'Captivating... The stuff of thrillers' - the Financial Times An explosive new vision of
geopolitics from two trail-blazing political scientists Deep beneath our feet vast and
sprawling lies one of the most sophisticated empires the world has ever known. At first glance
it might not look like much - it is made up of fibre optic cables and obscure payment systems.
But according to prominent political scientists Henry Farrell and Abraham Newman the United
States has turned the most vital pathways of the world economy into tools of domination over
foreign businesses and countries whether they are rivals or allies allowing it to maintain
global supremacy. Drawing on original reporting and ground-breaking research Farrell and
Newman explain how this underground empire has allowed the United States to eavesdrop on other
countries and isolate its enemies. Now efforts by countries such as China and Russia to
untether themselves from this coercive US-led system are turning the global economy into a
battle zone. Today's headlines about trade wars sanctions and controls on technology exports
are merely tremors hinting at far greater seismic shifts beneath the surface as we sleepwalk
into a dangerous new struggle for empire. Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand
how power is wielded today Underground Empire weaves together tales of economic conflict
shadowy surveillance and covert infrastructure projects to explain how the world order has been
brought to the brink of chaos - and how we might find a way back from the edge.
