Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
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franciswshin.bsky.social
Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
@franciswshin.bsky.social
170 followers 710 following 27 posts
Author and analyst. Alum of Atlantic Council, @rusi.bsky.social/FFIS, YPFP, and @cnas.bsky.social. Personal website: FrancisShin.com
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franciswshin.bsky.social
Think the Commonwealth's a bygone relic of British colonialism or an ineffectual talking shop? Think again.

My latest argues the Commonwealth can play a vital role in bolstering the resilience of global critical mineral supply chains.

franciswshin.substack.com/p/how-the-co...
How the Commonwealth Could Safeguard Global Critical Mineral Supply Chains
The Commonwealth can shield global critical mineral supply chains from the intensifying fallout of the US-China trade war
franciswshin.substack.com
October 30, 2025 at 1:54 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
What policy takeaways should the UK govt have with rising anti-immigration sentiment? My latest discusses how the Labour govt's attempts to win over the anti-immigration electorate are at strong risk of backfiring.

franciswshin.substack.com/p/what-the-l...
What the Labour government should (and shouldn’t) take away from the Unite the Kingdom rally
The government mustn’t view the rally as a reason to pursue harsher immigration policies, but instead a chance to reset its approach on day-to-day issues the public is facing.
franciswshin.substack.com
October 2, 2025 at 2:37 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Europe’s decarbonization bank should be a European Climate Mechanism—pooling capital, driving investments, and creating a unified clean energy market. The result? Lower costs, better cooperation, and stronger global competition.

My latest in @brusselstimes.com

www.brusselstimes.com/opinion/1719...
Europe's climate financing should resemble its defence spending plans
www.brusselstimes.com
August 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Any reassurance force for Ukraine requires Europe to develop a robust military industrial capacity. My latest in @neweasterneurope.eu argues that the expected long-term deployment of the force means Europe must manufacture its own "strategic enablers" to better defend Ukraine and itself.
July 28, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Reposted by Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
samkra.bsky.social
Is France recreating a century-old alliance in this time of geopolitical uncertainty? My latest for @conteurohistory.bsky.social
#history #skystorians #diplomacy

www.cambridge.org/core/blog/20...
French European Diplomacy post-2024 – the Little Entente Revisited? « History# « Cambridge Core Blog
French president Emmanuel Macron outlined his new vision for French foreign policy in a speech on 5 March 2025. He argued that the Russian invasion of Ukraine posed a threat to all of Europe. Europe h...
www.cambridge.org
July 25, 2025 at 11:56 AM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Amid discussions of European security at the NATO summit, my latest article on Substack analyzes how a European Security Council fore regional security policymaking should be structured to be both inclusive and decisive in its decision-making.

franciswshin.substack.com/p/the-case-f...
The Case for the European Security Council
A steering committee for European security policymaking must be inclusive and flexible
franciswshin.substack.com
June 26, 2025 at 6:40 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
How is Switzerland balancing its armed neutrality doctrine with strengthening security ties with the EU? My latest in @euobserver.com discusses how Swiss national security strategy is being tailored with the EU amid the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War, and areas where this cooperation could go further.
franciswshin.bsky.social Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com) @franciswshin.bsky.social · May 29
Can Switzerland maintain its neutrality while increasing its security cooperation with the EU? My latest in @euobserver.com suggests that a Swiss-EU entente, based upon a "commitment to consult" on security policy (like arms control) could be a way to thread this needle.
euobserver.com euobserver — EU news that matters @euobserver.com · May 29
Although Switzerland officially remains neutral, it has already expanded its participation in transatlantic and European security institutions over the past few decades, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine only accelerating this trend.
June 3, 2025 at 6:11 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Can Switzerland maintain its neutrality while increasing its security cooperation with the EU? My latest in @euobserver.com suggests that a Swiss-EU entente, based upon a "commitment to consult" on security policy (like arms control) could be a way to thread this needle.
euobserver.com euobserver — EU news that matters @euobserver.com · May 29
Although Switzerland officially remains neutral, it has already expanded its participation in transatlantic and European security institutions over the past few decades, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine only accelerating this trend.
What next for Swiss neutrality, in the Ukraine era?
Although Switzerland officially remains neutral, it has already expanded its participation in transatlantic and European security institutions over the past few decades, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine only accelerating this trend.
euobserver.com
May 29, 2025 at 1:34 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Check out my debut on Substack in my latest piece co-written with @samkra.bsky.social! We examine how the recent electoral troubles of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) starkly resembles the dramatic downfall of Italy's Christian Democracy in the 1990s.
March 26, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Reposted by Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
franciswshin.bsky.social
Amid recent uncertainties on how the Russo-Ukrainian War may end, Europe's nuclear energy policy may be approaching a critical juncture. In my latest piece in @neweasterneurope.eu co-written with Jacob Paquette, we explore how this opens new opportunities for energy collaboration with Kazakhstan.
March 3, 2025 at 3:45 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Amid recent uncertainties on how the Russo-Ukrainian War may end, Europe's nuclear energy policy may be approaching a critical juncture. In my latest piece in @neweasterneurope.eu co-written with Jacob Paquette, we explore how this opens new opportunities for energy collaboration with Kazakhstan.
March 3, 2025 at 3:45 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
1. An odd day for US diplomacy. Mere hours after the US voting against a UN resolution condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the US President is claiming that Russia would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine. The likely catch remains in the details though:

