Much like its domestic policy, US foreign policy under the Donald Trump administration is characterised by uncertainty and unpredictability. The president’s approach to foreign policy appears to be driven less by ideology than pragmatism. At other times, such as with trade policy, pragmatism has been cast aside in favour of domestic political considerations.…
The murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October with the apparent approval of Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has drawn widespread condemnation from politicians and business in the west. The reputational damage will delay MbS’s flagship economic projects, but the Kingdom’s long-term foreign investors haven’t been driven away.
Cameroon has regularly failed to attract the same levels of foreign direct investment as its Central African peers, despite boasting one of the most diversified and stable economies in the region. Following recent in-country research, our sub-Saharan Africa team provides an overview of three key operational risks to investors in the market.
On 28 October, Brazil elected Jair Messias Bolsonaro, a long-time congressman and former Army captain as its next president. Running a conservative, right-wing campaign, he managed to capture the growing anti-left and anti-establishment sentiment that has grown in response to the country-wide anti-corruption probes (such as the Lava Jato operation)…
Colombia remains a high threat environment for kidnapping, and the September 2018 abduction of a businesswoman in Amagá has once again raised doubts regarding the ELN’s willingness to engage in peace talks with Colombian hard-line president Iván Duque.
Runaway inflation and a failing oil industry have all but collapsed Venezuela’s economy. Citizen frustrations with the government’s inability to offer a credible way out of the economic crisis means the country remains increasingly vulnerable to outbreaks of widespread unrest, writes Markus Korhonen.
In October 2018, the US, UK and Netherlands released synchronised statements condemning a series of Russian espionage operations abroad, increasing political tensions with key European countries. Tim Geschwindt explores the response to the most recent incidents of Russian espionage and how such developments may impact commercial operators with cross-regional…
The 2018 Brazilian general elections have been one of the most divisive in the young democracy´s history. Seemingly incompatible political perspectives on the two sides of the presidential race have left a country increasingly at odds with itself. There is little evidence from the past to suggest newly elected president, Jair Bolsonaro (Bolsonaro),…
S-RM’s Robert Attwell takes an in-depth look at the unfolding political crisis in Sri Lanka and highlights what foreign firms need to know about the threat of civil unrest.
In October 2018, US President Trump and other senior Government officials were targeted in an attempted biological attack. Letters addressed to them were found to contain ground castor beans from which the deadly toxin, ricin, is derived. Whilst the letters were intercepted and quarantined, this event marked the latest event in a string of ricin-related…
In August 2018, a 23-kilogram industrial device containing iridium-192, a radioactive material, went missing during transport in Malaysia. Whilst Malaysian authorities have attempted to calm public concerns, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), warned of the dangers that a missing radiological source presents. With a black market for such…
The September 2018 kidnapping of three Indonesian fishermen has raised concerns that the Abu Sayyaf Group has resumed its kidnap for ransom activities in the Sulu and Celebes seas after 18 months of relative inactivity, writes Rob Attwell.