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Global Affairs Session 74 7 August 2026 IRAN WAR REACHES JAPAN US spooked with Yen collapse Japan is caught in an unusual geopolitical-financial trap: the yen has fallen to four-decade lows, the Iran war has disrupted the Strait of Hormuz, and Japan’s dependence on Middle Eastern crude magnifies the cost of a weak currency. The United States has joined Japan in buying yen because a disorderly Japanese crisis could spill into Asian currencies and the U.S. Treasury market.

Global Affairs Session 33 11 May 2026 THREE FIRES RAGING Iran, Ukraine and US–China tensions burning together The world is facing three simultaneous geopolitical crises: the Iran war threatening energy security and the Strait of Hormuz, the Ukraine war keeping Europe militarised and unstable, and U.S.–China tensions reshaping trade, technology and security. These fires are separate, but they are connected by oil, weapons, alliances, AI and global power — reshaping the world in real time, before our eyes.

Global Affairs Session 23 27 April 2026 DOLLAR MILKSHAKE THEORY Will de-dollarization kill it? De-dollarization and dollar strength can operate at the same time. Global financial stress may pull liquidity towards United States assets and strengthen the dollar in the short run, while sanctions, alternative payment systems, reserve diversification and wider access to dollar swap lines may gradually weaken long-term dependence on it.