Transnational Thursday is a thread for people to discuss international news, foreign policy or international relations history. Feel free as well to drop in with coverage of countries you’re interested in, talk about ongoing dynamics like the wars in Israel or Ukraine, or even just whatever you’re reading.
PaperclipPerfector
1d ago
(text post)
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Transnational Thursday for September 24, 2026
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Notes -
Having a lot of hardware doesn't mean much alone - Saudi Arabia has lots of hardware but is completely inept at using it, losing to Houthis all the time. Whether or not US is going to involve itself is a big gamble - wars are expensive, but they are also very useful for uniting the nation. And Japan may use this chance to come out of the shadow on WW2 and reassert its role as a normal nation with normal military. Australia is unlikely to pay any substantial role, as far as I understand they're completely cucked by now. I think you're right that economical pressure and corrupting the society is probably more likely ways, but you never know...
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