Geopolitics and Imperialism: Compendium
Record Profits for US Arms (The Cradle: Arms)
Excerpts
“Stock funds with holdings in the US aerospace and defense industry – including companies like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, RTX, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, and L3Harris – saw their profits soar past expectations this year, outperforming the S&P 500 index…
“Lockheed Martin, makers of the F-35 aircraft that Israel has used to relentlessly bomb Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, produced a 54.86 percent total return from 7 October 2023 to the same date in 2024, outperforming S&P 500 by about 18 percent.
“RTX, the makers of 2,000-pound ‘bunker buster‘ bombs that turned most of Gaza to rubble and are currently being dropped inside the Lebanese capital, saw its total return for investors in the past year reach 82.69 percent, outperforming S&P 500 by about 46 percent.
“General Dynamics, which also manufactures bunker busters and is behind the BLU-109 bombs that Israel used to level several apartment buildings in the southern suburbs of Beirut during the assassination of Hezbollah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah, delivered a 37 percent total return for investors, outperforming the S&P 500 by just over 3 percent…
“According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), between 2019 and 2023, Israel accounted for 2.1 percent of all global arms imports. During the same period, the US accounted for 69 percent of Israel’s arms imports, while Germany accounted for 30 percent.
“As Washington retains its long-standing hold as the world’s largest arms dealer – controlling 42 percent of the global arms market – the country has also significantly boosted its military spending to assist Israel, blowing through at least $23 billion in one year”.
Russia and Iran (Ali Noureddine, Fanack: Noureddine)
Excerpts:
“Since the start of 2024, points of contention between Russia and Iran have been steadily escalating, primarily over border demarcation issues in the Arabian Gulf, disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and the ongoing civil war in Sudan.
These disagreements have strained diplomatic relations between the two nations, despite their shared stance against Western influence.
However, the growing tensions have not halted their ongoing security and defence cooperation, which remains mutually beneficial under the principle of shared interests.
In September 2024, diplomatic tensions between Russia and Iran reached new heights when Tehran summoned the Russian ambassador to voice concerns over Moscow’s South Caucasus policies, which Iran believes disregard its strategic interests.
This sensitive development followed statements by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who sought to pressure Armenia into a settlement that would grant Azerbaijan control over the “Zangezur Corridor.” Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed a similar position during his August 2024 visit to Azerbaijan…
Currently, Azerbaijan is demanding control over the Zangezur Corridor, located in the far south of Armenia, to establish communication between its eastern and western territories. Azerbaijani claims to this corridor are framed as a pursuit of “unity” within its territories…Securing this corridor would enable Azerbaijan to link its ally Turkiye to the Caspian Sea, facilitating connections to other Turkish-speaking nations in Central Asia…
In contrast, Iran perceives this expansive project as a direct threat to its strategic interests. The corridor runs along Armenia’s southern border with Iran, and if Azerbaijan’s proposal is realised, Tehran would entirely lose its access to Armenian territory…
Consequently, the growing alignment between Russia and Azerbaijan, along with Putin’s backing of Azerbaijan’s claims regarding the Zangezur Corridor, represents a significant aspect of the current understandings between Russia and Turkiye…
Moscow continues to support the United Arab Emirates in its claim of sovereignty over three islands disputed with Iran…Putin has opted to confront Iranian interests on a sensitive issue concerning islands that hold significant geopolitical importance for shipping routes in the Gulf region. By doing so, Russia has chosen to prioritise its shared interests with the Arab Gulf states, particularly the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, both of which wield considerable influence within the OPEC+ alliance…
In the Sudanese arena, the interests of Russia and Iran have also diverged markedly. Since the onset of the current civil war, Russia has aligned itself with the Rapid Support Forces, engaging in agreements to invest in Sudanese gold fields in exchange for military and logistical support.
This backing is a continuation of the longstanding relationship between the Russian Wagner Group and leaders of Sudanese armed factions that dates back to 2017, focusing on the exploitation of the country’s natural resources.
In contrast, Iran has opted to provide direct military support to the Sudanese regular army in its conflict against the Rapid Support Forces. This strategy has enabled the Sudanese army to acquire advanced drones from Iran, significantly influencing the battles in western Kordofan, Sennar, and Gedaref”.
Klarenberg on MI6 Exploitation of Palestinians
Excerpt:
Leaked files expose the intensive interest taken in Palestinians by British intelligence operatives, and Foreign Office-funded and directed cutouts, over many years. Collectively, the material leaves little room for doubt that the British government has long sought to covertly surveil, infiltrate, and manipulate Palestinians within and without their homeland for malign ends, while exploiting their suffering to serve London’s geopolitical objectives…. (see link above)
Ken Silverstein of Washing Babylon on Blinken and the WestExec Advisors
Excerpt:
“America is run by a ruling class that’s born and bred to exercise power. Its members attend the same universities, have positions at the same think tanks between stints in government, are board members at the same corporations and advisors to the same hedge funds and private equity firms, and hold executive positions at the same access-dependent, door-opening corporate intelligence and advisory firms — and that last category leads to WestExec, which is a particularly instructive example.
Anthony Blinken’s fellow co-founders at WestExec Advisors. Screenshot from company website.
