Brendon J. Cannon is assistant professor of international security at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE. His research focuses on the nexus of security studies, geopolitics and the interplay between states in the international system. His major focus is on the Indo-Pacific, broadly, and the western Indian Ocean region to include east Africa. He is the author of multiple articles appearing in African Security, International Politics, Defence Studies and Third World Quarterly. He earned a PhD in political science from the University of Utah, USA (2009), and has held previous academic positions in Nairobi and Hargeisa.