Opinion

Are Georgia and Serbia heading for coloured revolutions?

Clare Nuttall in Glasgow January 23, 2025

As protests swell in Georgia and Serbia, the critical question is whether demonstrators will force change or prove ineffective against their deeply entrenched ruling elites.

URUS-ClearPic: Across Eurasia, China is leveraging supply risk successfully – so could others

Alexander Teddy and Alexander Sherwood of Urus Advisory January 23, 2025

In late 2001, when much of the world – especially the US and the West – was preoccupied by 9/11 and the resulting military campaigns, China acceded to the World Trade Organisation. This marked a shift in its global trade and China’s playbook.

COMMENT: Europe needs to start the fightback against Trump now

Robert Anderson in Prague January 21, 2025

The European centre-right is facilitating the populist attack on liberal democracy.

COMMENT: Trump demands Europe import more US LNG, as the EU proposes banning Russian LNG completely. Neither will happen.

Ben Aris in Berlin January 21, 2025

US President Donald Trump wants Europe to buy more US gas or face tariffs, and ten EU member states have again called for an end to all Russian imports. Neither of these things are going to happen. Europe remains hooked on Russian gas.

COMMENT: Trump's cryptocurrency venture sparks debate as memecoin risk data emerges

Miad Kasravi in Scotland January 21, 2025

Donald Trump’s rapid leap into cryptocurrency, widely referred to as “Trump Coin,” has triggered a wave of global attention a day into his presidency.

COMMENT: A call for stability and inclusion as Syria grapples with an extremist government challenge

Nahwa Makar in Beirut January 21, 2025

The recent dramatic change in regime in Syria, particularly the consolidation of power by figures such as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, raises important questions about the future of governance in the region.

Analysts expect ‘perfect storm’ of political risks in 2025

Clare Nuttall in Glasgow January 20, 2025

Global political risk is set to intensify in 2025 with international trade becoming a geopolitical battleground after Trump’s return to office, said Verisk Maplecroft analysts.

COMMENT: No, Russia is not facing a banking crisis

bne IntelliNews January 19, 2025

No, Russia is not on the cusp of a banking credit crisis. That was the conclusion of a paper by Alexandra Prokopenko, a political economy analyst.

COMMENT: With Trump back in the White House, Europe may need to turn to Turkey to strengthen its security

Will Conroy in Prague January 19, 2025

Analyst suggests EU cannot hope to deter Russia effectively without closer cooperation with Ankara.

COMMENT: Armenia makes a strategic turn from Russia towards the West

Robert Ananyan in Yerevan January 16, 2025

Moscow realises it is losing Armenia, which has been considered its main ally in the South Caucasus for decades.

COMMENT: Gulf states court Russia but stop short of strategic shift

bne IntelliNews January 14, 2025

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states are increasingly backing Russia in its geopolitical and economic standoff with the West, but they have stopped short of fully embracing Russia.

MACRO ADVISORY: Sanctions SITREP — only seven more sleeps

Chris Weafer of Macro-Advisory January 13, 2025

We are going to bed seven more times until the second Trump era begins. What's on the agenda?

MACRO ADVISORY: Interpreting Dostoyevsky for Gen-Z and Z Politicians

Chris Weafer CEO of Macro-Advisory January 10, 2025

One of the most surprising legacies of last year is the revival of interest in, and discussion about, Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1921-1881), both outside and inside Russia. Quoting Dostoyevsky has become very fashionable in Russian political debates.

PANNIER: Tajikistan, Taliban tone down the hostile rhetoric

Bruce Pannier January 9, 2025

Grudging acceptance that relations need to improve seen in Dushanbe and Kabul.

RIDDLE: Is Russia in a stagflation crisis?

Yakov Feygin in Pennsylvania January 6, 2025

In his recent article, the economist Vladislav Inozemtsev takes aim at those arguing that Russia faces an imminent economic crisis due to an unusual combination of high interest rates and inflationary pressures: "Stagflation."

CENUSA: Polish EU Presidency puts Russian hybrid threats in the spotlight

Denis Cenusa in Berlin January 6, 2025

After six months under a Russian-aligned Hungarian presidency of the EU Council, the leadership has now passed to Poland, a strong critic of Russia’s disruptive influence in Europe.

COMMENT: The EU’s Green Deal is a “policy disaster”

bne IntelliNews December 29, 2024

Energy analyst Dr Tom O'Donnell has issued a stark critique of the European Union's Green Deal, describing it as a "policy disaster" that requires radical reform to prevent further industrial decline and to bolster energy security.

IEA: Access to energy improving worldwide, driven by renewables

IEA Energy Snapshot December 19, 2024

Having a reliable electricity supply is something many of us take for granted – including for sending and reading emails like this one. But hundreds of millions of people around the world today don’t have access to electricity.

Valuation questions raised over Blackstone's $2.1bn IPO of India’s International Gemmologist Institute

Richard Chetwode in London December 18, 2024

In what looks like a very good deal for Blackrock, the private equity house has bought the diamond certification company IGI for $569mn and will likely monetised approximately $324mn from the IPO while still owning around 84% of a $2.1bn business.

COMMENT: Russia’s losses in Syria are Turkey’s gains

bnm Gulf bureau December 17, 2024

Russia’s hand in the Middle East has been dramatically weakened by the departure of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey’s has been strengthened.

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