Economics

For the past 4 years – especially since the US ‘trade war’ on China started by the Trump administration in 2017 – Washington has been seeking ways to contain, roll-back on its gains and encircle China. The US ‘trade war’ was not something entirely new; in fact, it was a continuation of the Obama administration’s ‘Asia Pivot’ that focused on shifting…

While the recent meeting between Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi in Beijing may not in itself be an extra-ordinary event, its significance against the backdrop of the on-going tussle between Russia and the US/NATO is quite unmistakable – not only for Russia itself, but for the US/NATO as well. Even though Russia does not really need China’s help to defend…

The Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and his United States counterpart Antony Blinken are scheduled to hold a meeting next week at an as yet undisclosed European location. It is difficult to see what the two men have to talk about. Lavrov has recently held meetings in Moscow with his British counterpart Elizabeth…

During the Trump Administration we were introduced to the unsmiling figure of a certain Stephen Miller, senior adviser and speechwriter. According to a longstanding and far-fetched conspiracy theory, the world is run by a race of reptiles disguised as humans. The only reason Miller cannot be one of them is that, in his case, the disguise is non-existent. Whenever Miller…

Indonesia is the largest country in South East Asia (SEA), with a population of over 270 million. It is one of the leading states in the region, with considerable weight within ASEAN, and the world powers vying for influence in South East Asia are forced to pay a great deal of attention to Indonesia. The US and China, the two mighty superpowers and the world’s first…

Internationally, Russia has traditionally been seen as one of the leading suppliers of technology, especially in such areas as the arms and military hardware markets. Many countries, all over the world, purchase Russian-made military equipment, including anti-aircraft missile systems, fighter jets battleships, etc. But, globally…

It is well known that countries of the African continent are mostly poor and need the support of major world powers who in exchange for access to the African nations’ rich natural resources. The US and the PRC are considered the main players vying for influence in Africa these days: media mention them particularly often in relation to international African issues. Other actors…

The Joe Biden administration’s ‘new’ Indo-Pacific strategy document contains nothing ‘new’ insofar as the cardinal objective of this strategy is concerned i.e., ‘encircling China.’ Interestingly enough, the strategy has been revealed despite the Biden administration’s various rhetorical claims that the administration is not seeking to build up a global coalition against China, or that…

Given how the US withdrawal from the Middle East has impacted Washington’s ties with the Gulf countries, an opportunity certainly exists for the latter to pursue their ties with Beijing more freely than was the earlier the case. There is, in fact, already signs that China and the Gulf may well be taking concrete steps towards the China-Gulf Coopertaion Council…

The United States has elected to lock itself in a zero-sum conflict with China, attempting to stop China’s inevitable rise as the world’s largest, most powerful economy and thus nation. The narrative the US employs to justify political, economic, and even military measures it is targeting China with, revolves around US claims that China…

Africa is a vast continent, rich in resources of every kind – in addition to its famous diamond mines and hydrocarbon deposits, it has 50% of the world’s gold reserves, and 90% of its reserves of platinum, cobalt, chrome and other minerals required by modern manufacturing industries. And the continent’s vast and largely very poor population represents a promising market and…

The Biden Administration needs Russia to invade Ukraine. The US shale oil business needs Russia’s gas, to remain in Russia. The world may be at war soon, but not over the rights, wants, and wishes of the people of Eastern Europe or Central Asia. The controlling elites of the west are the ones gamling with lives, not Vladimir Putin and the Russians. In October of 2015…