MenuWith Russian lobbyists pressuring Europe to cast aside alternatives to Russian gas, such as nuclear energy, we saw a lopsided growth in Russia’s strategic power over Europe. However, it clearly backfired as Putin’s war on Ukraine has continued despite sanctions. Russia lost a huge market in Europe: as much as 150 billion cubic meters of
Category Archives: Geopolitics
The Coming Hurricane: Russian Energy-Giant Gazprom Is Creating An Army
Ukrainian intelligence has reported that Russian energy giant Gazprom is establishing its own private military company (PMC). The rationale for an energy company establishing a security force is at least vaguely plausible given the need to defend fixed assets in trouble spots. Western energy companies like Exxon and BP do the same. However, Gazprom is not establishing
China’s Saudi Trip More Than Niceties
China has again taken center stage with a string of groundbreaking events that will define its policy course for years to come – both domestically and internationally. The CCP’s 20th Party Congress bequeathed Xi Jinping a historic third term as President, but extreme economic turmoil and COVID protest have resulted in a chink in his political armor.
How to expel Russia from the UN
The war in Ukraine will have demonstrated the impotence of the United Nations if a permanent member of the Security Council with full veto power becomes a rogue state without consequence. For the havoc it created, Russia must now be evicted from the UN. Read more.
The Greed And Geopolitics Of The OPEC+ Oil Production Cut
This move is not unexpected. As I wrote here, President Joe Biden’s failure in Saudi Arabia in July to secure more oil production shook Saudi Arabia’s transactional relationship (security for oil) with the USA to its foundations. Saudi Arabia began importing Russian fuel oils for domestic use to free up more crude oil for export months ago, with the
Russia’s trajectory of hate: A big war against the West coming
Putin, in his Götterdämmerung moment, is fearmongering. In Stalinist propaganda language, he claims that the West “took off their masks and showed their true nature” … “for centuries [the West] wanted to colonize Russia, and after the collapse of the Soviet Union dreamed, but failed, to shatter it into pieces, set off ethnic groups against each other,
A Tale of Good Intentions and Unexpected Consequences
Despite Francis Fukuyama’s infamous opinion, history certainly did not end. The imperial collapse was an unintended consequence of Gorbachev’s desire to humanize socialism and save the USSR. He utterly failed in both tasks, but Russia and other Soviet republics were liberated from the Communist nightmare, and the world gained 30 years of relative peace, which is
Energy Policies For Refugee Assistance: Sustainability And Access
Refugees crowded into squalid camps is not a new mental image. The numbers of refugees are continuing to climb globally. This humanitarian crisis is not just a disaster on its own terms but is also an underappreciated part of our modern energy crises. Read the full article here…
Floating Solar: The Most Practical Green Technology?
Earlier this month, the US Army launched a large floating solar array at Camp Mackall on Fort Bragg in North Carolina— the country’s largest domestic military base. This launch marks a critical moment for floating photovoltaics (FPVs) which have yet to attract mainstream attention in the USA. Read the full article here…
The Roots of Putin’s Strategic Fiasco in Ukraine
From many conversations held with Russian policymakers, we know that the vision which denies Ukraine peoplehood, and the Kremlin’s resulting aggressions, are nothing new. This war’s atrocities flow from the dark misapprehensions held by many Moscow elites concerning Russia’s destiny, history and geopolitics. Read the full article…