He who learns but does not think is lost. However, he who thinks but does not learn is in great danger. Confucius
Sep 10, 2023 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
The Europe-Middle East-India corridor pushed by the U.S. in the G-20 Summit in India is just another geopolitical empty-shell project. China is already running the Piraeus Port with great success (plus building railways to Serbia and Hungary), Haifa Port, and is involved in the Saudi Land-Bridge project, Emirates' rail project, and ports in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. So, if there are new American and European investments, they would benefit China. But I suspect there will be none. The only "realistic" project, given the mindset and economic conditions in Europe, is building gas pipelines from the Gulf to Europe. But how do you do that without cooperation with Iran and Syria? Iraq is unstable, and the Kurdish question in southern Turkiye is eternal. In any case, why do anyone who is sane think this is an alternative to the Belt and Road Initiative? My view is that if it ever happens, it will be integrated into the BRI, not exclude it.
Another objective is to speed up normalisation of relationships between Israel and Saudi Arabia. But this is much politics and little economics. The poor Palestinian people will be thrown under the buss!
Jun 19, 2023 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
Went unnoticed: U.S. President continues to control all Iraqi oil revenues, decision going back to 2003.
This is how the U.S. controls Iraqi governments and policy making!
See background in the thread:
Background
Since 2003, the U.S. colonial governor Paul Bremer decided that all Iraqi oil revenues (that were put under the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) in UNSC Resolution 1483) will be transferred to an account in the U.S. Federal Reserve in New York in US$.