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Chokepoints

How the Global Economy Became a Weapon of War

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About this listen

 'A gripping, firsthand account. Unparalleled.’ Chris Miller, author of Chip War

Globalisation was once hailed as the great leveller, bringing prosperity to all. But the world has changed. As Russia, China and Iran have sought to upend the international order, America and its allies have mounted unprecedented economic retaliation. The global economy is now a weapon of war.

Chokepoints is a thrilling behind-the-scenes account of one of the most pivotal geopolitical shifts of our time. Drawing on extensive research, personal experience and interviews with key players, Edward Fishman, a former top US State Department official, takes us deep into the back rooms of power around the world. Here we meet an eclectic group of innovators: the diplomats, lawyers and financial whizzes who’ve masterminded a fearsome new arsenal of economic weapons, exploiting Western dominance in global finance and technology, and harnessing the power of Wall Street, the City of London and Silicon Valley to confront a rising authoritarian axis.

The sanctions against Russia might be the biggest coordinated act of economic warfare we’ve seen, but it won’t be the last. Control over modern-day chokepoints – such as the US dollar, advanced microchip technology and critical energy supply chains – has become the key to geopolitical power in the twenty-first century. The result is an economic arms race among great powers and a fracturing global economy. Utterly gripping and brimming with rare insight, Chokepoints is indispensable reading to understand the forces that will shape our world for decades to come.©2025 Edward Fishman (P)2025 Simon & Schuster UK Economics International Macroeconomics Political Science Politics & Government United States World War Russia China Middle East Wall Street Iran Military Taxation Socialism Capitalism Imperial Japan Cyber Warfare American Foreign Policy Soviet Union
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Great narration, thrilling blow by blow of the process of securing the various us economic warfare sanctions. Gives an insider account.

Main critique is that for a book that implies a balanced examination of both sanctions and counter sanctions, there is very limited talk about the effectiveness and detail of counter sanction manoeuvres. Limited exploration of European contemporary takes on current sanctions, limited exploration of the depth of American business detriments from sanctions. For a conflict that is contemporary with Ukraine, also no exploration of sanctions in Israel-hamas conflict. Overall a good book, read well, exiting to listen to but really only a one sided narrative.

Six of one.. Less than a dozen of the other

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This is a very thorough look at how the US has used the dollar, being adopted as the global reserve currency, as a way to get other countries to fund its perpetually growing budget deficit, and as a way to force other countries to bend to its will, with threats of being excluded from the global banking system. It’s apparent that, should the dollar ever fall from grace as the global reserve, the US would be in serious trouble.

Fascinating glimpse at US dollar hegemony

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Good book. Too obvious author is a democrat. More neutrality wanted as you'll see in the conclusion. Trumps use of sanctions criticised whilsted gushing of Biden...

Good overview. Too obvious author is a democrat. More neutrality wanted

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