crude Recovery

ExxonMobil, Chevron and Shell all lost legal cases or shareholder votes last week that will force them to more aggressively cut emissions. 

Big Oil Gets a Wake-Up Call on Climate Change

Environmental Issues

Snapshots

France

Germany

Luxembourg

Spain

Italy

Ireland

EU Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni speaks during a press conference after a virtual meeting at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium, on Feb. 15, 2021. 

The measure will likely expose the special deals some EU countries offer corporations, and may also increase support for digital service taxes.

The EU Moves Ahead With a Corporate Tax Transparency Plan

EU: Regional Blocs

The Fate of the Eurozone

South Africa

United Kingdom

A transmission electron microscopic image of an isolate from a COVID-19 case in March 2020. The development highlights the broader question of the impact of mutations on COVID-19 transmission and the efficacy of new vaccines.

The development highlights the broader question of the impact of mutations on COVID-19 transmission and the efficacy of new vaccines.

What a SARS-CoV-2 Mutation in the United Kingdom Means for the World

Norway

Saudi Arabia

Emergency personnel on Oct. 31, 2020, in Lyon, France, at the scene of an attack on a Greek Orthodox priest. The continual reemergence of the Mohammed cartoon controversy suggests that this issue will remain an issue that motivates violence for years to come.

The Jihadist Wars

The continual reemergence of the Mohammed cartoon controversy suggests that this issue will remain an issue that motivates violence for years to come.

How Satirical Cartoons Have Become a Flashpoint for Violence in Europe and Abroad

Czech Republic

Poland

Slovakia

Hungary

German Minister of State for European Affairs Michael Roth speaks on the screen during a virtual EU press conference in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 17, 2020. 

European Disintegration

Hungary and Poland’s move to veto an EU spending package could delay the disbursement of much-needed funds to the bloc’s struggling economies. 

A Rule of Law Dispute Threatens Europe’s Economic Recovery 

The reintroduction of travel warnings and quarantine measures will slow Europe’s economic recovery, especially in tourism-dependent countries.

Europe Braces for Another Round of COVID-19 Travel Restrictions

Denmark

Finland

Sweden

The watering down of initial proposals for the COVID-19 relief package shows that fault lines within the bloc still run deep and will continue to create problems during future crises.

The EU Reaches a Landmark Recovery Fund Deal, but Divisions Remain

Brexit

Iran

Israel

India

This aerial picture taken on April 25, 2020, shows the Hagia Sophia museum in Istanbul, Turkey. 

India's Own Worst Enemy

The Weekly Rundown: Turkey Converts the Hagia Sophia, Indian Doctors Threaten to Strike Over COVID-19 Conditions

Israel's Survival Strategy

Turkey's Resurgence

Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Liesje Schreinemacher sent a letter to the Dutch parliament saying that the government will restrict exports of semiconductor technology (including deep ultraviolet lithography machines) through the creation of a national control list before the summer, Reuters reported on March 8.

Netherlands, China: Dutch Government to Introduce Export Controls on Semiconductors by Summer

Japan and the Netherlands agreed to join the United States in placing restrictions on China's semiconductor sector, including by blocking some exports of immersion lithography machines to China, Bloomberg reported Jan. 27.

U.S., Japan, Netherlands: Countries Strike Deal on China Semiconductor Restrictions

Egypt's top Sunni institution, Al-Azhar, called on Muslims to boycott Swedish and Dutch products after Danish anti-Islam activist Rasmus Paludan burned copies of the Koran holy book on Jan. 21 in Stockholm, Sweden, and Dutch far-right leader Edwin Wagensveld ripped pages out of a Koran a day later, AP reported Jan. 25.

Egypt: Sunni Institution Calls for Boycott of Swedish and Dutch Products Over Koran Desecrations

The Netherlands and Japan may reach a final agreement with the United States on restricting the export of semiconductor technology to China by the end of January, although Dutch and Japanese restrictions are unlikely to go as far as U.S. restrictions, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 19.

China: Netherlands, Japan Near Deal With U.S. on Semiconductor Restrictions on China

The leaders of 10 political parties in the Netherlands representing the Dutch parliament's majority proposed adding Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to the European Union's terrorist list, Bloomberg reported Jan. 6, citing a joint letter published in the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant.

Netherlands, Iran: Dutch Parliament Calls for EU Designation of IRGC as Terrorist Organization, Sanctions

Japan has agreed to join the Netherlands in a deal with the United States to codify export controls on China's access to semiconductor manufacturing equipment, Bloomberg reported Dec. 12.

Japan: Tokyo Targets China With Semiconductor Export Controls, Joining U.S., Netherlands

The United States is trying to get the Netherlands to put more restrictions on Dutch companies selling lithography machines and other semiconductor fabrication equipment to Chinese companies, Bloomberg reported July 6.

U.S., Netherlands: Washington Pushes Amsterdam to Restrict Chipmaking Equipment Exports to China

Milieudefensie, a Dutch environmental activist group, sent letters to 30 multinational companies that are legally based in the Netherlands to demand detailed plans regarding how these companies will reduce their absolute carbon emissions by 45% from 2019 levels by 2030, Reuters reported Jan. 13.

Netherlands: Activists Target 30 MNCs, Citing Successful Shell Climate Lawsuit

Afghanistan

Algeria

Antigua and Barbuda

South Sudan

A view of the Register in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Angola

Argentina

Armenia

Australia

Bahrain

Lithuania

Covering an area that spans the entire width of the continent beginning at the Sahara Desert and ending at the southernmost tip of South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to countless cultures, languages, religions, plants, animals and natural resources.

Barbados

Benin

Maldives

Malta

Ukraine

Belize

Botswana

Brunei Darussalam

North Macedonia

Tajikistan

Bhutan

Bolivia

Burkina Faso

Cambodia

Iraq

The President palace in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

The administrative center of the Gakh region of Azerbaijan, located at the foot of the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus, on the river Kurhumchai.

Brazil

Burundi

Nepal

Cameroon

Canada

Georgia

Jordan

Pakistan

Mir Castle in the Minsk region of Belarus.

Cabo Verde

Chile

Federated States of Micronesia

Kuwait

Liechtenstein

Sri Lanka

Central African Republic

Colombia

Fiji

Latvia

Lebanon

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Chad

Costa Rica

Indonesia

Libya

Russia

Comoros

Cuba

A horse grazes in front of Kara-Kul lake in the Chon-Ak-Suu valley, 300 kilometers southeast of Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

SITUATION REPORTS

Netherlands, China: Dutch Government to Introduce Export Controls on Semiconductors by Summer

U.S., Japan, Netherlands: Countries Strike Deal on China Semiconductor Restrictions

Egypt: Sunni Institution Calls for Boycott of Swedish and Dutch Products Over Koran Desecrations

China: Netherlands, Japan Near Deal With U.S. on Semiconductor Restrictions on China

Netherlands, Iran: Dutch Parliament Calls for EU Designation of IRGC as Terrorist Organization, Sanctions

Japan: Tokyo Targets China With Semiconductor Export Controls, Joining U.S., Netherlands

U.S., Netherlands: Washington Pushes Amsterdam to Restrict Chipmaking Equipment Exports to China

Netherlands: Activists Target 30 MNCs, Citing Successful Shell Climate Lawsuit

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