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Researcher & writer based in Hong Kong. Former academic. Longform articles archived at https://lauraruggeri.substack.com and https://laura-ruggeri.medium.com. Email: lauraru852@yandex.ru
The genocidal and terrorist entity known as "Israel" murdered Ahmed al-Rahawi, the prime minister of the Houthis’ government along with several other ministers in Thursday strike on Sanaa, the capital of Yemen.
Yet, the international response appears disturbingly muted, as if such an act carries no significant consequence. This reflects a troubling pattern: leaders and people from the Global South are dehumanized or overlooked by Western powers, except when they are vilified to serve a narrative. @LauraRuHK
Ukronazi Andriy Parubiy has been eliminated in Lvov. The killer fired about 8 shots at the target, then hid the pistol in a bag and fled the scene on an electric bicycle, eyewitnesses claim.
Parubiy died before the medics arrived.
Zelensky confirmed the death of the former head of the NSDC and the Rada.
/channel/Slavyangrad/139226
Vladimir Putin's interview with China's Xinhua news agency ahead of his official visit to China:
▪️In Russia, we will never forget that China's heroic resistance was one of the crucial factors that prevented Japan from stabbing the Soviet Union in the back during the darkest months of 1941–1942. This enabled the Red Army to concentrate its efforts on crushing Nazism and liberating Europe.
▪️The peoples of the Soviet Union and China bore the brunt of the fighting and suffered the heaviest losses. It was our citizens who endured the greatest hardships in the struggle against the invaders and played a decisive role in defeating Nazism and militarism. Through those severe trials, the finest traditions of friendship and mutual assistance were forged and strengthened – traditions that today form a solid foundation for Russian–Chinese relations. ▪️Russia and China resolutely condemn any attempts to distort the history of the Second World War, glorify Nazis, militarists and their accomplices, members of death squads and killers, or to defame Soviet liberators. The results of that war are enshrined in the UN Charter and other international instruments. They are inviolable and not subject to revision. This is our shared, unwavering position with our Chinese friends. ▪️Economic relations between Moscow and Beijing have reached an unprecedentedly high level, China is Russia's leading partner in terms of bilateral trade.
▪️Russia-China transactions are carried out in rubles and yuan, with the dollar or euro share "reduced to a statistical discrepancy".
▪️Russia firmly retains its position as a leading oil and gas exporter to China. Since the Power of Siberia pipeline began its operation in 2019, cumulative deliveries of natural gas have already exceeded 100 billion cubic metres. In 2027, we plan to launch another major gas route, the so-called Far Eastern Route. We are also working together effectively on LNG projects in Russia's Arctic region.
▪️Russia is one of the world's main markets for Chinese car exports.
▪️Cooperation between Russia and China in the UN, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and BRICS is a significant factor in global politics.
▪️Russia expects South Africa's G20 presidency to consolidate the achievements of the Global South. @LauraRuHK Read more 👉https://english.news.cn/20250830/db2fc32491a7448cb2249adbbb9adde9/c.html
The US State Department has approved the potential sale of over 3,000 ERAM (Extended Range Attack Munition) air-launched missiles and related equipment to Ukraine for $825 million, according to the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which oversees the delivery of military equipment and weapons abroad under intergovernmental contracts.
According to the statement, Ukrainian authorities had previously requested up to 3,350 of these missiles, along with compatible navigation systems. Kiev may use funds provided by Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway to cover the cost of the weapons. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK
Several world leaders, including Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, are scheduled to join President Xi Jinping at a military parade in Beijing next week.
According to China’s Foreign Ministry, no Western leaders will be among the 26 foreign heads of state and government attending, except for Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, the sole representative from an EU member state.
Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei announced that attendees at the parade will include Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, Iranian President Masoud Pezashkian, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, and South Korea’s National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik.
On the day of the event, Xi will inspect tens of thousands of troops at Tiananmen Square, joined by senior Chinese officials and foreign dignitaries. The highly choreographed display, one of China’s largest in years, will showcase advanced military hardware, including fighter jets, missile defense systems, and hypersonic weapons.
