Our North America team focuses on North American affairs, analysing shifts in foreign policy, defence posture and military alliances, as well as trade, technology and energy policy.
Research desk
Our North America team focuses on North American affairs, analysing shifts in foreign policy, defence posture and military alliances, as well as trade, technology and energy policy.
On this desk
5 reports
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North America
6 April 2026
An Irrational Actor on the International Stage: the United States of America
Since the beginning of Donald Trump’s second term, Washington has taken measures internationally which reflect its domestic policymaking—to defy legality and norms in order to pursue its own ends. Manifesting on the international stage as heightened military aggression, this has resulted in the invasions of Venezuela and Iran. Whilst conflict in Venezuela compelled the intended desire, de facto control of Venezuelan oil, the U.S. has directly caused an increasingly protracted war with Iran that has had severe implications for the rest of the world.
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North America
2 December 2025
The implementation of Executive Order 1428:‘Unleashing America’s Offshore Critical Minerals and Resources’, officially administered by President Trump on 24 April 2025 focuses the second Trump administration’s efforts...
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North America
3 June 2025
The United States Lifts Sanctions on Syria After Almost Five Decades
A couple of weeks ago, President Donald Trump announced plans to lift nearly five decades of sanctions on Syria. This development, first unveiled at a U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum on 12 May 2025, alongside Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, represents a substantial departure from established U.S.
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North America
9 March 2025
Turmoil at USAID: The USAID Restructuring Under the Trump Administration Examined
The Trump Administration’s restructuring of USAID marks an unprecedented shift in U.S. foreign assistance policy to one prioritising national interests and cost-cutting over humanitarian and diplomatic objectives. The foreign aid spending freeze and proposed merger of USAID with the U.S. State Department have faced legal challenges, political pushback, and international criticism. The Executive Order signed by President Trump on Inauguration Day freezing all U.S.
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North America
7 February 2025
Trump’s Isolationism and Effects on Climate Change Efforts
Having returned to office for a second term, Trump wasted no time reaffirming his isolationist stance. Just a day into his new administration, he withdrew the U.S. from key global agreements, with perhaps the most concerning move being his immediate second withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement which Obama signed onto in 2015. Donald Trump is a volatile figure, seen as an ‘erratic actor’ who is constantly challenging the status quo of International Relations with his ‘Trump Doctrine’ of putting America first. His approach prioritises U.S.
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