GPI Global Policy Institute

Trump’s Order On Aircraft Carrier Catapults and Weapons Elevators (From The John Batchelor Show)

By Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D., Vice President, Lexington Institute. August 24,2026 Aircraft carriers and President Donald J. Trump’s Executive Order order on aircraft launch catapults and weapons elevators for the Ford-class were the topics for this radio interview and podcast with John Batchelor and Gordon Chang. Highlights below, and audio clip here. John Batchelor:  The U.S. Navy is in action right now all around the world, especially in the Middle East, and the carrier battle groups are the centerpiece of the U.S. ability to project power.  One system on the new carrier has been controversial for years.  Recently, on the USS Gerald R. Ford, there was much talk about the steam launch being replaced.  The steam catapult.  It worked, and then we decided to fix it.  What did we fix it with? Rebecca Grant: The steam catapults have been great since the 1950s.  Think about Top Gun.  You see the pilot salute, the landing signal officer gives the wave, and that catapult slams the F/A-18 off the deck and launches it into the air.  Fantastic system, we’re still going to use catapults, but the new USS Gerald R.

Here Come the Drone Highways in the Sky

By Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D., Vice President, Lexington Institute. August 13,2026  Where America once built railways, the new lanes for commerce are drone corridors in the sky.  Getting a handle on drone package delivery for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) routes is an urgent priority for the FAA.  Secretary of Transportation Sean P. Duffy has the lead, and the backing of Executive Order 14307, to advance domestic commercialization of UAS technologies at scale.  The EO also mandates that the U.S. “accelerate the safe commercialization of drone technologies.”

Iran on Notice, And Why Russia’s Electronic Intel Won’t Make a Tactical Difference (From FOX Business)

By Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D., Vice President, Lexington Institute. August 6,2026 Fox Business Network anchors Jackie DeAngelis and Lou Basenese kicked off a discussion of American forces in U.S. Central Command, Russia’s attempts to help Iran with electronic intelligence, and why protecting critical infrastructure like data centers is an emerging lesson of the Iran war.  Highlights below, and show clip here. Jackie DeAngelis: A touch of déjà vu today, with President Trump putting Iran on notice one last time. President Donald J. Trump (SOT): This is a last chance for them to sign good document.  I want to give them every last chance before decapitation.  But hopefully they’ll come to their senses. They called me and said, “please don’t attack, we’ll make a deal.” That’s the real truth, and everyone knows it.  I’m under no time constraints, you know, I don’t happen to be running.

Re-Evaluating Europe’s Nuclear Future

By Massimiliano Cintura July 30, 2026 The European Union’s trajectory toward carbon neutrality by 2050 has confronted continental institutions with a complex energy and economics dilemma: reconciling the goal of drastic greenhouse gas emissions reductions with security of supply and cost containment for European households and industries. In recent years, the push toward electrification centered on the integration of non-programmable renewable energy sources (such as solar and wind) into national grids highlighted critical issues related to intermittency and the necessity of securing a reliable baseload power capacity. While the deployment of clean energy proceeds at a steady pace, grid infrastructure restructuring, energy storage systems, and wholesale price volatility have demonstrated that the transition to green energy entails unprecedented and unanticipated financial commitments.

What Is Iran’s Endgame in the Strait of Hormuz?

GPI hosted a timely discussion on **"What Is Iran's Endgame in the Strait of Hormuz?"** featuring **Ahmad Hashemi** as the speaker and moderated by **Paolo von Schirach**. The conversation examined Iran's strategic objectives in the Strait of Hormuz and the broader implications for regional security, global energy markets, and international geopolitics. Missed the event? Watch the full discussion here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPCZuZf2O3A #Iran #StraitOfHormuz #MiddleEast #Geopolitics #MaritimeSecurity #EnergySecurity #ForeignPolicy #GlobalAffairs #GPI #PolicyAnalysis

A credible U.S. Africa Strategy must include the Sudan Crisis

by Areig Elhag and Paolo von Schirach July 22,2026 Since February 28, 2026, when direct military confrontation erupted between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other, in what the Pentagon named "Operation Epic Fury," the Red Sea and Gulf regions required a comprehensive threat reassessment. An April 8 ceasefire and the Islamabad negotiations on the 11th of that month failed to produce a final agreement. On April 28, 2026 the Jeddah Gulf consultative summit, chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, placed the Strait of Hormuz and the risks of its closure at the top of the policy agenda.

GPI President Paolo von Schirach was on Shams TV discussing the recent speech by President Trump Check it out here: Washington 360 | Trump Declassifies Election Documents Amid Military Escalation with Iran #GPI #GPInstitute #USA #USPolitics #ForeignPolicy #Geopolitics

What Is Iran’s Endgame in the Strait of Hormuz?

Join us for GPI's upcoming event: "What Is Iran’s Endgame in the Strait of Hormuz?" Speaker: Ahmad Hashemi Moderator: Paolo Von Schirach Join us July,23 2026 12pm EDT on zoom Register here: https://forms.gle/YYCG6EgCMacHF1fPA #Iran #StraitOfHormuz #GlobalAffairs #GPI

Europe’s facing the China challenge

by Massimiliano Cintura July 21,2026 EU-China trade relations are shaped by China’s domestic imbalances that created chronic industrial overcapacity. The Chinese economy is characterized by a profound imbalance between the enormous capacity of its industrial base and the modest absorption capacity of its domestic market. On the one hand, there is chronic low domestic demand, mostly due to high rates of precautionary savings, fears over the sustainability of the social security system, and the huge losses suffered by middle class Chinese citizens due to the ongoing real estate crisis. On the other hand, Beijing has accelerated a massive influx of public capital, direct subsidies, and state-backed bank loans into advanced industrial sectors

Will the leadership change in Venezuela restart the energy sector?  

By Massimiliano Cintura July 20,2026 The U.S. military intervention in Caracas on January 3, 2026, which culminated in the arrest and rapid extraction of then President Nicolás Maduro, has profoundly altered the political and economic balance In Venezuela and beyond. Today, the country is in the midst of a complex transitional dynamic, administered by an interim executive led by Delcy Rodríguez, Vice President under Maduro. Within this new landscape, divergent forces coexist. On one hand, there is international interest in restoring Venezuelan energy capacity and flows, hopefully accompanied by structural reforms; on the other, we have the urgency of managing a chronic human and infrastructural deficiency in Venezuela, dramatically exposed by the inability to respond to the devastating earthquake that struck the country on June 24, 2026.