In this episode of Stratfor's Pen and Sword podcast, hosted by Fred Burton, a conversation with Don Bentley. Bentley is the author of "Without Sanction," a Matt Drake Thriller. Writing is not Bentley's only career. As he tells Stratfor's Fred Burton, he also was an Apache Helicopter pilot and an FBI agent, and his first three books were rejected. In this action-packed thriller, Defense Intelligence Agent Matt Drake is a haunted man, scarred by a violent and deadly experience in Syria. His marriage is in jeopardy, and his old life is tantalizingly out of reach. But then, he gets a call for a mission and he heads back to Syria on a rescue mission.

In this episode of Stratfor's Essential Geopolitics podcast, Stratfor analysts Fred Burton and Stephen Rakowski discuss what 2020 holds in store for South Africa - from its political leaders to its economy and people.

In this episode of Stratfor's Pen and Sword podcast, host and Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton speaks with Stratfor V.P. of Tactical Analysis, Scott Stewart about the latest activity of Mexico's drug cartels. Mexico's proximity to illicit U.S. markets has resulted in the rapid growth of extremely violent criminal enterprises. Crime and violence take a huge toll on Mexico's citizens and economy. Corruption and impunity have permitted the cartels to become powerful and to operate brazenly. In 2019, there was a uptick in cross-border violence from the cartels. In this podcast, Burton and Stewart discuss the outlook for 2020.

In this episode of the Stratfor Essential Geopolitics podcast, host and Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton, speaks to Stratfor Global Security Analyst Ben West about the Wuhan Corona Virus. On January 22, 2020, Chinese officials quarantined the city and slowed travel into and out of the city. But will it be enough to slow the virus' spread during the Lunar New Year Celebrations?

In this episode of Stratfor’s essential Geopolitics podcast, Stratfor Senior Europe Analyst explains to Stratfor Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton, that while Brexit may be done by January 31, 2020, negotiations between the UK and the EU over trade will continue.

In this episode of Stratfor's Pen and Sword podcast, Stratfor Chief Security Officer and host, Fred Burton, speaks to Kate Winkler Dawson about her latest book, American Sherlock. This is the story of Edward Oscar Heinrich, and how he pioneered forensics starting in about 1910. A fascinating, complex personality  who had an uncanny ability to find clues, build evidence and solve crimes. "He was this incredible forensic scientist who solved all of these crazy, insane cases," says the author. "I've always been really interested in the history of forensics. And I felt like I really wanted to dig into what is right with forensics and what is wrong. There's plenty of both, both now and back when it started," Dawson says. Based on years of research and, according to Dawson, one of the largest personal archives with more than 100 boxes of previously uncatalogued content ranging from diaries to notes on investigations.

In this episode of Stratfor's Essential Geopolitics podcast, host Fred Burton speaks to Stratfor’s Global Security Analyst, Ben West about the novel coronavirus that appears to have started in a Wuhan, China, market. West says that if this spreads to infect large portions of the population in provinces outside of Hubei, namely in major export/commercial hubs such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong, there will be restrictions. If restrictions there are similar to those imposed in Hubei Province, it will only exacerbate the economic impacts and business continuity concerns in China.

In this Essential Geopolitics podcast, Senior Analyst Matthew Bey discusses the United States' grievances with the WTO.

In this episode of the Stratfor Essential Geopolitics Podcast, Chief Security Officer Fred Burton speaks to Global Analyst Sim Tack about Russia's government reshuffle. It's more than a power play, it is setting the stage for a much broader effort in the coming years to install a reliable post-Putin political culture.

In this episode of Stratfor's Essential Geopolitics podcast. Stratfor Chief Security Officer and host, Fred Burton, catches up on what may change between the U.S. and North Korea in 2020 from Stratfor Asia Pacific analyst, Evan Rees.

