The Centre of Russian World Affairs Is Moving East

It is customary for European schools to resume their activities with the beginning of September, which provides us all with the opportunity to picture ourselves back in a school bench and pore over the map of the world. Some of the facts that we learnt back then and have long forgotten might turn up handy to help us through today’s unstable geopolitical situation. Others will let us unravel the complex networks that we, accustomed to our European perspective, have lost sight of. A look at a world’s map is enough for us to put everything in the right perspective. Nowadays we are facing a number of agendas that are propagandized by the powers that be. Facts are propaganda’s most implacable enemies since they provide an average citizen with food for thought, enabling him to come up with his own worldview. Such facts can surely be found in a world’s map. Continue reading →

US shale oil collapsing: Permian Basin as the last bastion

Crude oil production in the United States has decreased by more than 10% since the record high of 2015, from 9.6 million barrels per day (mmbpd) to less than 8.6 mmbpd. However, the drop in shale oil production has reached almost 20%. Moreover, if the increasing Permian Basin production were put out of the equation, the decrease in US shale oil output would be about 33%! And this fall will deepen as the number of new wells is still not sufficient. The collapse of the shale oil production is related to the decline curve of tight oil, but shale oil well production starts to decline much faster than that from regular wells. Continue reading →

The Calais “Jungle”: A Model For French Urbanisation

In the heart of Paris’ 19^th arrondissement (Flanders Avenue Metro Stalingrad Riquet) is a migrant camp. Hundreds of young men (20-30 years old) are sleeping on the streets, on cardboard, like animals. 19^th arrondissement (Stalingrad) is a popular area (it is a nice place to live, I’ve been living here for over 20 years). Today we have the joy of discovering human misery, accepted by our state and our leaders and endorsed by all people “with a good heart” who think we cannot leave people from war-torn countries without help.

Continue reading →

European Data Shows: Deflation Does not Exclude Economic Growth

While Mario Draghi is pursuing his campaign against deflation that is allegedly so bad for the economy, almost all European countries with deflation have recorded quite a significant GDP growth in the 2nd quarter 2016. The only one deflation-country that is still in recession is – not surprisingly – Greece. Poland, Slovakia and Romania with an over-one-year deflation are at the fore of the EU fastest growing states.

Greece’s deflation has lasted for more than three years, but this is a special case of economics. Deflation in Cyprus has also been lasting for more than three years and still the island has been able to boost its economy. Poland, Slovakia and Romania with their longer-than-one-year deflation are in the vanguard of the European GDP growth. Short-term deflation has not damaged Spanish, Bulgarian or Hungarian growth either. Continue reading →

Breaking the Siege of Aleppo Will Make Erdoğan the father of all Sunni Muslims

The events in Syria are changing rapidly. Turkey has entered Syria and is heading for Al-Bab, a city 35 kilometers from Aleppo, according to a Turkey government official and a statement issued by the Turkey-supported Muslim militia united in the FSA (Free Syrian Army).The next step is lifting the siege of Aleppo from the east. Atatürk became the Father of all Turks after he had won the Battle of Gallipoli and defeated major European powers; Erdoğan will be the father of all Sunni Muslims if he liberates Aleppo and thus gains the upper hand over Russia and Iran.

Russia, the Kurds, and the Syrian army were very close to cutting off the Raqqa-Turkey supply route. Turkey’s invasion is a gift from heaven for the Jihadists in Raqqa: it prevents them from being cut off from Turkey. Turkey’s invasion of Syria is clearly to the advantage of ISIS.

Turkey’s objectives in Syria have always been clear and these are to:

1. prevent the Kurds from gaining autonomy, destroy the YPD, the sister organisation of the PKK, and
2. remove Assad from power.

Continue reading →

Poland Should Rethink its Defense Strategy

It was 77 years ago today that the Second World War began. Early in the morning on September 1^st German troops violated the country’s territorial integrity along all of the shared borderline and later that same day Chancellor Adolf Hitler delivered a speech in the Reichstag some of whose words went down in history: Polen hat heute Nacht zum ersten Mal auf unserem eigenen Territorium auch mit bereits regulären Soldaten geschossen. Seit 5:45 Uhr wird jetzt zurückgeschossen! Continue reading →

Apple Ruling is a Retaliation for US Unjustified Fines on EU Banks

Apple’s $14 billion EU tax fine, and the suspension of the TTIP negotiations cannot come as a surprise; they are a clear retaliation for the totally unjustified penalties the US authorities imposed on European banks during the period between 2009 and 2014.

These fines were based on a change in U.S. regulations made in the second half of the 2010’s, i.e. that all operations done in dollars need to conform to American regulations. As the Dollar happens to be the world’s reserve currency, the US unilaterally expanded its jurisdiction on all other nations. The U.S. has the power to subjugate their partners to their authority and hand over some of their sovereignty to the ruling elites in Washington. BNP Paribas was forced to pay $8.9 billion to Washington regulators. The extraordinary high penalty on the French bank was for all intents and purposes a humiliation of France. Continue reading →