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Trump says Putin will accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine
France’s Macron corrects US president’s claim that Europe has only loaned funds to Kyiv at White House meeting
www.theguardian.com
February 24, 2025 at 11:55 PM
Reposted by Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
gregsargent.bsky.social
It's time to ask: What's going on with those reviews into Musk/SpaceX's failure to meet basic reporting protocol linked to their billions in Pentagon contracts?

Dems tell me they fear these investigations might get killed under Trump. 2/

(link)
newrepublic.com/article/1913...
Did Trump Quietly Kill a Sensitive Pentagon Probe into Elon Musk?
The New York Times revealed last year that Musk and SpaceX failed to meet federal reporting requirements for Pentagon contractors. No one has asked: What’s going on with that today?
newrepublic.com
February 8, 2025 at 12:39 PM
Reposted by Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
niedermeyer.online
Elon Musk's mother moved to South Africa in the year Apartheid was created, and she and Elon left the year it ended. The last Apartheid Prime Minister, a man who refused to testify at the Truth and Reconciliation Committee, was a family friend who stayed at their home. This is not a crazy theory.
carlbergstrom.com Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · Feb 3
What’s his beef against USAID in particu….oh. Wow.
X post: Elon Musk @elonmusk We spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper. Could gone to some great parties. Did that instead. U.S. policy was to help bring an end to apartheid and establish a nonracial, democratic government. In response to this policy and the Act, USAID/South Africa was responsible for financing projects that apartheid victims viewed as critical in promoting social, political, and economic change through peaceful means. The mission enabled community consultation and ensured that the United States did not impose foreign-defined solutions to local problems. USAID created projects and activities to respond to the priorities of the black community and its leaders, maximized black participation and leadership, and ensured activities had a linkage to the general objectives of U.S. policy. First-year funding for the program was $25 million, which was raised to $50 million the second year. The main project areas were community outreach and leadership development to redress the repression of black-led institutions; educational support and training to address the educational crisis in South Africa; black private enterprise development to combat the inhibiting effects of apartheid–induced discrimination in private enterprise; university grants to help create a new generation of economic and political leaders; human rights; legal assistance; labor union training; and health and nutrition
February 3, 2025 at 2:55 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
USAID's closure will exacerbate global security risks. My latest in @bylinetimes.bsky.social, written before the disputes around USAID, argues the UK must restore its Dept for Intl Dev and return itself to its "dev superpower" status amid this void of US leadership.

bylinetimes.com/2025/01/31/u...
Trump's Return is the Perfect Opportunity to Restore the UK as a Development Superpower
Donald Trump's decision to freeze all foreign aid opens the door for Britain to re-exert it's own position on the world stage, argues Francis Shin
bylinetimes.com
February 3, 2025 at 2:16 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
The 2nd Trump admin's freezing of US aid abroad has opened a large and dangerous vacuum in intl dev. My latest in @bylinetimes.bsky.social argues that Britain should restore the Dept for Intl Dev to return the UK to its "dev superpower" status and aim to fill this void.
bylinetimes.bsky.social Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · Jan 31
🔴Trump’s Return is the Perfect Opportunity to Restore the UK as a Development Superpower