In this episode of Stratfor's Essential Geopolitics podcast, Stratfor analysts Fred Burton and Ryan Bohl discuss how the Iranian proxy theater develops and Iranian proxies still active in the region and watching to see how the Iranian nuclear program develops.

In this episode of Stratfor's Essential Geopolitics podcast, Fred Burton and Emily Hawthorne decipher clues to Iran's likely next move to the U.S. killing of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani.

In this Essential Geopolitics podcast, Stratfor’s Middle East and North Africa analyst, Emily Hawthorne explains the evolving relationship between the United States adn Saudi Arabia and how Iran will play betwen both countries in 2020.

In this Essential Geopolitics podcast, Stratfor’s Asia Pacific Analyst Evan Rees breaks down what’s at stake in the ongoing trade dispute between South Korea and Japan.

In Stratfor's Essential Geopolitics podcast, Middle East adn North Africa Analyst, Ryan Boh,l forecasts Turkey's major military and political plays in 2020.

Stratfor's Middle East and North Africa analyst, Ryan Bohl, explains why Israel's short term internal politics will affect global geopolitics in 2020.    

In this Essential Geopolitics podcast from Stratfor, Middle East and North Africa analyst, Emily Hawthorne, discusses the business environment for international investors as well as the power play between the power elite and protestors.

In this episode, Stratfor analysts Fred Burton and Matthew Bey discuss the worsening relationship between the U.S. and Iran and what to expect in 2020. 

In this episode of Stratfor's Pen and Sword Podcast, Fred Burton speaks to Brad Taylor, best-selling author of 13 novels. In his latest, a Pike Logan thriller, Hunter Killer, takes place in the area where Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay meet. Logan encounters Russian assassins, corrupt politics and the fight is on to protect his team, and fertile oil fields at risk. In this wide-ranging conversation Burton and Taylor discuss the role of Army Special Forces, the US military machine, Taylor's history with Delta Force and tips for upcoming writers. 

The group built quickly, claiming space left behind by the Syrian civil war and the chaos in the wake of the long US war in Iraq. By mid-2014, the group known to many countries as "Daesh" had declared a caliphate. Within a year it had claimed larges swathes of land in Iraq and Syria, gained affiliates and inspired followers in more than a dozen other countries -- and begun a reign of terror for any who did not conform to its rigid, violent interpretation of Sharia law. In late 2015, the self-titled Islamic State, aka ISIS, became the focus of international military action that included airstrikes, weapons deliveries and eventually, bloody, costly door-to-door combat in Iraq and Syria. The manhunt was on for affiliates in other countries. In Shatter the Nations: ISIS and the War for the Caliphate, Mike Giglio tells the story of the rise of the caliphate and "the ramshackle coalition -- aided by secretive Western troops and American airstrikes -- that was assembled to break it down village by village, district by district." Giglio spoke to Stratfor's Fred Burton for the Pen and Sword podcast.

In this episode of the Stratfor Pen and Sword podcast, host Fred Burton speaks to career CIA protector, Thomas Pecora. Pecora has written a memoir of his more than two decades with the Agency, entitled, "The Guardian: Life in the Crosshairs of the CIA's War on Terror." Pecora developed a protective force within the CIA to protect The United State's spies, in other words, it was his job to ensure the safety of all CIA personnel in high threat environments. And after 9/11, Pecora says, all the old spy rules went out the window. In this wide-ranging conversation, Tom Pecora and Fred Burton discuss everything from living life in secret to preferred side arms to heavier weaponry, spy training and even secret service bars. 

In this episode of the Stratfor Pen and Sword Podcast, Fred Burton speaks with filmmaker, writer and podcaster, Chris Carr. Carr says he was fascinated with espionage and spies from a young age. His film, The Dry Cleaner (2019) is about a British intelligence officer named George. Set amid current events, George tries to convince Lydia to gather information about a revolutionary group. Carr is now penning a TV series based on the film.

