Thread image created by yours truly, depicting Iran and Pakistan very impolitely not asking whether America, on the other side of the planet, is okay with them transporting gas around.

The Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline has long been obstructed by American involvement in the region. Iran completed its section of the pipeline quite quickly, but Pakistan has been unable to finish its construction for a decade due to the fear of falling afoul of American sanctions on Iran. The United States has repeatedly tried to pressure Pakistan to give up the project and obtain gas from other countries instead. Recent articles on the state of the pipeline are contradictory, with some stating that Iran or Pakistan have given up on the pipeline while American sanctions persist. Pakistani officials reject this framing, saying that they are still working with Iran to try and get the project completed somehow. Nonetheless, Iran is becoming increasingly frustrated and is threatening a legal battle and a demand for reparations.

Meanwhile, back in Niger, the $13 billion under-construction pipeline connecting Nigeria and other West African countries to Spain and Italy will likely face delays due to the sanctions applied by the West and ECOWAS on Niger. Those following the European gas fiasco will be aware that while Spain and Italy have been impacted by the energy crisis, they have been very busy making deals with African countries to replace their Russian gas, and thus stand a better chance than Germany of making it through the crisis with their industries somewhat intact. The coup has thrown a wrench into their plans, though they can still obtain some gas from northern African countries.

And, last but not least, America tried for years to stop the construction of the Nord Stream pipelines between Germany and Russia, which culminated in them deciding to blow them up late last year.

All in all - the United States really does not like it when countries build up energy infrastructure and gain some independence from them.

Here is the map of the Ukraine conflict, courtesy of Wikipedia.

This week's first update is here in the comments.

This week's second update is here in the comments.

This week's third update is here in the comments.

Links and Stuff

The bulletins site is down.

Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists

Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict

Add to the above list if you can.

Resources For Understanding The War

Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.

Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.

Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.

Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.

On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.

Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.

Telegram Channels

Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.

Pro-Russian

https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language.

https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.

https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.

https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel.

https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.

https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.

https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.

https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.

https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.

https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.

Pro-Ukraine

Almost every Western media outlet.

https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.

https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.

Last week's discussion post.

  • SeventyTwoTrillion [he/him]
    ·
    1 year ago

    Update for August 16th

    expand

    Global

    Putin Points to Steady Development of Multipolar World OrderTS

    "Most countries are ready to assert their sovereignty and defend their national interests, traditions, culture," he said during the 11th Moscow Conference on International Security.

    He further noted that those who currently provoke new conflicts around the world and try to escalate existing ones are "seeking to benefit from human tragedy" by dividing nations, enforcing obedience, and exploiting the resources of other states.

    Europe

    UK unemployment on the rise despite record wage growthAM
    Raw sewage, farming pollution blight 90% of England’s riversAM

    Student living costs reach ‘historic’ highs in FranceEuractiv

    Student living costs are reaching new highs in France, with over 10% increases year-on-year in rent, utility bills, and food, according to student unions’ new data.

    Wild boar 'invasion': Another Italian city faces a particularly porcine problemEN

    Poland displays military might in huge parade as elections loomEuractiv

    Latvia’s prime minister announces resignationEuractiv

    Alongside its Baltic neighbours Lithuania and Estonia, Latvia is a leading voice in pushing the European Union and NATO to increase pressure on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

    Who must go?

    Western Asia

    Middle East's groundwater shortage: Will it soon run out?DW

    Nobody can really say because the studies haven't been done.

    Azerbaijan: Authorities smash unionization efforts for gig workersEN

    Authorities in Azerbaijan are cracking down on labor organizers amid recent efforts to improve working conditions and unionize food delivery workers in Baku. Three young Azerbaijani labor rights activists have been arrested so far in August and a fourth has opted to renounce his unionizing activity.

    Khashoggi murder: Tony Blair Institute kept advising Saudi Arabia after killingMEE

    Former UK prime minister Tony Blair has continued to receive money from Saudi Arabia through his institute after the brutal killing of the journalist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, a new report has revealed.

