Chokepoints - by Edward Fishman (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

The epic story of how America turned the world economy into a weapon, upending decades of globalization to take on a new authoritarian axis--Russia, China, and Iran.

It used to be that ravaging another country's economy required blockading its ports and laying siege to its cities. Now all it takes is a statement posted online by the U.S. government.

In Chokepoints, Edward Fishman, a former top State Department sanctions official, takes us deep into the back rooms of power to reveal the untold history of the last two decades of U.S. foreign policy, in which America renounced the gospel of globalization and waged a new kind of economic war. As Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, and Ayatollah Khamenei wreaked havoc on the world stage, mavericks within the U.S. government built a fearsome new arsenal of economic weapons, exploiting America's dominance in global finance and technology. Successive U.S. presidents have relied on these unconventional weapons to address the most pressing national-security threats, for good and for ill.

Chokepoints provides a thrilling account of one of the most critical geopolitical developments of our time, demystifying the complex strategies the U.S. government uses to harness the power of Wall Street, Silicon Valley, and Big Oil against America's enemies. At the center of the narrative is an eclectic group of policy innovators: the diplomats, lawyers, and financial whizzes who've masterminded America's escalating economic wars against Russia, China, and Iran.

Economic warfare has become the primary way the United States confronts international crises and counters rivals. Sometimes it has achieved spectacular success; other times, bitter failure. The result we live with today is a new world order: an economic arms race among great powers and a fracturing global economy. Chokepoints is the definitive account of how America pioneered this new, hard-hitting style of economic war--and how it's changing the world.

Review Quotes

EARLY PRAISE FOR CHOKEPOINTS

"Remarkable...One of the most important books on economic warfare ever written."
-- Paul Kennedy, author of The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers

"A gripping, firsthand account of America's efforts to weaponize the world economy against its resurgent adversaries. From the U.S. campaign to curtail Iran's nuclear program to today's cutting-edge effort to stop China from accessing AI chips, Chokepoints is an unparalleled guide to America's use of sanctions and export controls over recent decades. Essential reading for understanding the new age of economic warfare."
-- Chris Miller, author of Chip War

"Brilliant and eye-opening--weaving together economic, geopolitical, and strategic analysis. Edward Fishman's riveting account of the global economic 'battlefield' sheds fascinating new light on our struggles with Iran, Russia, and China. An indispensable book for anyone who wants to understand current and future conflicts."
-- General Stanley McChrystal, U.S. Army (Ret.), former Commander of U.S. and International Forces in Afghanistan and author of Team of Teams and My Share of the Task

"Brilliant, timely, and impossible to put down, Chokepoints is one of those rare books that utterly changes how you see the world. Edward Fishman pulls back the curtain on the hidden world of economic warfare, telling the untold story of how a rogue group of U.S. officials quietly reinvented U.S. foreign policy. He puts readers in the room as policymakers experiment with sanctions and other once-obscure tools to fight the biggest geopolitical threats of the day: a nuclear Iran, a resurgent Russia, and an assertive China. Combining the insider knowledge of a practitioner, the analytical insight of a scholar, and the narrative instincts of a born storyteller, Fishman has written a book that is as engrossing as it is urgent. No one seeking to understand the global economy or America's role in the world can afford to ignore this indispensable page turner."
-- Stuart A. Reid, Executive Editor of Foreign Affairs and author of The Lumumba Plot

"Chokepoints is the best book on sanctions that I have ever read--a tour de force that illuminates in spellbinding detail how economic warfare is reshaping the world. Edward Fishman combines his deep knowledge of the subject with a dynamic, engaging writing style, recasting U.S. government technocrats as superheroes fighting high-stakes economic battles. Sanctions are at the center of geopolitical competition today. This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand how the world works in the 21st century."
-- Michael McFaul, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Professor at Stanford University, and author of From Cold War to Hot Peace

"Edward Fishman has done the impossible: he has written a book about America's strategic economic policies that is at once grand in scope, meticulously researched, and, above all, a lively and captivating read. Those interested in how the United States uses its economic power as a strategic weapon in today's dangerous and complex world need look no further. This book is a gem."
-- Robert Kagan, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, columnist for The Washington Post, and author of The Ghost at the Feast and Of Paradise and Power

"In this timely and highly readable book, Edward Fishman demystifies and humanizes one of today's most complex and consequential subjects: America's use of economic power as a tool of 21st-century warfare. Drawing on his firsthand experience at the State Department, Fishman takes readers into Washington's back corridors of power, revealing how U.S. officials raced to create new economic weapons to counter a trio of formidable challenges: Russia's imperial aggression, China's drive for technological dominance, and Iran's nuclear ambitions. An invaluable book for anyone who wants to understand the risks, trade-offs, and limitations of America's weaponization of the world economy."
-- Fiona Hill, former Senior Director for Europe and Russia at the National Security Council and author of There is Nothing for You Here

"How can America sustain its economic and financial advantage in the face of fierce geopolitical competition? Chokepoints provides the playbook. Edward Fishman traces the historical evolution of economic warfare, taking readers behind the scenes of the U.S. campaigns to counter China's economic aggression, Iran's nuclear ambitions, and Russia's revanchism. Along the way, Fishman uncovers valuable strategic lessons and makes compelling recommendations that leaders in government and business must implement urgently."
-- Lt. General H. R. McMaster, U.S. Army (Ret.), former White House National Security Advisor and author of Battlegrounds and At War with Ourselves

"This book should be required reading on both sides of the Atlantic as the West faces a geopolitical reckoning. Edward Fishman, a scholar-practitioner with deep insider knowledge from his time in government, provides a gripping account of the rise of a new form of economic warfare. Chokepoints is written with an eye to both the general and the specific, skillfully blending the Olympian big picture with wonderful vignettes of how the world economy works. Fishman argues convincingly that the West cannot have economic interdependence, economic security, and great power competition at the same time. We will have to make a choice quickly, before it is made for us."
-- Brendan Simms, Professor in the History of International Relations at the University of Cambridge, Director of the Centre for Geopolitics, and author of Europe: The Struggle for Supremacy, from 1453 to the Present

"Sanctions are vital weapons in the war for global power and influence. Chokepoints is a master class in how sanctions work, and why, sometimes, they don't. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand global competition today."
-- Hal Brands, Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Affairs at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and author of Danger Zone

"This peerless contemporary history of American sanctions, grounded in personal experience and thorough research, will guide all who wish to address global problems through the responsible and effective use of economic power."
-- Timothy Snyder, Professor of History at Yale University and author of On Tyranny and Bloodlands

"Chokepoints is a compelling exploration of how economic infrastructure increasingly shapes geopolitics--illuminating the history, inner workings, and future stakes of this important 21st-century phenomenon. An excellent read for anyone seeking to understand how power will be wielded in the years to come."
-- Patrick Collison, co-founder and CEO of Stripe

About the Author

Edward Fishman is a leading authority on economic statecraft and sanctions. He teaches at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs and is a senior research scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy. He also advises companies on geopolitical strategy and invests in early-stage technology startups. Previously, he served at the U.S. State Department as a member of the Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff, at the Pentagon as an advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and at the U.S. Treasury Department as special assistant to the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. His writing and analysis are regularly featured by outlets such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Foreign Affairs, Politico, and NPR. He holds a BA in History from Yale, an MPhil in International Relations from Cambridge, and an MBA from Stanford. He lives with his wife and two children in New York City.