How China Interferes in U.S. Elections

Posted on October 24, 2018 by admin

Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 7, No. 10, October 2018

President Donald Trump is shown speaking at a podium with the US flag and crest in the background. He appears to be gesturing, holding up his right hand.

US President Donald Trump in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB). He appeared with the Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao and Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Blackstone, in the EEOB on April 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. Mr. Trump spoke during a strategic and policy discussion with the CEOs. Source: Trump Whitehouse Archives via Flickr.

Anders Corr, Ph.D.

Publisher of the Journal of Political Risk

China is powerfully influencing U.S. elections, as President Donald Trump alleged, but one will not necessarily find a Chinese intelligence agent stuffing ballot boxes in the local City Hall, or tampering with a voting booth. Facebook and Twitter claim they found no coordinated messages from the Chinese government. Bloomberg news and three digital security firms all claimed they found no evidence of digital or web-based misinformation campaigns. They apparently don’t count China’s ongoing anti-Trump propaganda, available through state-run media like China Daily and radio stations in the U.S. Nor do they count a new China-linked propaganda film advertised on Facebook, called “Better Angels“.

Plus, China’s immense wealth gives it more sophisticated and effective means to influence the general public, districts that voted for Republicans, the candidates themselves, the businesses that fund candidate elections, the universities and think tanks that hire politicians after they leave office, and the news media that voters will rely upon to choose their representatives on November 6, 2018. That is a far more powerful set of tools than anything the Russians used in 2016.

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Climate Change: Denialism, or Realism?

Posted on June 2, 2017 by admin

Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 5, No. 6, June 2017

Three men are photographed in suits standing in front of a large poster with the words "EU-China Summit/Brussels 02.06.2017".

EU-China Summit, Brussels, 2017. Source: European Council President via Flickr.

Dave Schroeder
University of Wisconsin-Madison/Naval Officer

Climate change.

This issue is a lot more complex than people suspect for many deemed to be denying the facts.

What many people disagree on in good faith with respect to climate change is not that it’s occurring, nor what the impacts are, or what they may be in the future. Rather, it is what the collective response of the United States should be, and what other concerns — economic, national security, energy policy, diplomatic, etc. — that response should rightly be weighed against.

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Serbia’s EU bid and the Kosovo dialogue

Posted on April 18, 2014 by admin

Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 2, No. 4, April 2014.

26th MEU Marines are photographed providing security at mass gravesite in Northern Kosovo as members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Forensics Team investigate remains.

26th MEU Marines provide security at mass gravesite in Northern Kosovo as members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Forensics Team investigate remains. The Marines and sailors of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) are helping to enforce the implementation of the military technical agreement and to provide peace and stability to Kosovo during Operation JOINT GUARDIAN. Source: NARA & DVIDS Public Domain Archive.

Raquel Montes Torralba
Foreign Affairs Analyst

With Serbia seeking to join the European Union (EU), as did Croatia in July 2013, European officials have advanced a pre-condition to be resolution of major disputes with Kosovo. In April 2014, Serbia and Kosovo celebrate the first anniversary of an agreement meant to normalize relations. Positive developments include the March 2014 election of a pro-EU majority in Serbia’s parliament, local elections in North Kosovo held in a generally peaceful manner, as well as progress on technical issues such as border control and police transfer. Nevertheless, the political context for 2014 could be derailed by upcoming general elections in Kosovo, the creation of a Kosovo Army, and establishment of a war crimes court for Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian rebels. More particularly, all these factors could impact the creation of a Community of Serb Municipalities, the keystone of the Serbia-Kosovo Agreement. Continue reading →

Political Risk to the Mining Industry in Tanzania

Posted on June 20, 2013 by admin

Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 1, No. 2, June 2013.

Two line graphs plotted on the same set of axes showing upward trends, titled "Tanzania Mining Growth 1998-2012"

Data Source: African Economic Outlook, National Accounts of Tanzania Mainland.

Ilan Cooper

Nathan Stevens

Long considered an anchor of East African stability, Tanzania has recently made headlines for aggressive expansion of its mining and extractive industries. In what might be considered growing pains, economic prosperity has strained government and civilian relations, and is increasingly testing the governance skills of Tanzania’s Ministries. Adverse investment laws, widening religious conflict, and proliferation of small arms and light weapons, however, tarnish Tanzania’s image as a peaceful and prosperous republic. Continue reading →