Research
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Research

MSI² Research publishes original strategic intelligence, policy analysis, and scholarly research on the security, geopolitical, economic, and technological challenges shaping the Americas and the world.

FEATURED PUBLICATION

The Enemy Does Not Need to Break In

This essay examines how Russia, China, and Iran exploit the openness of democratic societies to advance strategic objectives without relying primarily on direct coercion. Using Lioness as a narrative point of entry and drawing on...
Author: Dr. Rafael Marrero
Publication Date: September 2, 2026
Publication Type: Major SIG
Journal / Publisher: OVERWATCH: The Hughes Journal of Strategic Intelligence
Series: Overwatch
Issue / Number: No. 01
Research Area: International Relations
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RESET
Journal Article

From Africa’s Fog to Latin America’s Haze: Convergences of Hybrid Insurgency and State Erosion

This Major SIG examines converging patterns of state erosion across the African Sahel, the Great Lakes region, and the Andean arc. It explores how armed groups, illicit economies, territorial fragmentation, institutional weakness, and cross-border networks...
Author: RAdm Chilean Navy (Ret.) Leonardo Quijarro Santibáñez
Publication Date: May 19, 2026
Research Area: International Relations
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Journal Article

From Presence to Leverage: Architectures of Power and Strategic Competition in the Western Hemisphere

This article examines China's expanding role in Latin America and the Caribbean through the distinction between foreign presence and strategic leverage. Rather than evaluating ports, telecommunications networks, energy infrastructure, critical minerals, digital ecosystems, transportation corridors,...
Author: Dr. Rafael Marrero, CDR José Adán Gutiérrez, USN (Ret.)
Publication Date: June 15, 2026
Research Area: Geoeconomics
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Journal Article

The Enemy Does Not Need to Break In

This essay examines how Russia, China, and Iran exploit the openness of democratic societies to advance strategic objectives without relying primarily on direct coercion. Using Lioness as a narrative point of entry and drawing on...
Author: Dr. Rafael Marrero
Publication Date: September 2, 2026
Research Area: International Relations
READ