Extractionist Populism Abroad

Leaders combine populist anti‑elite rhetoric at home with narrowly targeted foreign operations designed to seize or access resources rather than to build legitimate, long‑term governance. The tactic reframes military force as a direct economic grab dressed in nationalist/populist language. — If this becomes a standard operating mode, it will change alliance calculations, provoke legal controversies over extraterritorial force, and normalize state behavior that prioritizes short‑term resource capture over stable order.