“WestExec Advisors brings the Situation Room to the Board Room,” boasts the firm’s website, which calls its corporate directorate “an unparalleled group of this generation’s thought leaders and senior practitioners in national security and international affairs.” Blinken is currently tied up helping Israel rape, pillage, and murder its way across the Middle East and possibly trigger a nuclear holocaust, but his equally dedicated, upstanding co-founders and managing partners are still on hand to held WestExec’s lucky clients. The firm doesn’t disclose its clients, however a few were revealed in disclosure forms filed by Blinken and Haines when they went to work for Biden, among others Blackstone, Facebook, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Palantir, and Uber”.
Drago Bosnic on the French in Romania (Global Research: Bosnic)
Excerpt:
“Namely, thousands of French soldiers will be deployed to Romania in May and train for a major war. According to Politico, 2025 will be “crucial for the French army, which has undergone a major transformation in recent years to prepare for a possible conflict with Russia”. The large-scale military exercise, dubbed Dacian Spring 2025, will “assess their ability to swiftly move to NATO’s eastern flank”, supposedly a “key competence should Russian President Vladimir Putin decide to attack an alliance member”.
The report also postulates that the French military started a “profound transformation to be ready for a high-intensity conflict similar to the war in Ukraine” and that it also has “new marching orders from NATO: By 2027 it should be able to deploy a war-ready division in 30 days, including ammunition and supplies”. In NATO, a division has anywhere from 10,000 to as many as 25,000 troops.
In comparison, the Russian military can field up to four million soldiers in case of a direct confrontation with the world’s most vile racketeering cartel, making the viability of the latter’s conventional capabilities against it all the more questionable. Thus, the logical conclusion is that NATO is using this as an excuse to escalate its occupation of Eastern Europe.
Namely, the report by Politico suggests that “the key challenge will be to get to Romania in such a short period of time”, quoting General Pierre-Eric Guillot who said that “there’s still no military Schengen” and that NATO “needs to decisively improve military mobility in Europe”. It should be noted that the so-called “military Schengen” is effectively a militarization of the European Union, which exposed itself as a rather pathetic geopolitical pendant of the world’s most vile racketeering cartel, as the deal essentially boils down to its fusion with NATO”.
A Yuan Liquidity Crisis in Russia (The Bell: Bell)
Excerpts
“With interest rates in Russia at almost 20% – making borrowing in rubles almost unsustainable – yuan-denominated loans have been a lifeline for some Russian companies. But there isn’t enough Chinese currency to go around. In recent months, the market suffered a yuan liquidity crisis. We decided to take a close look at the yuan shortage, and what it says about broader problems for the Russian currency markets.
The yuan has become the main foreign currency in Russia for three reasons: Western sanctions, a shift away from what the Kremlin sees as “toxic” U.S. dollars and euros, and increased trade with Asian countries…With Russia’s interest rates likely to keep rising, there is unexpected demand for loans in yuan among Russian companies who want lower interest rates. .. It’s most often businesses engaged in foreign trade that take loans in yuan. .. However, in recent months, Russia faced a yuan liquidity crisis (in other words, demand for the Chinese currency outstripped supply) … The continuing problems making payments through Chinese banks that began after U.S. threats to impose secondary sanctions on companies aiding Russia is also complicating matters. Russian exporters face delays in getting revenue, and the only way to fulfill their obligations is to borrow yuan from Russian banks, according to analysts.
“A further reason for the problems with yuan liquidity are U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia’s National Clearing Center (NCC) in July, a banker involved in the currency markets told The Bell. … A halt in yuan trading would drive up costs for all importers and exporters, a source connected with the Russian currency market told The Bell. At the same time, there is no talk of stopping settlements entirely: while Europe continues to purchase Russian exports (notably gas) solutions will be found, he said.
Kadyrov vs. Kerimov (The Bell Bell)
Excerpts
“Two weeks after a fatal shoot-out at the Moscow office of Wildberries, a battle for control over the so-called Russian Amazon shows no sign of ending. The stand-off between the two most powerful men in the rival factions, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, appears to be escalating. Kadyrov claimed Wednesday that Kerimov and his partners had ordered his assassination and, in response, declared a blood feud. The remarks were widely covered by state media.
“As well as Kerimov, Kadyrov also declared a blood feud against parliamentary deputies Bekkhan Barakhoyev and Rizvan Kurbanov. Kerimov, one of the 10 wealthiest people in Russia, is believed to be behind Russia’s biggest outdoor advertising company, Russ, which is currently merging with Wildberries. Barakhoyev is a co-owner of Russ and Kurbanov is a Duma deputy assumed to be Kerimov’s man. The merger with Russ was negotiated by Wildberries founder Tatyana Bakalchuk against the wishes of her husband, Vladislav (who risks losing his stake in the company). The couple are apparently divorcing. To halt the deal, Vladislav turned to Kadyrov for assistance….
“Aside from the immediate victims of the conflict, Russian President Vladimir Putin himself increasingly appears to be a loser in this corporate dispute that has spiraled out of control. Although the president gave the go-ahead for the Wildberries merger, Kadyrov’s involvement has seen it become something of a clan war. Putin’s legitimacy rests on a general recognition among leading businessmen that he alone is the indisputable arbiter of property rights in Russia. The Wildberries struggle calls that status into question”.