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, a discussion of the relationship between Russia and China amid a global power competition that includes the United States.  Our guest is Artyom Lukin, an associate professor at the School of Regional and International Studies, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok, Russia. Lukin has authored numerous chapters, papers and commentaries, in Russian and English, on Asia-Pacific international politics and Russia's engagement with Asia. His latest book (co-authored with Rensselaer Lee) is Russia's Far East: New Dynamics in Asia Pacific and Beyond (2015). Lukin is a regular contributor to Stratfor Worldview, and discusses the rapidly evolving geopolitical relationship between China and Russia, from weapons sales to Arctic cooperation to strategic agreements.

Clint Emerson is crazy, by his own admission. But the ex-Navy SEAL believes he’s the right kind of crazy. Emerson focused his entire military career on being the best he can be and that meant, during 20 years working for special ops and the National Security Agency, he did what he had to do to keep America safe. Emerson memoir of those years, “The Right Kind of Crazy: My Life as a Navy SEAL, Covert Operative, and Boy Scout from Hell” focuses on explaining “doing what you have to do” means for a special operative. As he tells Fred Burton in this episode of the Stratfor podcast, he followed two maxims: “If you aren’t cheating, you aren’t trying,” and “It’s only illegal if you get caught.”

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, a conversation about Turkey. Domestic challenges from politics to the economy are pulling at the rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Relations between the United States and Turkey spiraled to such a nadir after Ankara launched an offensive into northeastern Syria, that Congress called for sanctions. Meantime, Turkey's relationship with the European Union appears to be fraying at the edges. All of this raises the question: will Turkey turn its sights on Russia? Stratfor's Emily Hawthorne speaks with Sinan Ciddi, Assistant Professor, School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University and Director of the Institute of Turkish Studies.

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, a conversation about military weapons, secret missions and a life lived in a company town, where every employee was a civil servant of the US government. Piper describes a happy childhood, in a home amid the striking vistas of California's mountains, the desert nearby, playing with her sister to round up rattlesnakes and practicing her skills as a sleuth. Her father, a navy veteran from WWII, worked at Boeing in Seattle until the company laid off a large portion of its workforce. The family packed up the car when her dad got a job offer, and they moved - lock, stock, and barrel - to China Lake, the nation’s largest weapons facility, to build missiles. 

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, Fred Burton speaks to his old friend Jim Markel, the CEO of Redoxx. Redoxx is based in Billings, Montana and builds and sells unique bags for railroad workers, business and adventure travelers as well as everyday bags for families.  Markel started life on the drop zones of various military bases. He joined the Marines very young, and when he finished, after a failed attempt at college, he tried his hand at making military-grade products for civilians. He settled in Billings, Montana, and built a company and helped revive a town. Along his journey, he took to heart the ideas that business is built from the bootstraps up, and that no success comes without service. So he spends parts of every year abroad, helping communities where he can be of service, and returning to the town that he loves. 

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, a conversation about migration. Stratfor's Emily Hawthorne discusses the global and geopolitical phenomenon of human migration. She speaks with Dohra Ahmad, who pulled together The Penguin Book of Migration Literature. The collection of poems, short stories and other writings spanning more than a century and the entire globe tells the stories of migration in their many different - and similar - details. The book was inspired by a class Ms. Ahmed teaches at St. John’s University in Queens and the powerful conversations about migration and immigration it has prompted. You may find yourself asking as you read questions like: What distinguishes a migrant from an immigrant? Is not one, both? What prompts a person or people to leave one place for another? How do differing politics affect the perceived value of a migrant or immigrant? Listen to hear Ahmad's conversation with Stratfor.

Drug cartels wreak havoc and terror across Mexico, and have done for years. In a recent article for Stratfor Worldview, VP of Tactical Analysis, Scott Stewart, discussed how, despite the cartels' vast differences from terrorist organizations, "the Mexican government and its U.S. ally have pursued the "war" on cartels using many of the same tools that we normally associate with the 'global war on terror.'" Scott Stewart writes, "in some ways, it is only when it comes to end goals that the Islamic State and Mexican cartels differ: Whereas the jihadist group wants to control territory for political power, cartels wish to do so for profit."