    As long as I am breathing in air... I wish the trial of Tony Blair.

    US F-35s come 'dangerously' close to Russian Su-35s in Syria's Al-TanfAM

    Central Asia

    Any attempt to sabotage CPEC, friendship with Pakistan will not succeed: Chinese foreign ministryDawn

    In relation to an attack on a Chinese convoy in Gwadar Port.

    China calls for greater international support for Afghanistan, but tells Taliban world has ‘some expectations’ on progressSCMP

    Eastern Asia and Oceania

    Latest China satellite Ludi Tance to survey one-third of Earth in high-orbit breakthroughSCMP
    China stocks Iranian oil, highest imports volume in a decadeAM
    China suspends release of youth unemployment rateANN
    China chip output growth slows in July as self-sufficiency drive continuesSCMP

    I'm hearing China is a mere 8 days from collapse.

    Is China’s property crisis at breaking point? Country Garden heads for debt workout while Sino-Ocean misses paymentsSCMP

    Apparently the troubled country is just 5 days from collapse.

    China’s maritime ambitions boosted, claims largest shipping fleet title from GreeceSCMP
    No Breakthroughs But Lots of Good Vibes After Two Days of Chinese, Indian Border TalksCGS

    And isn't good vibes what life's all about, after all?

    Taiwanese investing more in South Asia, Asean than mainland China amid global supply chains reshuffleSCMP
    Philippines sees risk of conflict over Taiwan as a ‘major concern’TST

    The Philippines seeks to bolster its ability to address threats while underlining the need to strengthen ties with allies and pursue an independent foreign policy at the same time, under a six-year national security policy published on Tuesday.

    US soldier entered DPRK seeking refuge from "unequal American society"AM

    ADHD diagnoses in South Korea rise by 80% compared to 4 years agoANN

    Indonesia’s quartz sand export ban seen to push domestic solar panel manufacturingANN
    Government to start random emission tests as poor air chokes JakartaTJP

    Vietnam eyes sustainable development of coastal citiesANN

    Africa

    Mali's president engages Putin on phone about Niger coupAN

    In a message shared on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Goita stated that Putin emphasized the significance of a peaceful resolution to ensure stability in the Sahel region.

    Ghana opposition warn president on Niger troop plansAN

    Lawmakers from the opposition are urging President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana to immediately halt all preparations towards deploying Ghanaian soldiers for this endeavor.

    Nigeriens call for mass recruitment of volunteers as the junta faces possible regional invasionAN

    The initiative, spearhead by a group of locals in Niamey, aims to recruit tens of thousands of volunteers from across the country to register for the Volunteers for the Defense of Niger, to fight, assist with medical care, and provide technical and engineering logistics among other functions, in case the junta needs help, Amsarou Bako, one of the founders, told The Associated Press Tuesday.

    Beyond Niger: How ECOWAS became a tool for Western imperialism in AfricaMR

    U.S. Acting Deputy Secretary Victoria Nuland also strongly hinted that the United States is considering invading Niger itself. “It is not our desire to go there, but they [the new military junta] may push us to that point,” Nuland said about her recent trip to Niger, where, she said, she had an “extremely frank and at times quite difficult” meeting with the new leadership.

    The Corporate Make-up of the Mining Industry in South Africa: Profit Survey 2023MR

    The World Bank funding freeze will harm the queer Ugandans it claims to defendOD

    It’s true that the World Bank’s decision will likely have little effect on the political elite who passed the bill. But ordinary Ugandans will suffer, particularly the queer people that the bank seems to be advocating for. The bank is the country’s biggest lender. By the end of the 2021/22 financial year, 34.5% of Uganda’s public debt was owed to the bank.

    Angola's president inspects Chinese-built damPD

    The Ndue Dam project is located about 170 km from Ondjiva, the capital of Cunene province. Once completed in 2024, the dam will provide water to meet the needs of approximately 55,000 local residents, ensure a water supply for 60,000 heads of livestock and facilitate the annual irrigation of 9,200 hectares of land.

