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Tom Smith

Lecturer in International Relations, University of Portsmouth

Tom is a Lecturer in International Relations for the University of Portsmouth based at the Royal Air Force College Cranwell. He specialises in terrorism, political violence and insurgencies with a focus on Southeast Asia but more broadly on jihadist (al Qaeda, ISIS, etc.) and political violence related to transnational Islam. He has fieldwork experience in Mindanao in the Philippines and Southern Thailand and is regularly asked by development, conflict and governmental organisations to contribute to research design, project planning and for advice. A former Visiting Lecturer at De La Salle University in Manila, Tom has worked across Asia in conflict environments for NGOs, charities and IGOs. Tom is best known on an international basis for his expertise on the Abu Sayyaf Group in the Southern Philippine province of Mindanao but has also become perhaps one of the UKs most recognised authorities on Filipino politics and Filipino foreign affairs. This often means that regional security is his headline theme with wider influence in strategic affairs in Southeast Asia and the US pivot to the Pacific. Following an honours degree in Law Tom graduated from the London School of Economics with an MSc in Global Politics specialising in Conflict and Peace Studies and Islam in International Relations. Tom was one of Fred Halliday’s last students and Fred encouraging Tom to complete a doctorate and fuelled much of his current work.

Philippines: Rodrigo Duterte's dictatorship sinks to new depths with closure of main broadcaster

May 09, 2020 07:26 am UTC| Politics

After just four years in power, Rodrigo Duterte, the president of the Philippines, has turned his country into a deadly dictatorship one again. Now the closure of the countrys major mainstream news platform ABS-CBN on May...

Global Geopolitics Series

Rodrigo Duterte terminated a military agreement with US – why it could push Philippines closer to China

Feb 18, 2020 01:15 am UTC| Insights & Views

The president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, decided to terminate a prominent and unpopular military agreement with the US in early February. The move came as a direct response to Washingtons invocation of the...

Global Geopolitics Series

Why Trump's Syrian strike was a good thing

Apr 10, 2017 13:54 pm UTC| Insights & Views

The Syrian people and their Muslim brothers and sisters have been screaming for help for years as crimes against humanity racked up against them and their kin. Yet the West has so far refused to intervene directly and...

Economy

Soybean Futures Slip as Traders Await Trump-Xi Trade Signals

Chicago soybean futures edged lower on Thursday as traders closely watched Chinese President Xi Jinpings state visit to Washington for signs of progress on U.S.-China agricultural trade and future soybean purchases. CBOT...

European Stocks Fall as Bond Yields and Geopolitical Risks Weigh

European stocks closed lower on Thursday as rising bond yields, geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East and concerns surrounding artificial intelligence weighed on investor sentiment. The pan-European STOXX 600 dropped...

Trump, Xi Focus on Trade and AI at White House Summit

U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House on Thursday, opening high-level talks focused on trade, artificial intelligence, security and broader U.S.-China relations. Xis trip...

Oil Prices Jump 3% as Houthi Attack Revives Supply Fears

Oil prices surged about 3% on Thursday, with Brent crude reaching a one-week high after a Houthi missile attack on Saudi Arabia renewed concerns over Middle East supply disruptions. Gains eased later as reports emerged...

Wall Street Ends Flat as Oil, Treasury Yields and Fed Jitters Rattle Markets

Wall Street finished mostly unchanged on Thursday after a volatile session driven by surging oil prices, rising U.S. Treasury yields and increasingly hawkish Federal Reserve signals. The SP 500 closed nearly flat at...

Politics

Trump Asks Supreme Court to Restore Third-Country Deportations

President Donald Trumps administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to allow it to continue deporting migrants to countries other than their homelands without automatically giving them an opportunity to raise...

Netanyahu Defends Israel at UN as Delegates Stage Walkout

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a defiant address to the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, defending Israels military actions as dozens of delegates walked out in protest. The speech came as...

US Backs Musk in Fight Against EU’s €120 Million X Fine

The U.S. government has formally moved to join Elon Musks legal challenge against a 120 million ($136.5 million) European Union fine imposed on his social media platform X, escalating a dispute over the reach of European...

Netanyahu’s Brief US Trip Highlights Strains With Trump

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to make an unusually short visit to the United States for his UN General Assembly address, underscoring signs of strain in US-Israel relations ahead of Israels October...

Abbas Reaffirms November 28 Palestinian Elections

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reaffirmed plans to hold legislative elections on November 28, potentially marking the first Palestinian parliamentary vote in two decades, even as political and logistical obstacles...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Former OpenAI Data Center Chief Chris Malone Joins Nvidia

Chris Malone, the former head of data centers at OpenAI, has joined Nvidia as vice president of its DSX Platform, strengthening the chipmakers leadership team as demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure continues...

Akamai Shares Surge on $11.6B Anthropic AI Cloud Deal

Akamai Technologies shares jumped as much as 20% in after-hours trading Thursday after the cloud computing company announced an $11.6 billion, seven-year agreement with artificial intelligence firm Anthropic. The contract...

Oracle Shares Fall as New Mexico AI Data Center Faces Power Delays

Oracle Corp. shares fell after reports that the technology giant is seeking protection from financial obligations linked to its massive artificial intelligence data center project in New Mexico amid regulatory and...

BlackBerry Shares Rise as Q2 Earnings, Revenue Beat Estimates

BlackBerry shares climbed more than 2% in premarket trading Thursday after the cybersecurity and software company reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter results and issued an upbeat full-year revenue outlook....

Apple Extends Qualcomm Patent Licensing Deal

Qualcomm said Thursday that Apple has extended its patent-licensing agreement with the U.S. chip designer, maintaining a key part of their relationship even as the iPhone maker works to reduce its dependence on Qualcomm...