Via Jamestown Foundation, a report on Russia’s interest in Iran’s Rasht–Astara Railway: The Russo-Ukrainian war has had a direct impact on the status of the various China–Central Asia–Russia–Europe transit corridors that traverse Eurasia. The Northern Corridor branch of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), in particular, has faced serious challenges and limitations, forcing a halt […]
Read more »Via The Diplomat, an article on the Soyuz-Vostok pipeline, part of the larger Power of Siberia 2 project, which could make Mongolia even more vulnerable to pressure from its autocratic neighbors: Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spent his middle childhood years in the Mongolian mining town of Erdenet, as the son of a Soviet specialist with […]
Read more »Via Radio Free Europe, an article on Azerbaijan’s potential to fill supply gaps caused by Russian sanctions and restrictions: Russia may be using missiles and bombs in its invasion of Ukraine, but it has another weapon, less lethal but nevertheless threatening, pointed at the rest of Europe — energy. Amid international outrage over its unprovoked […]
Read more »Via Russia Briefing, commentary on Russia’s interest in Afghanistan: Afghanistan is a US$1 trillion commodities and transit bank for Russian and Chinese supply chain needs Eight months after US troops finally exited Afghanistan, and 20 years after a US invasion in which Washington spent US$2.3 trillion on being there, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has […]
Read more »Via Foreign Policy, a report on how Ukraine’s extraordinary riches in energy, minerals, and agriculture are a prize for the Kremlin: Russia’s motives for invading Ukraine vary from security fears to revisionist historical claims that a Ukrainian national identity does not exist. Energy security also looms large—in particular, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s determination to ensure the […]
Read more »Via The Diplomat, a report on how Kazakhstan stands to benefit as Russian companies look to move out of Russia in order to trade globally again: The COVID-19 pandemic broke supply chains and mangled logistics the world over. The war in Ukraine, sanctions on Russia, and rising anti-Russian sentiments have added a new layer of […]
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