CHINA & CENTRAL ASIA Investments under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) surged in the first half of the year – particularly for projects in Central Asia related to metals and mining – leading some analysts to conclude Beijing is seeking access to critical natural resources as a precaution against escalatory trade restrictions from the United States.
The 150 countries taking part in the global infrastructure initiative received a combined US$124 billion in investments and construction contracts from January to June, more than the US$122 billion reported for all of 2024, the US-based China-Global South Project research organisation said on its website Tuesday.
The organisation noted an “unusually high concentration” of funding allocated to Central Asia, a region it said Chinese investors were “keen” on for mining projects, particularly those extracting aluminium and copper.
Kazakhstan was the primary destination for Chinese capital, with US$23 billion invested there in the first six months of 2025. The largest project in the country in terms of investment size was a US$12 billion aluminium complex led by the Chinese conglomerate East Hope Group.
“China’s decision to commit such an enormous investment in Kazakhstan’s aluminium sector is the product of both internal economic pressures and shifting global trade dynamics,” the China-Global South Project said.
A shift to mineral and metal-related projects in Central Asia makes sense, because transport infrastructure has already been built in that region under the BRI, said Andy Xie, an independent Chinese economist in Shanghai. Minerals could be shipped to China by railway.
Kazakhstan has reserves of 15 rare earth elements, plus several metals used for making computers and cars.
Its president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, together with heads of the other four Central Asian countries, will participate in a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin on Sunday. (Source: SCMP) @LauraRuHK
German weapon manufacturer Rheinmetall will build two factories in Bulgaria — lower energy prices (thanks to Russian gas), lower labour costs — to produce artillery shells and gunpowder, CEO Armin Papperger says.
The leader of the Bulgarian GERB party, Boyko Borisov, who met with Papperger in Dusseldorf, has said that the gunpowder plant will be the largest in Europe. See also 👉 /channel/LauraRuHK/10420
The German welfare state is no longer financially sustainable, Friedrich Merz said on Saturday.
Merz argued for a fundamental reassessment of the benefits system as spending continues to soar past last year’s record of € 47billion. “The welfare state as we have it today can no longer be financed with what we can economically afford.” 🔺Two days later, German Finance Minister and Vice Chancellor, Lars Klingbeil arrived in Kiev on an unannounced visit.
📢🎤"We remain Ukraine's second-largest supporter worldwide and the largest in Europe," Klingbeil said. "Ukraine can continue to rely on Germany."
According to Klingbeil's ministry, the German government has provided Ukraine with €50.5 billion in support since the start of the war. @LauraRuHK
Media reports that China is allegedly ready to send peacekeeping forces to Ukraine are not true, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun says.
On Saturday, Die Welt reported, citing EU diplomats, that Beijing was ready to send its troops to Ukraine, if the peacekeepers are deployed within the UN mandate. @LauraRuHK
In North Korea, they showed unique footage of their special forces in action in the Kursk region. North Korean troops gained invaluable combat experience and distinguished themselves in the liberation of the Russian territory from Ukrainian occupation.
/channel/SolovievLive/334511
The appeal by Serbian opposition figures and protesters to Brussels and the West in general to act as mediators in resolving the crisis is one of the signs that the European Union was involved in this crisis from the outset, Russian Ambassador to Belgrade Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko told RIA Novosti.
"This is characteristic and confirms once again (the thesis - ed.) about external support and sponsorship from outside. The expected (steps - ed.) have already been taken. I waited several days, a week, for the appeal (from the protesters and the opposition - ed.) to external actors to intervene. Western, of course, external actors: to intervene, mediate and ‘achieve the restoration of democracy.’ Now this has already manifested itself," Botsan-Kharchenko told RIA Novosti.
Appeals to the West are accompanied by an active media campaign in the Western media, also directed against President Aleksandar Vučić and against Serbia, described as a country that does not want to integrate into European discipline, European standards and European values, the ambassador noted.
‘This refers, first and foremost, to (Belgrade's) refusal to take an anti-Russian line,’ the ambassador said.