Donald Trump’s decision to freeze all foreign aid opens the door for Britain to re-exert it’s own position on the world stage, argues Francis Shin

bylinetimes.com/2025/01/31/u...
Trump's Return is the Perfect Opportunity to Restore the UK as a Development Superpower
Donald Trump's decision to freeze all foreign aid opens the door for Britain to re-exert it's own position on the world stage, argues Francis Shin
bylinetimes.com
February 1, 2025 at 2:48 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
The fallout from Yoon's failed self-coup in South Korea has already had enormous impact on South Korean foreign policy. My latest in the National Interest discusses these repercussions on the Camp David Entente and AUKUS Pillar II frameworks.

nationalinterest.org/blog/korea-w...
Yoon's Failed Coup Already Has Serious Implications for South Korea's Security Partnerships
Now former President of South Korea, Yoon Suk-yeol, staged a coup just before the end of 2024. The result? It was over before it started, however, the short-lived coup rocked Korean politics to its co...
nationalinterest.org
January 21, 2025 at 5:33 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
This morning, an oddly familiar face greeted me on the Washington Post's front page coverage of Jimmy Carter's memorial services.
January 8, 2025 at 2:34 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
It was an honor and a privilege, Mr. President.
January 8, 2025 at 2:26 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
In this piece, I discuss how AI's rise in entertainment could cut jobs and stifle creativity. To address this, I propose the UK Culture Dept enter consultations with the Culture Committee, trade unions, and industry leaders to craft legislation that safeguards UK creative industries.
franciswshin.bsky.social Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com) @franciswshin.bsky.social · Dec 21
AI is transforming entertainment, but regulation lags behind. In Anticipations (Autumn 2024, @youngfabians.bsky.social), I argue the UK’s cultural superpower status positions it to lead global governance on AI in the entertainment industry.

www.francisshin.com/s/Anticipati...
www.francisshin.com
December 29, 2024 at 5:48 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
AI is transforming entertainment, but regulation lags behind. In Anticipations (Autumn 2024, @youngfabians.bsky.social), I argue the UK’s cultural superpower status positions it to lead global governance on AI in the entertainment industry.

www.francisshin.com/s/Anticipati...
www.francisshin.com
December 21, 2024 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Francis Shin (FrancisShin.com)
franciswshin.bsky.social
Europe must develop more flexible and decisive institutions for security policymaking. My latest in @neweasterneurope.eu argues that a European Security Council would meet these needs by acting as a policy steering committee to complement existing NATO and EU structures.
neweasterneurope.eu New Eastern Europe @neweasterneurope.eu · Nov 29
The creation of a European Security Council could be the right answer to growing uncertainty on the continent and beyond. Such a new format would be a signal to both allies and adversaries that Europe takes its own security seriously.
Europe still needs a security council - New Eastern Europe
The creation of a European Security Council could be the right answer to growing uncertainty on the continent and beyond.
neweasterneurope.eu
November 29, 2024 at 2:31 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
Europe must develop more flexible and decisive institutions for security policymaking. My latest in @neweasterneurope.eu argues that a European Security Council would meet these needs by acting as a policy steering committee to complement existing NATO and EU structures.
neweasterneurope.eu New Eastern Europe @neweasterneurope.eu · Nov 29
The creation of a European Security Council could be the right answer to growing uncertainty on the continent and beyond. Such a new format would be a signal to both allies and adversaries that Europe takes its own security seriously.
Europe still needs a security council - New Eastern Europe
The creation of a European Security Council could be the right answer to growing uncertainty on the continent and beyond.
neweasterneurope.eu
November 29, 2024 at 2:31 PM
franciswshin.bsky.social
What future is there for UK-South Korea relations after the Downing Street Accord? My latest in the @thediplomat.com discusses opportunities to strengthen UK-South Korea security cooperation to benefit them both.

thediplomat.com/2023/12/what...
What’s Next for the South Korea-UK Relationship?
The Downing Street Accord could be the start of an enduring security relationship that would benefit Europe and the Indo-Pacific.
thediplomat.com
December 7, 2023 at 9:38 PM