    China and Russia pursue Eritrea for its strategic location in Africa, resources and transport potentialSCMP

    China and Russia are showing growing interest in Eritrea, a small African country in a strategic location but whose president is being shunned in the West for his autocratic governance. Its geopolitical significance in the Horn of Africa and easy access to the Red Sea had attracted the attention of Beijing and Moscow, observers said, with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki endearing his country to the big powers and earning finance for projects and investments.

    • SeventyTwoTrillion [he/him]
      ·
      1 year ago
      expand

      North America

      Industry Plans Thousands of Miles of New Gas Pipelines to Boost LNG ExportsDeSmog

      U.S. fossil fuel firms are pushing to build more than 2,900 miles of natural gas pipelines to feed liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities in Louisiana, Texas, and Alaska, in a bid to send more of the fuel to Asia and Europe, a new analysis by Global Energy Monitor shows.

      Oh, so YOU'RE allowed to have pipelines but other countries aren't?

      West Coast ILWU carries out vote on contract covering 22,000 dockworkersWSWS

      After forcing 22,000 West Coast dockworkers to labor for over a year without a contract, the International Longshore Warehouse Union (ILWU) has called a vote this week on a tentative agreement with the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA).

      Death Toll From Hawaii Wildfires Hits 101TS
      Biden offers contemptible $700 per household for survivors of Maui wildfiresWSWS

      How did labor and community unite to defeat the establishment in Chicago?PW
      Communists map fight against capitalists as big business tightens screws on workersPW

      What its chair called “a time of upheaval and militancy in the labor movement” has prompted the Communist Party USA’s Labor Commission, in a two-day meeting in Chicago, to draft plans for mass action by the party and its allies in both unions and non-union working-class organizations across the country.

      Ralph Lauren investigated in Canada over Uygur forced labour claimsSCMP
      Indigenous resistance challenges Ontario’s ‘mining boom’CD

      Latin America

      Venezuela launches talks with Russia for new weapons systemsAM
      Venezuelan Supreme Court intervenes Communist PartyMP
      Exxon awarded $77 million in claim against VenezuelaBilaterals
      US, Main Threat to Peace in Latam - Venezuelan Defense MinisterTS

      Argentine gov't orders 22% devaluation of the pesoMP
      Argentina Just Took a Step Closer to Dollarising Its Economy, And Away from the BRICSNC
      Argentine far-right outsider Javier Milei takes shock lead in primary voteEuractiv

      With 65% of ballots counted, far-right libertarian economist Javier Milei had 32.2% of the vote, far higher than predicted, with the main conservative opposition bloc behind on 27.7% and the ruling Peronist coalition in third place on 25.8%.

      Shit's fucked.

      Violence surrounds Canadian mining projects in EcuadorCD

      Two Canadian mining companies are drawing the ire of activists and Indigenous groups in Ecuador, where the government of Guillermo Lasso is using Toronto-based Adventus Mining’s Curipamba copper-gold project in Las Naves and Vancouver-headquartered Atico Mining’s La Plata project in Sigchos as test sites to impose a new and controversial process for environmental consultation under Decree 754—an executive edict issued on May 31 that has been roundly denounced as unconstitutional and illegal.

      Decree 754 aims to formalize a process for environmental consultation with the public, however it affords communities no rights to veto development projects on their lands. And while Ecuadorians have long demanded to have a meaningful say in weighing environmental risks for industrial activities like mining, opponents say the legislation is being introduced as a check-box exercise in an effort to expand mining in the country by accelerating the granting of environmental permits to transnational companies.

      The War Against The West

      US, Turkey negotiating to seek alternatives to Black Sea Grain DealAM

      UK MI6 to send 100 Ukrainian fighters to Africa and counter RussiaAJ

      The West and the War in Ukraine: Selling and Buying HopiumNC

      NATO Official Suggests Ukraine Could Cede Territory to Russia to Join AllianceSP

      Western press fetishizes Ukrainian amputees as limb loss epidemic growsGrayZone

      After 18 months of devastating proxy warfare, the scale of the depletion of the Ukrainian military is so extensive that even mainstream sources have been forced to concede the cruel reality. On August 1, The Wall Street Journal reported that “between 20,000 and 50,000 Ukrainians” have “lost one or more limbs since the start of the war.” What’s more, the outlet notes, “the actual figure could be higher” because “it takes time to register patients after they undergo the procedure.”

