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Motivation: The need to diversify their economies is an enduring challenge for fossil fuel‐dependent countries, one which will become ever more important as the world seeks to decarbonize. But the conditions under which major oil‐producing countries (petrostates) seek to diversify their exports—and those under which their attempts succeed—are poorly understood. Purpose: This article tests competing explanations for the successes and failures of petrostates' export diversification. Methods and approach: We employ a comparative case study approach using qualitative evidence from two comparatively successful diversification cases—Egypt and Malaysia—and one less successful case—Kazakhstan—selected using a Theil index of export concentration. Findings: The evidence indicates that Egypt and Malaysia's more successful outcomes stemmed more from necessity and policy design than from differences in domestic institutions and interests. All three countries were motivated to diversify by price volatility and declining revenues at various points from the 1980s to the 2000s and beyond, but reserve depletion was a greater threat in Egypt and Malaysia. As such, they adopted a more balanced approached to diversification, one that combined liberalization with state intervention. Policy implications: These cases suggest that petrostates may be willing and able to diversify as the global shift toward renewables raises the prospect of unburnable oil reserves. Petrostates can diversify efficiently by using a basket of policies that includes a mix of economic liberalization and government intervention to create investment and incentives in non‐oil tradeable sectors and nurture infant industries. Opposition to reforms in petrostates can be addressed by selectively compensating vested interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) materials exhibit extraordinary optical, electrical, and mechanical properties. Many functional nanostructures and devices of exceptional performance based on 2D materials have been demonstrated. However, the processing of 2D materials remains challenging due to inadequacies that are mainly driven by high fabrication cost, complex steps, and inefficient impurity control. On the other hand, laser-aided processing techniques offer versatility, nanoscale precision, and high throughput. Numerous efforts have showcased the implementation of laser processing and functionalization of 2D materials to control their physical properties and optimize device functionality. In this Perspective, we summarize research progress on laser-enabled thinning, patterning, doping, and functionalization of 2D materials. Continuing advances in optical processing techniques are anticipated to further accelerate the deployment of 2D materials and devices in many fields, including photonics, optoelectronics, and sensor applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing literature suggests that alliance members can use their partners' abandonment fears to obtain favorable concessions for themselves. However, evidence on the effectiveness of threats of abandonment as motivation for defense burden-sharing remains limited. This article uses a survey experiment conducted in Poland and Germany to assess how American signals of support and threats of abandonment shape public support for increasing their countries' military spending. The findings suggest that threats of abandonment increase public support for higher defense spending, whereas approaches like "naming and shaming" under-contributing partners do not. However, assurances of protection did not decrease support for defense spending, and combining threats with assurances if anything increased those threats' effects. Threats are thus most effective when they do not fundamentally undermine targets' confidence in US protection. The findings have implications for understanding alliance politics and the utility of public pressure, and for policy debates about encouraging defense burden-sharing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how declining oil revenue might shape the amount of international conflict initiated by major oil producers (petrostates). We analyze four potential mechanisms through which variation in oil prices could affect petrostate conflict initiation: emboldenment, battling over a smaller market, signaling strength, and diversionary conflict. The empirical findings suggest that higher oil prices are associated with lower rates of petrostate conflict initiation. From one standard deviation below the mean oil price to one standard deviation above it, the predicted number of militarized interstate disputes declines twofold, from.025 [95% CI:.016–.034] per petrostate per year to.012 [.007–.016]. Moreover, the evidence suggests that petrostates are more likely to target other petrostates when oil prices are low. This suggests that the energy transition may not be a boon for international peace among petrostates, and for a time, it may even prove to be the opposite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Power projection is a central means by which states exert influence. Conventional wisdom holds that states pay more for foreign bases in the presence of third-party competitors, yet the mechanisms by which competition shapes the costs of bases are both theoretically underspecified and empirically understudied. This article tests three mechanisms by which competition can shape the price of access: denial, crowding out, and information. We study the behavior of the United States in Africa, using new data on US compensation and bases and qualitative evidence from the US presence in Djibouti. Our findings suggest that China's economic incentives have crowded out the effectiveness of US economic incentives in securing access. We further show that Djiboutian leaders escalated their demands for US compensation as other base-seekers entered the market due to a combination of US efforts to limit its rivals' access and Djibouti's learning about the value of its real estate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the challenges the United States faces in encouraging burden sharing among its allies in Europe and the Indo-Pacific. It discusses the atrophied capabilities of US allies in Europe due to the focus on the war on terrorism and the conflicts in the Middle East that require US attention. The article explores the risks and benefits of burden sharing, considering the capabilities and motivations of allies in these regions. It concludes by offering recommendations on how the US can encourage burden sharing while mitigating the risks. The article provides an objective analysis of this issue without taking a stance on the matter. [Extracted from the article]