What does it take to spot a spy? Not the old trench-coat-wearing cloak-and-dagger caricature of a Cold War-era secret agent. But the modern spy - the insider, perhaps - who can take down a business or betray a government with a digital weapon. We hear a lot about how global corporations and modern governments are vulnerable to intrusion, even from their own employees. But what does a spy look like and how can he - or she - be caught? In TO CATCH A SPY, James Olson, the former chief of CIA counterintelligence, calls on the US needs to do a better job stopping threats from Chinese, Russian, and Cuban spy services. Olson shared some of his own spy secrets with Stratfor’s Chief Security Officer Fred Burton.

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, a conversation about who pays for the coastal damage done by climate change. The 2019 hurricane season is likely to go down in history books as one of the most costly of the decade in loss of life, loss of infrastructure, loss of property and loss of coastal land. It may take longer than a decade for the Bahamas to recover from Hurricane Dorian. Houston is reeling from major flooding caused by Tropical Storm Imelda. Puerto Rico, still not recovered from 2017's Hurricane Maria, is facing flooding from Tropical Storm Karen. As climate change precipitates more powerful storms, coastal areas of the world are expected to bear the brunt of the damage. As Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and avid surfer, Gilbert M. Gaul, writes in his new book, "The Geography of Risk: Epic Storms, Rising Seas and the Costs of America's Coasts," areas of the United States, with its long coastlines, have been ground zero for some of the worst storms in the past two decades. But, he asks, who is actually paying the financial costs for these monster storms? 

How likely is the United States to be laid low by a cyber attack? What can you do to protect your company from a devastating ransomware or hack? In this episode of the Stratfor "Pen and Sword" podcast with Fred Burton, Robert Knake, co-author of The Fifth Domain: Defending Our Country, Our Companies and Ourselves in the Age of Cyber Threats. In the book, Knake and fellow author Richard A. Clarke acknowledge that cyberspace is the battlefield of the future. But along with sobering admissions and predictions as to how ready the United States is, the authors argue that there is hope. But urgent action is needed by individuals, companies and governments to transition to secure systems with encryption and data storage to overcome cyberattacks. The book contains a plan for "cyber resilience." Listen to the Stratfor podcast to hear more. 

Mat Best was an Army Ranger. He’s an entrepreneur. He’s a passionate advocate for veterans. He’s a YouTube phenomenon. And he’s now a best selling author. Best’s memoir, “Thank you for My Service,” is a no-holds barred, highly irreverent and oftentimes inappropriate recounting of his experiences during 5 combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. Thank You for My Service is a compelling read and continues Best’s advocacy for vets and his businesses. Best is a staunch supporter of veterans. He is the also co-founder of Black Rifle Coffee Company, not only roasts and sells specialty coffee, but hires veterans and shares a portion of its profits with vets, first responders, and law enforcement. Best chatted with Stratfor’s Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton about his book, his advocacy and his businesses for the Pen and Sword podcast from Stratfor.

When Sean Parnell returned from fighting for the US in Afghanistan, he wanted to honor the efforts of his platoon. So he wrote a book. He called it Outlaw Platoon. That book was a runaway bestseller. The next book he wrote, Man of War, jumped from memoir to fiction, but his mission was the same: to honor his comrades. In his latest thriller, All Out War,  book, Eric Steele addresses two fundamental questions: first, is the mission he's been given worth it? And second, is he free or is he a slave? Parnell caught up with Stratfor's Chief Security officer and host of Stratfor's "Pen and Sword" podcast, Fred Burton.

