As new geopolitical divisions form amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, Hal Brands argues the interconnected global economy is bound to fragment. While “the golden age of globalization” may be over, he believes that democracies can band together and outcompete the economic order being formed by the regimes in Russia and China. He also thinks we stand to benefit from our totalitarian rivals’ missteps. For example, President Xi Jinping’s “offensive decoupling” strategy of economically penalizing opponents may backfire and forge closer economic ties between democracies.

Michael R. Strain reports that the state of democratic capitalism in America has remained strong since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. He sees plenty of evidence for that claim: Our economy has been recovering at a stunning rate, workers are returning to their jobs, and wages are increasing rapidly. However, Strain warns that inflation, growing illiberalism, and a host of other economic issues threaten the system that has been the foundation of our prosperity.

Writing in the Hill, AEI’s Gary J. Schmitt and coauthor Craig Kennedy say that we should not denigrate Sweden’s application to join NATO as a “Johnny-come-lately effort” that might weaken the alliance. Instead, they contend that in recent years the Swedish government and population have shown a remarkable willingness to meet new security challenges head-on.

Even as the Biden administration invests in quantum computers, Klon Kitchen warns that the risk of “quantum surprise” is upon us. If our rivals were to make breakthroughs in quantum computing before us, he says, it could pose unprecedented challenges to our cybersecurity and beyond.

Adam J. White explains how critics of Justice Samuel Alito's leaked draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade exaggerate the opinion's implications for other major Court decisions. Because Roe has little grounding in the Constitution's text, it has distorted our understanding of precedent—a doctrine that "is too important to be defined by such a poorly reasoned and divisive case."