Protesting students and opposition supporters have repeatedly appealed to the EU and the West for support. In April 2025, students organised a bicycle ride to Strasbourg, where they met with members of the European Parliament. European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos visited Belgrade at the end of April, where she held meetings with representatives of the authorities and the opposition and stated that the students' demands ‘largely coincide with Brussels' demands'. (Source: RIA Novosti) @LauraRuHK
According to Italian media, the attack on the Nord Stream is reconstructed in the seven pages of Serhii Kuznietsov's arrest warrant. The 49-year-old Ukrainian had booked a bungalow in a village near Rimini under his real name. He had been on holiday with his wife and two children since 19 August. German investigators believe Kuznietsov, a former Ukrainian captain with a background in the SBU secret service, coordinated a team consisting of seven people including four civilian divers whose task was to place explosives 70-80 metres deep, right under one of the most strategic and protected infrastructures on the continent.
Il Messaggero recalls that the order issued by the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, Zaluzhny (now ambassador to London), was revoked: Zelensky, under pressure from Washington, allegedly asked for everything to be stopped. But the team continued with the operation anyway. Russia and Europe lost their main gas pipeline, a $20 billion infrastructure that in 2021 had transported about half of Germany's annual natural gas needs.
Kiev continues to deny any involvement. It remains to be seen whether Kuznietsov will decide to cooperate with German investigators. Meanwhile, the Genoa Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating possible links with the February attack on the Seajewel oil tanker in Savona.
If you believe the reconstruction suggested by German investigators, Kuznietsov played a coordination role in the sabotage of the Nord Stream. The real question is who gave the order. The idea that the order had been revoked could either suggest a rare disagreement between London and Washington or is a complete lie. @LauraRuHK
Stocks of major US defense companies remain strong. As long as European countries keep buying overpriced toys for Kiev, and the US military-industrial complex rakes in profits, the war will continue. @LauraRuHK
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Li Yang writes: The Trump administration has already leveraged the conflict to get the maximum gains it can from Ukraine and European countries.
After that Washington has turned attention to try and broker a ceasefire so it can see what the US can get from Russia.
To this end, it has been hammering home the fact that without the support of the US, Kyiv and the European countries would not be able to sustain the conflict, not to mention hold the front line where it is. [...] After Merkel's retirement, the EU has thrown itself into the arms of the US. Many industrial, technological, as well as economic and trade policies that had proved effective in enabling the EU to stand on its own feet during Merkel's days have been dropped.
Blindly following Washington's foreign and geopolitical policies has not made the EU safer but a buffer zone and a coffer-filler for the US. It is no coincidence that the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out less than two months after Merkel's retirement.
So given the huge gap between what the EU wants and what it has, there might be even fiercer discussions between the European visitors and their US hosts in Washington this week than the widely televised meeting between Zelensky and Trump in the White House in late February.
Compared with then, the US has steadily advanced its agenda on the Ukraine crisis. Now it is time for Kyiv and its European supporters to accept the painful fact that they lack the necessary means to defend their own core interests in not only the conflict but also in their dealings with the US.
The EU is now experiencing the consequences of its choice over the past few years. It has to accept that the US is a self-centered ally that is ready to loot a burning house.
It will certainly take a long process to resolve the Ukraine crisis. Even so, none of the stakeholders, except the US, might feel happy with the final deal.
At least if the end of the crisis can serve to prompt the EU to resume its pursuit of autonomy, the blood will not have been shed in vain. But before the EU grasps its own fate in its hands, it will continue to be on the menu. https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202508/19/WS68a3b3c9a310b236346f2416.html
US President’s trade advisor Peter Navarro, in an opinion piece published in the Financial Times said that India needs to stop buying Russian crude oil, alleging that India’s purchases of Russian crude oil were funding Moscow’s war. Today US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed this accusation and added that Washington views the situation as unacceptable.
