Neo-Con study: Why a New Black Sea Strategy is in the U.S. Interest + The Middle Corridor

With the coming US-NATO dangerous war games in the Black Sea it seemed like a good idea to post this study by the right-wing Heritage Foundation. This should give us all a clear idea of what Washington and Brussels are up to in the region.

Neo-Con study: Why a New Black Sea Strategy is in the U.S. Interest

Related:

The Middle Corridor through Central Asia: Trade and Influence Ambitions – Foreign Policy Research Institute

Continued…

US Army Training ISIS, Al-Qaeda Fighters in Syria to Deploy to Russia: Report

US occupation forces in Syria have been training at least 60 militants affiliated with ISIS and Al-Qaeda at Al-Tanf base to carry out attacks inside former Soviet states, according to Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).

US Army Training ISIS, Al-Qaeda Fighters in Syria to Deploy to Russia: Report

Blinken’s single-point agenda in Delhi – China

Blinken’s single-point agenda in Delhi – China

India needs to continue to walk the fine line both to avoid collateral damage from the Biden administration’s zigzagging policies on China as well as to keep its own autonomy to negotiate with China bilaterally. Biden is a highly experienced politician and if he gets to realise the futility of trying to suppress China, a pattern of co-existence may well emerge.

[2014] China and the Middle East: More Than Oil

China and the Middle East: More Than Oil

While China’s heavy dependence on Middle Eastern oil is an established fact, less is known about China’s early efforts to establish broad energy ties with the Middle East. Back in 1983, before the Chinese economy really took off, the overseas construction arm of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) moved into the Kuwaiti market and later won an oil storage reconstruction project in 1995. Beijing also signed the Strategic Oil Cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia in 1999, which laid the foundation for Saudi Arabia to become and remain China’s largest oil supplier. In exchange for stable crude supply, China has courted Saudi investment for expanding its refining capacity. One example is China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation’s (SINOPEC) meeting with Saudi Aramco to discuss a stake in a $1.2-billion refinery in the Chinese city of Qingdao. The two sides further joined hands in a $3.5-billion venture in Fujian province that included greater refinery capacity.4