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A document distributed among our analysts that provides guidance on the week's key geopolitical events.

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A Comparison of Military Expenditures

With U.S. forces fighting wars in two theaters, it is not surprising that U.S. military expenditures practically doubled between 1992 and 2008. Eighteen years ago, U.S. spending was roughly equal to the combined outlay of eight key countries -- most of them its NATO allies and Cold War rivals. But by 2008, the Pentagon's spending had far outstripped the combined expenditures of those states and several others, cresting the $600 billion mark.

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As U.S. forces fight wars in two theaters, it is not surprising that U.S. military expenditures practically doubled between 1992 and 2008.

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The Kremlin Wars

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Iran and the Strait of Hormuz

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The Geopolitics of China

Country: China

The Geopolitics of Mexico

Country: Mexico

Mexico Security Memo: March 15, 2010
March 15, 2010 2304 GMT
The Mexico Security Memo tracks and analyzes key incidents over the past week. (With STRATFOR interactive map) [more]
Iran: Contingency Planning?
March 15, 2010 2154 GMT
Iran appears to be taking very public steps to prepare for a hypothetical attack. [more]
Video Dispatch: A New Phase in the Cartel Wars?
Mexican drug cartels are suspected in the March 14 killings of three people – including two American citizens – with ties to the U.S. consulate in Juarez. The targeted killings may signal a fresh escalation in the border wars, analyst Scott Stewart says. [more]
Turkey: Increasing Tensions for the Military
Recent statements by the head of Turkey's armed forces show that an effort is under way to ease the military's growing discontent. [more]
Somalia: The TFG Makes a Deal
March 15, 2010 1932 GMT
Somalia's Transitional Federal Government is giving Islamist militia Ahlu Sunnah Waljamaah several government positions in exchange for military support. [more]
Situation Reports and Briefs
March 16, 2010 0652 GMT
Applying STRATFOR analysis to breaking news.
Two armed men reportedly approached an Indian Space Research Organization Satellite Center in Byalalu outside Bangalore March 16 according to a spokesman for the organization, which has several sites in and around the southern Indian city. Upon being challenged for what has been reported as suspicious activity -- essentially lurking or approaching too close -- a brief firefight between security forces ensued and the two men, armed only with pistols, reportedly fled. The men appeared neither equipped nor prepared to initiate or sustain any sort of meaningful attack. Thus far, it appears as though the two men escaped following the gunbattle and that no injuries were reported. Occurring between 3:30 and 4 a.m. local time, it is unclear what the intentions were of the two men but it is notable that the security services charged with protecting the center were vigilant enough to detect their presence, note the suspicious behavior and respond in a manner that denied the men any further chance to conduct surveillance or infiltrate the property. However, the sensitivity of India to militant activity -- should it be traced back to Pakistan -- and the oddity of the target (an area involved in satellite launch and control) is inconsistent with most targets of militant activity in India and is a development that will warrant further examination.
Security Weekly Free
Terrorism: Defining a Tactic
March 11, 2010 1002 GMT
A low casualty count and lack of foreign ties do not mean that an attack is not terrorism, and dismissing one as such will weaken counterterrorism efforts. [more]
Geopolitical Weekly Free
China's Challenge
March 9, 2010 0958 GMT
Beijing is in crisis mode as it juggles economic uncertainty and a leadership transition bringing competing economic policies into stark contrast. [more]
Geopolitical Diary
The EU and Greece: A Tricky Game
March 16, 2010 0536 GMT
While Greece attempts to prove to its European partners that it can make debt payments, EU finance ministers continue to vacillate on the subject of Greek support. [more]
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