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Christoph Bluth

Professor of International Relations and Security, University of Bradford

My research interests are international security studies, nuclear weapons policies and the prevention of the spread of weapons of mass destruction, Cold War History. Regional expertise in Russia and Eurasia, Pakistan, Iraq, Germany, and North East Asia (especially Korea). I am involved in a Leeds University initiative on terrorism and also the Korean Research Hub (University of Leeds and Sheffield)

Prior to coming to the University of Bradford, I was Professor of International and European Studies at the University of Reading and subsequently Professor of International Studies at the University of Leeds.

While at King's College London, I worked with Sir Lawrence Freedman and Robert O'Neill on the four-nation Nuclear History Programme, before taking up a lectureship in International Relations at the University of Essex.

Global Geopolitics Series

Ukraine war: Vladimir Putin ups the ante on his nuclear blackmail – the big question is how the west will respond

Sep 30, 2024 02:13 am UTC| Insights & Views

Vladimir Putin has announced what appears to be a dramatic strengthening of Russias nuclear doctrine. The Russian president was responding to speculation that the west may relax its restrictions on Ukraines use of its...

Global Geopolitics Series

An Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear weapons programme is unlikely – here’s why

Apr 19, 2024 06:24 am UTC| Insights & Views

Israels prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has vowed to retaliate against Iran for the unprecedented aerial assault on April 13. He has made it clear that we will make our own decisions, and the state of Israel will do...

Global Geopolitics Series

How Iran controls a network of armed groups to pursue its regional strategy

Feb 08, 2024 12:29 pm UTC| Insights & Views

It took the US several days to respond to the January 28 attack on its military base in Jordan that killed three of its service personnel. But when it did, it hit at least 85 targets across Iraq and Syria. The Pentagon...

Global Geopolitics Series

Mongolia: squeezed between China and Russia fears 'new cold war'

Apr 05, 2023 13:27 pm UTC| Insights & Views

Mongolias prime minister, Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene, recently expressed his countrys fear that the world is heading towards a new cold war as the relations between Russia and China and the west particularly Nato have...

Global Geopolitics Series

Crimea: Ukraine uses new tactics to attempt to take back strategic territory from Russia

Aug 21, 2022 17:21 pm UTC| Politics

Russian president Vladimir Putin has reportedly replaced the commander of his Black Sea fleet just three days after an attack on the Russian Saki airbase in Crimea, as Ukraines military strategy shifts towards regaining...

Global Geopolitics Series

Ukraine: US deploys more troops in eastern Europe -- here's how it compares with the cold war

Jul 04, 2022 16:39 pm UTC| Politics

US president Joe Biden is beefing up the US military presence in eastern Europe as a reaction to the Ukraine war. Biden plans to redeploy troops from Germany to Poland and Romania and send more destroyers to strengthen...

How Ukraine war could boost tensions between US and China over future of Taiwan

May 28, 2022 11:03 am UTC| Politics

China is becoming more repressive at home and more aggressive abroad, according to the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken. Blinken made a major statement on US foreign policy on May 26 at George Washington University....

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Economy

EU Delays Mercosur Free Trade Agreement Signing Amid Ukraine War Funding Talks

The European Union has decided to delay the formal signing of its long-anticipated free trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc, as EU leaders convened in Brussels to prioritize discussions on funding Ukraines war effort....

Precious Metals Rally as Silver and Platinum Outperform on Rate Cut Bets

Gold prices edged slightly lower in Asian trading on Friday but were still on track to post modest weekly gains, as strong safe-haven demand continued to support the precious metals market. At the same time, silver and...

Oil Prices Steady in Asia but Headed for Weekly Loss on Supply Glut Concerns

Oil prices were mostly steady during Asian trading on Friday, but both major benchmarks were still on track to record a second consecutive weekly decline as persistent concerns over a global supply glut continued to...

New Zealand Business Confidence Hits 30-Year High as Economic Outlook Improves

New Zealands business confidence surged sharply in December, reaching its highest level in three decades, according to the latest ANZ Bank Business Outlook survey released on Friday. The data highlights growing optimism...

BOJ Poised for Historic Rate Hike as Japan Signals Shift Toward Monetary Normalization

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) is widely expected to raise interest rates to a three-decade high, marking another milestone in its gradual exit from ultra-loose monetary policy. At the conclusion of its two-day meeting on Friday,...

Politics

U.S. and China Push for Ceasefire as Thailand–Cambodia Border Clashes Escalate

China and the United States are intensifying separate diplomatic efforts to revive a ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia, as Southeast Asian leaders prepare for a crucial ASEAN meeting aimed at addressing the worst...

Syria, Kurds and U.S. Race to Show Progress on SDF Integration Deal

Syrian, Kurdish and U.S. officials are intensifying diplomatic efforts ahead of a year-end deadline to demonstrate progress on a long-stalled agreement to integrate Kurdish-led forces into the Syrian state, according to...

Putin Signals Possible Peace or Continued War in Ukraine at Major Year-End Address

Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to send a significant signal to the United States and European powers regarding the future of the Ukraine war when he speaks at his annual end-of-year news conference on Friday....

Trump Administration Reviews Nvidia H200 Chip Sales to China, Marking Major Shift in U.S. AI Export Policy

The U.S. government under President Donald Trump has launched a formal review that could pave the way for the first-ever shipments of Nvidias H200 artificial intelligence chips to China, according to multiple sources...

Trump Signs Order to Ease Federal Marijuana Rules, Signaling Major Policy Shift

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing federal agencies to loosen regulations on marijuana, a move that could mark one of the most significant changes in U.S. cannabis policy in decades. The...

Science

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Technology

TikTok U.S. Deal Advances as ByteDance Signs Binding Joint Venture Agreement

TikTok has taken a major step toward securing its future in the United States after its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, announced it has signed binding agreements with three major investors to form a new joint venture...

Oracle Stock Surges After Hours on TikTok Deal Optimism and OpenAI Fundraising Buzz

Oracle Corporation (NYSE: ORCL) shares surged sharply in extended trading on Thursday, reflecting renewed investor optimism fueled by reports of a potential U.S. TikTok transaction and fresh fundraising discussions...

Apple Opens iPhone to Alternative App Stores in Japan Under New Competition Law

Apple has announced a major shift in its App Store policies in Japan, opening iPhones and other Apple devices to alternative app stores in order to comply with new competition laws aimed at reshaping the countrys...

Micron Technology Forecasts Surge in Revenue and Earnings on AI-Driven Memory Demand

Micron Technology delivered record first-quarter results and issued a bullish forecast for the current quarter, driven by rising memory prices and strong demand linked to artificial intelligence workloads. The upbeat...

Oracle Stock Slides After Blue Owl Exit Report, Company Says Michigan Data Center Talks Remain on Track

Oracle shares fell more than 4% on Wednesday after a Financial Times report claimed that Blue Owl Capital, Oracles largest U.S. data center partner, decided not to support a planned $10 billion data center project in...