Fans who have already binge watched Season Two of Nextflix's series, Mindhunter can still get their dose of solving true crime with a new book from the real life Mindhunter, former FBI criminal profiler, John Douglas. The new book, "The Killer Across the Table" digs into four cases from the Mindhunter's case files. Co-author, Mark Oleshaker says each crime in the new book is notably different from the other and each is completely different from Douglas' famous cases involving serial killers. Oleshaker and Douglas share details of The Killer Across the Table and Douglas' signature true crime investigating and criminal profiling with Stratfor's Chief Security Officer Fred Burton. This podcast is a must listen for fans of true crime and the series, Mindhunter!

When James Grady wrote, "Six Days of the Condor" in 1973, he had no idea his work of spy fiction would see repetition in the real world. But from an international assassination to a complete government-run espionage department, that's what happened. More than 40 years after the book was first published. with a TV series and several sequels to boot behind him, Grady says, his hero is still human. "One thing that has changed completely," he says," is that society is so much more complex and individuals are more...isolated than we were in the 1970's. The digital revolution has made it harder to separate fact from theory from propaganda from downright manipulation, which is the opposite of what people would have said at the dawn of the information age. But also, there are more and different kinds of ...bad actors now than there ever have been... in part due to fragmentation of society." And that makes today's world infinitely more vexing when it comes to security, geopolitics and diplomacy than the bad old days of the Cold War.

In this episode of the Stratfor podcast, we hear from Zahra Hankir, a journalist based in Beirut, Lebanon, about a collection of essays she has compiled. The essays are a unique - and unprecedented - look into the lives of 19 women journalists who report for western media from and about the Middle Eastern and Arab world. From breaking with traditional female roles to reporting on civil war and its aftermath, these essays provide a remarkable glimpse into an often misunderstood world.

In this podcast, Stratfor's South Asia Analyst, Faisel Pervaiz, speaks with Ambika Vishwanath about India's water challenges. From floods to drought to later monsoons, India has been struggling to provide adequate water supplies to its 1.3 Billion citizens. Factor in the tensions between India and Pakistan and water-sharing agreement between the rivals known as Indus Water Treaty, which dictates the share of water each country receives from the Indus Water Basin, and it's easy to see why water is a hot geopolitical issue for India.

An interview with Mark Greaney (author of the Gray Man series of thrillers) and Lt. Col. H. Ripley Rawlings IV. Together they have written a gripping and realistic action thriller in which World War III emerges as a conflict between the West and Russia. In this novel, Russia creates a three-pronged front - testing the US military capabilities - in a gamble to lay claim to a rare mineral mine that will give Russia primacy over the entire world’s technology. Combining geopolitics, cover-to-cover action that include battles in the air, on land and sea, with great camaraderie among a small and desperate team, Stratfor's Fred Burton says he was hooked to the last page.

Continuing a conversation with Stratfor's Reva Goujon and Russell Gold about his new book, Superpower!, the two dig into the impacts of climate change on hydrocarbon-based and renewable energies, energy subsidies and even the 2020 race for US President.

When Neil Armstrong announced that the Eagle had landed on July, 20, 1969, the world listened. The first moon landing in July, 1969, was the culmination of a presidential resolution firmly anchored in a wartime -- albeit a cold war -- objective. Far less known, until now, are the many military plots and schemes aimed at countering the Soviets that never made it off the drawing board--even though many were as technologically ground-breaking and breathtaking in their boldness. The stories of these amazing plans are revealed in Vince Houghton’s new book: Nuking the Moon, and other intelligence schemes and Military Plots left on the drawing board. Stratfor’s Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton, spoke to Vince Houghton about what worked and what didn't. 

In what Stratfor's Vice President of Global Analysis, Reva Goujon calls, "required reading," Wall Street Journal Energy Reporter, Russell Gold, tells the story of Michael Skelly, who foresaw an energy transition in the U.S from fossil-based to clean power.  The following description comes from Russell Gold's Amazon book page for SuperPower! One Man's Quest to transform American Energy. Skelly, "an infrastructure builder who began working on wind energy in 2000, when many considered the industry a joke. Eight years later, Skelly helped create the second largest wind power company in the United States—which was sold for $2 billion. Wind energy was no longer funny; it was well on its way to generating a substantial percentage of the electricity in the United States." Hear a fascinating discussion about the global energy transformation underway and Russell Gold's take on the US energy picture. 