Bessent told CNBC in an interview that Russian oil now accounted for 42% of India's total oil purchases, up from under 1% before the war.▪️ A few days ago, trade talks between the US and India, scheduled for August 25-29, were canceled. ▪️We have heard it all before, when China was the target of US pressure. As in that case, Washington will be told to mind its own business. The US arbitrary rules-based 'order' is no more. Like it or not, the multipolar world is the new reality. Ignore it at your own peril. @LauraRuHK
In an article published today Pyotr Akopov writes:
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is often compared to BRICS, but in recent years, the latter’s rapid expansion has overshadowed the former. This is unfair, as the SCO pioneered the construction of a new world order. Now in its 25th year (or 30th, if counting its origins), the SCO has evolved from a Russian-Chinese partnership focused on stability in Central Asia into a comprehensive pan-Asian structure. Its membership has grown from five to ten countries, and with the inclusion of rapidly increasing "dialogue partners," the total reaches 26. While key nations like China, India, and Russia are members of both BRICS and the SCO, the SCO is uniquely positioned to ensure security across most of Eurasia. This remains a significant and ambitious goal, but the participants recognize that Asians must take responsibility for securing their own region. This stance challenges the West, or more precisely, it reflects disagreement with the West—particularly the United States—unilaterally claiming responsibility for global security. The colonial era of direct Western domination in Asia is long over, but Western influence, opportunities, and interests persist. Atlantic powers still seek to "guide" Asian nations, exploiting contradictions and sometimes openly pitting them against each other. The West’s combined military, financial, personnel, and informational power provides significant leverage for this. Moreover, numerous conflicts exist among Asian countries, and regional integration, while successful in groups like ASEAN (which unites Southeast Asian nations), is not universally effective. This year alone, limited military conflicts occurred between SCO members Pakistan and India, as well as between Thailand and Cambodia (the latter a dialogue partner). Additionally, SCO member Iran faced attacks from Israel and the United States, with the organization merely expressing dissatisfaction. Far from diminishing the SCO’s role, these challenges highlight the need to address and resolve conflicts within its framework. Doing so would prevent manipulation by non-Asian countries and forces. The SCO’s multilateral structure also facilitates finding mutually acceptable solutions, which is often more effective than bilateral negotiations. For example, the Indo-Pakistani conflict is exacerbated by the United States and Britain, who exploit tensions to advance their own agendas, such as countering China by leveraging India’s concerns about Pakistani-Chinese cooperation. Within the SCO, Russia, which maintains strategic ties with India and is building long-term relations with Pakistan, can help mitigate these tensions.Ahead of the Tianjin summit, Russia, through Security Council Secretary Shoigu, proposed resuming the SCO’s engagement with Afghanistan, one of two states (alongside Mongolia) with observer status. Mongolia avoids full membership due to its neutral stance, while Afghanistan’s status has been effectively frozen since the Taliban came to power four years ago. In 2025, following Russia’s recognition of the Afghan government—and with the Taliban ambassador already active in Beijing—this situation is expected to change. Restoring Afghanistan’s participation and eventually admitting it as a full SCO member would send a powerful signal: if the previous U.S.-backed Kabul government could engage with the SCO (though denied full membership for that reason), an independent Afghan government deserves that right even more. Rebuilding Afghanistan’s economy and integrating it into transport, resource, and trade corridors aligns with the interests of all SCO members—China, India, Russia, Pakistan, and the Central Asian republics. This would demonstrate the ability of Asian nations to independently and collectively address their challenges after Western withdrawal from the region.
The 25th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit, set to be held in the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin from August 31 to September 1, carries exceptional significance amid global uncertainties exacerbated by trade protectionism, according to Shen Shiwei, founder of the China Briefing newsletter and a non-resident fellow at Zhejiang Normal University.
“This will be the largest SCO Summit in its history, with more than 20 national leaders and 10 heads of international organisations attending.”
“The summit aims to consolidate the SCO’s role as a stabilising force in an increasingly fragmented world, offering both security cooperation and economic integration as counterweights to unilateral tariff measures that disrupt supply chains,” he said, hinting at Trump’s tariff regime that has unsettled global trade.