      By comparison, around 67,000 Germans and 41,000 Britons underwent amputations during the entire four-year span of the First World War. The publication quotes the head of a group of former military surgeons who train Ukrainian military medics who maintained that “Western military surgeons haven’t seen injuries on this scale since World War II.”

      In a July 8 op-ed titled “They’re Ready to Fight Again, on Artificial Legs,” Kristof insisted that rather than resenting being used as cannon fodder, Ukraine’s newly-disabled veterans “carry their stumps with pride.”

      Japan, US to develop missile to intercept hypersonic weaponsANN

      China cuts US Treasury holdings to 14-year low amid persisting security concerns, geopolitical tensionsSCMP

      China has cut its holdings by US$103 billion in the past year to June, or 11 per cent of its total. It has only raised its holdings in two months, including by US$20.3 billion in March and US$320 million in July 2022.

      Japan, the world’s largest foreign buyer, also reduced its holdings by US$127.1 billion in the same period, reflecting concerns over the aggressive interest rate increases by the US Federal Reserve. Bond prices usually fall when interest rates increase.

      China's Defense Minister to visit Russia, Belarus this weekAM
      Chinese Defense Minister attends Moscow security conferenceGT
      U.S. steps up effort to drive a wedge between Vietnam and ChinaPW

      US is no longer global power that it used to be: The StrategistAM

      A report published in The Strategist and written by Amin Saikal on Tuesday suggested that the United States and its allies' withdrawal from Afghanistan two years ago has seemingly put an everlasting question mark on America's capacity to influence world events.

      Retrospectives, Analysis, History, Theory, and Technology

      Wall Street Mega Banks and Their Disgraceful Bailout Charts Since the Repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999WSoP

      Women across the world struggle to find emancipation and empowerment through workET

      According to a 2018 report by the World Bank, 2.75 billion women do not have the same employment opportunities as men. This is due in particular to the fact that “104 economies around the world have some form of job restrictions on women’s work, for instance in industries such as mining, manufacturing, construction, energy, agriculture, water and transportation,” as well as to persistent sexual harassment in the workplace and restrictions on freedom of movement, all of which represent obstacles to women’s participation in social and economic life.

      Creating an Independent WorldMichaelHudson

      LGBTQIA+

      New Hampshire Outlaws 'LGBTQ+ Panic' Defense in Homicide CasesAdvocate

      Sununu, a Republican, signed House Bill 315 last week. It bars defendants in these cases from blaming their actions on a victim’s actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity. The bill was the subject of contention among legislators, with some objections from both parties.

      Climate and the Environment

      Increasing carbon dioxide is making our food less nutritiousMongabay

      Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels negatively impact key mineral nutrients in plants, reducing the nutrition derived from consuming them, reveals a recent review article in the Trends in Plant Science Journal which summarises findings from several studies. The review by scientists from France explained that almost all C3 plants – which employ the C3 pathway for photosynthesis where the first carbon compound has three carbon atoms – that are exposed to elevated levels of carbon dioxide show reduction across nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, iron, zinc, magnesium and sulphur.

      Lula accuses the EU of disguising protectionist measures as environmental concernBilaterals

      From desert to oasis: China builds science-based ecological barrierCGTN

      Over the past decade, two methods have been employed for sand control along the Linhe–Ceke railway. One is the biological sand control, which involves the planting of drought-resistant and sand-stabilizing vegetation in targeted areas.

      Efforts to combat desertification along the Linhe–Ceke railway exemplify China's commitment to addressing this environmental challenge. Over the past ten years, 53 percent of the manageable desertification areas across China have undergone treatment.

      I Love My Trans Comrades!

    • ElHexo
      ·
      3 months ago

      deleted by creator