There are studies that indicate that the speed at which constantly evolving geopolitical events affect people, businesses and nations - from diplomacy to international security to societies and everything in between - and how much information is available to consume - can make individuals feel bombarded, or attacked. That can cause stress or anxiety and have real physical health effects. But too little information may leave you vulnerable to worse. Best-selling author, Jack Carr’s new book, True Believer, merges the chaos of too much and too little information, who has it and who doesn't in a rip-roaring adventure for James Reece, the world’s most wanted domestic terrorist. Combining terror attacks, market tailspins, holidays and vengeance, with a little strong arming thrown in for good measure, True Believer has been called one of the best thrillers of 2019. Stratfor’s Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton, spoke to Carr about the book, and his career as a Navy SEAL sniper, outdoorsman, and now, author.

On December 21, 1988, a plane full of college students, government workers and professionals traveling home for the holidays from London to New York exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland. All on board and 11 people on the ground were killed. The investigation spread over hundreds of square miles. The evidence was blown to smithereens. Richard Marquise was the investigator in charge of finding out what had happened, who was responsible and, eventually, how to prosecute. He spoke about his book, Scotbom: Evidence and the Lockerbie Investigation with Stratfor’s Chief Security Officer Fred Burton

"Domestic terrorism" is a phrase that has had its fair share of US headlines in the years since 2001 and the Al Qaeda terror attacks. We've all read reports of bombings, mail attacks using fire, biological weapons. And the dramatic death tolls from dozens and dozens of mass shootings. But domestic terrorism was not hatched in the wake of foreign attacks. It predates online radicalization and the US wars in the Middle East and South Asia. In fact, a series of domestic bombings, and other actions of radical underground groups were all too common during the 1970s. Those “Days of Rage” and the FBI’s response to them are the subject of Bryan Burrough’s investigation into and retelling a decade of America’s  experience of domestic terrorism, which he published in the 2015 book, Days of Rage: America's Radical Underground, the FBI and the Forgotten Age of Revolutionary Violence.

One of the most memorable images from June, 2019 was that taken by a Dallas Morning News Photographer. It shows a man in a black armored, pocketed vest with a black cap, face covering, green clothes, black boots and a large black gun about to enter the Earle Cabell federal courthouse in Dallas, Texas.   Another was of sobbing survivors of a mass shooting at the Virginia Beach municipal center hugging each other on a bright, sunny day. Only the shooter was killed in the Dallas event. 12 people died at the scene of the Virginia Beach event. In a recent column for Stratfor Worldview, VP of Tactical Analysis, Scott Stewart, noted that while incidents of workplace violence and mass public attacks are a persistent concern, taking security measures ahead of time is a critical step toward avoiding attacks.  He spoke with Chief Security Officer, Fred Burton.

Brad Thor is the best-selling author of the Scot Harvath series of thrillers. "You can go to Backlash never having read a Brad Thor book before," Thor told Stratfor's Chief Security Officer and host of the Pen And Sword podcast, "And in my book is Scot Harvath, who's American's number one operative...This hostile nation decides 'this guy gets in our way way too often. So what we're gonna do is we're gonna grab him, wring him dry. We're gonna get  all the intel we can get out of him and then we're gonna kill him.'"  Well, needless to say, Harvath is not amused. That's page one. And the action continues right until the end. 

The United States has been militarily engaged in Afghanistan and Iraq for almost a generation. For many Americans, those wars have been defining elements of their lives. For others, events far away that simply do not affect them. In what Booklist has called a “searing, contemplative, and unforgettable memoir… perhaps the finest writing about the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts that has been published to date,” former Marine Elliot Ackerman returns to the places he fought to learn the names of those he fought against.