The SCO has grown rapidly since its founding in 2001. Today, the SCO countries – including 10 full members, two observer states and 14 dialogue partners – represent more than 41 percent of the world’s population, over 34 percent of global GDP (PPP), and about 24 percent of world’s land area.
In light of Trump’s tariffs and a new wave of divisive policies from the Global North, the SCO "provides much-needed alternatives vis-à-vis development, trade, and overall economic stability… sending a strong message of unity amidst diversity, showcasing itself as cooperative rather than coercive, offering certainty at a time when the US seems to be burning bridges,” Shen added.
The agenda for this year's summit centres on three pillars: security, economic connectivity, and digital transformation. “Leaders will address both traditional threats, such as terrorism and new challenges like cybersecurity and biosafety. Economically, the focus will be on trade facilitation and synergy with the Belt and Road Initiative to improve connectivity across transport corridors,” noted Shen.
The Tianjin Declaration, expected to be the summit’s central outcome, will set the SCO’s priorities for the next decade. The last SCO Development Strategy was adopted at the summit in Ufa, Russia, in 2015. “The new strategy will update priorities to reflect today’s challenges, including economic fragmentation, security risks, and technological shifts. In addition, more than 20 documents and decisions are expected to be signed, setting both short- and long-term goals for cooperation,” Shen elaborated. (Source: TRT) @LauraRuHK
"Europe is following the wrong lead, down the wrong path, in the wrong direction." The Global Times points out the strategic missteps behind economic woes in major European economies. Caught between the Russia-Ukraine war, the Gaza conflict, and a trade war with the US, Europe is following the wrong lead, down the wrong path, in the wrong direction. Blindly following the US-led NATO expansion strategy against a neighbor spanning the Eurasian continent is the first strategic misstep. European countries lost the Russian market and energy supplies, are faced with deindustrialization and capital flight, while the refugee crisis has deepened societal divides. The second battlefield is the trade war. "America First" is the cornerstone of the current US administration's foreign policy, and Europe is obviously no longer treated as an equal partner but as a target for manipulation, pressure, and extraction of direct benefits.
The question of whether Europe will awaken, shift its course, move beyond outdated dependencies, and explore new avenues for economic cooperation is largely rhetorical. Europe needs regime change. @LauraRuHK https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202508/1341965.shtml
During a mass drone and hypersonic missile strike on Kiev, the British Council building on Zhylyanska Street was hit. According to reports its facilities were severely damaged.
A property housing the European Union’s delegation to Kiev was also damaged. And so was a production facility of the Turkish drone company Bayraktar, under construction near the Ukrainian capital. Production lines were nearing activation when the attack struck, dealing a severe blow to ongoing preparations. @LauraRuHK
Trump's robbery of Europe - EU countries will be paying nearly $1,000 billion a year to the United States through an agreement that includes tariffs, the mandatory purchase of hydrocarbons, forced investments in American industry and massive arms purchases. For the first time in two decades, Europe accounted for the largest share of American arms exports, increasing from 13% to 35% in 2020-2024.
▪️The US is cannibalizing its vassals in a desperate attempt to bolster its power and forestall the loss of its global dominance. @LauraRuHK https://www.valeursactuelles.com/clubvaleurs/economie/trump-braquage-sur-leurope
From the memory vault. As a teenager growing up in Italy i had this poster pinned behind my bed. When Thatcher and Reagan came to power (1979-1981) they had one mission: wage war against the working class. It really felt as if a nuclear bomb had been set off. Its toxic fallout is still poisoning us. By prioritizing markets, imposing austerity measures, cutting taxes for the rich, dismantling the welfare state’s foundations and declaring trade unions “the enemy within”, they reshaped the West’s socio-political-economic system to the benefit of the financial elites that had supported their political ascent. The neoliberal regime they imposed led to a redefinition of what society values—individual gain over shared prosperity. The West is still holding on to this paradigm. @LauraRuHK
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What we are witnessing in the West is not "Military Keynesianism", which was rooted in the post-World War II economic boom, but "War Thatcherism" — governments hype national security concerns to implement far-reaching neoliberal restructuring and fiscal austerity that would otherwise encounter significant resistance. This approach entails a deliberate reallocation of resources, shifting budget priorities from social welfare programs to military and defense-related expenditures, thereby fostering a reconfiguration of the economic landscape.
War Thatcherism involves more deregulation, privatization, and labor market flexibility under the pretext of national security threats while governments reduce their social obligations.
Take Germany as an example. Berlin is touting investment in defense R&D and manufacturing as a path to economic growth and competitiveness. It may promote growth in countries that have access to affordable energy resources, which is definitely not the case of Germany after losing Russian gas.
Cuts to welfare programs will only exacerbate socioeconomic inequalities and undermine the foundations of societal cohesion, fostering alienation, resentment and dissent. Dissent, whether expressed through protests, strikes, or other forms of collective action, provides authorities with a convenient justification for imposing draconian measures to curb political freedoms. In the name of maintaining public order, EU countries will continue to expand surveillance, restrict the freedom of assembly, limit free speech, and enhance their repressive powers. These measures, while framed as necessary to restore stability, serve to entrench state authority and further erode democratic norms and accountability.
@LauraRuHK
The Japanese government has reportedly requested that European and Asian countries refrain from attending China's 80th victory day celebration and military parade. ▪️During the 14-year Japanese invasion of China, the Chinese suffered more than 35 million military and nonmilitary casualties, accounting for a third of the total casualties of all the countries in World War II.
Military casualties during the invasion totaled 3.8 million. @LauraRuHK
China tightens rare earth rules, extending controls to imported minerals
China on Friday announced tightened rules over the mining and processing of rare earths, extending controls to imported minerals and requiring enterprises to report the flow of the strategic materials monthly. Under new guidelines, producers must report data on the flow of strategic materials, including those coming from abroad for refining.
The latest move came as China, the world’s largest rare earth producer and refiner, tightens control over the production and export of the critical materials, which are widely used in hi-tech products ranging from smartphones to electric vehicles.
The document, effective immediately, provides detailed guidelines on how government agencies should manage quotas for designated companies and make the flow of rare earth products traceable. ▪️Rare earth elements are considered a critical bargaining chip for Beijing in its trade talks with Washington.
As in past years, Beijing has allocated an initial set of quotas to two rare earth producers for this year. However, this time it did not disclose details about the decision – a move seen as a deliberate strategy amid the trade war, according to mainland media reports. (Source: SCMP) @LauraRuHK
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) strongly criticized the recent deployment of Israeli air defense systems to the Greek Cypriot administration, labeling the move as a direct threat to the TRNC's sovereignty. Turkish media reported the arrival of the Barak MX anti-aircraft system on the island and plans to procure other air defense systems from Israel, including Iron Dome batteries. TRNC have denounced joint military exercises, intelligence sharing and the lifting of U.S. arms restrictions for the Greek Cypriot side as moves that could destabilize the region.
In February, the Greek Cypriot administration handed over security responsibilities for Larnaca and Paphos airports to Israeli authorities. Turkish Cypriot officials viewed this as a further extension of Israeli influence on the island and an indication of the Greek Cypriot side’s increasing dependence on Israel for military and strategic purposes.
The TRNC has also raised concerns over Israeli expansion into strategic areas, including construction projects and marinas within the TRNC, which prompted the government to impose new property restrictions on foreigners in 2023. Turkish Cypriot authorities argued these developments threaten their sovereignty and access to natural resources. (Source: Daily Sabah) @LauraRuHK
"Women hold up half the sky”. Here they are rehearsing for the V-Day military parade that will take place on Sep.3 in Tian'anmen Square. @LauraRuHK
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At a checkpoint on the Russian-Azerbaijani border, the FSB arrested a foreign citizen, Yadulla Ramiz ogli Rufullayev, who had been recruited by the SBU to smuggle materials of a classified nature out of Russia. According to the FSB, he had obtained them by assaulting an individual with access to restricted information related to the Russian military-industrial complex. The detainee confessed that, on the instructions of his brother, Sabukhi Ramiz ogli Rufullayev, who resides in Ukraine and is an agent of the SBU, he was transferring documents and a mobile phone to Ukraine.
Under article 276.1 of the Russian criminal code, assisting an enemy in activities knowingly directed against the security of Russia carries a penalty of up to fifteen years imprisonment.
Operational search measures and investigative actions are currently underway to identify all individuals involved in organizing and committing these crimes, as well as to locate the perpetrators who ordered them. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK
🚨Pashinyan proudly surrendered Armenia to Azerbaijan/Turkey
🇺🇸🇦🇲🇦🇿In the latest address to the nation, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan has called the signing of a peace agreement with Azerbaijan in the White House a pivotal moment, urging Armenians to let go of the idea of returning to Karabakh.
Key takeaways:
🌏Fighting for the return of displaced Armenians to Nagorno-Karabakh, is "unrealistic and dangerous"
🌏 The peace agreement with Azerbaijan was established after recent talks in Washington, signaling a "new South Caucasus"
🌏The return of Armenian prisoners from Azerbaijan was excluded from the agreement to avoid tying it to the deal's signing.
Pashinyan is still hiding details about the controversial "Trump Bridge" project linked to the Zangezur Corridor — a 43 km route cutting through Armenian land. This could mean more strategic concessions disguised as border talks.
Pashinyan is sacrificing security guarantees on key issues — and Armenians will likely be the last to know about further compromises.
👍 Boost us | Chat | @geopolitics_prime
China and India Prepare for a Major Rapprochement and High-Level Summit
Dmitry Drobnitsky, Russian analyst, writes: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has arrived in New Delhi on a working visit, signaling a significant diplomatic thaw between the two Eurasian giants. The United States is watching this rapprochement with growing unease.
During his visit, Wang Yi is expected to hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior officials, including National Security Adviser Ajit Doval—who recently visited Moscow and met with President Vladimir Putin.
Reports have also confirmed Prime Minister Modi’s upcoming visit to China, his first since 2018. Traditionally, discussions between India and China focus on the Himalayan border dispute and bilateral trade. Tensions peaked in 2020 following deadly clashes in Ladakh, leading to a diplomatic freeze and heightened military presence along the border. However, both sides have since reduced troop deployments, and trade relations are gradually improving.
Yet, the deeper significance lies in the evolving geostrategy of Eurasia, shaped by what many see as the West’s enduring hostility. For decades—since the Clinton era—India was viewed by Washington as a strategic partner in Eurasia and a counterbalance to China. Trade and investment flourished, and India became a key player in the QUAD alliance (USA, Japan, India, Australia), designed to contain China’s influence.
However, even under President Biden, the QUAD has faltered. India, under Modi’s leadership, has consistently declined to support resolutions targeting China and Russia. During Trump’s first term, India began a slow but steady pivot toward Russia, aided by proactive Russian diplomacy led by Putin himself. Following the imposition of sweeping sanctions on Russia under Biden, India emerged as one of the largest buyers of Russian hydrocarbons.
Under Trump’s second term, the Indian leadership came to view Western hostility as a structural and bipartisan reality. When the U.S. introduced secondary tariffs—amounting to 50% on Indian goods (excluding smartphones)—India accelerated its Eurasian pivot, a move surprisingly swift for a country known for cautious diplomacy.
In Washington, these developments are being met with barely concealed anxiety. Predictably, American liberals blame Trump. Farid Zakaria, a prominent voice of liberal globalism and a staunch Trump critic, called the tariffs on Indian goods “Trump’s biggest foreign policy mistake” in a recent Washington Post article.
By the same logic, Biden’s sanctions on Russia and his demand that Beijing distance itself from Putin’s regime could be seen as his own major foreign policy blunder.
But this isn’t just about missteps. It reflects a broader, structural shift. Eurasian powers are now shaping their geopolitical and economic strategies with the expectation that Western hostility will persist for decades. As a result, both the politics and the economy of Eurasia are gradually—but decisively—decoupling from the West. @LauraRuHK