Central Asia

Daily Memo: Lithuania Blocks Kaliningrad Imports

Geopolitical Futures - June 20, 2022

No-go. Lithuania banned the transportation of EU-sanctioned goods to Russia’s exclave of Kaliningrad through its territory after consultations with the European Commission. Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov and the chairman of Russia’s Federation Council said an attempt to blockade Kaliningrad could provoke tough countermeasures from the Kremlin. Enter Eni. Italy’s Eni signed a deal […]

Daily Memo: Romanian Grain, Belarusian and Ukrainian Deployments

Geopolitical Futures - June 17, 2022

Romanian grain. Romania’s agriculture minister said the country’s grain harvest will be lower this year compared to last year due to weather conditions and...

Daily Memo: Convenient Technical Issues in Russian Gas Deliveries, ECB Goes to Plan B

Geopolitical Futures - June 15, 2022

Throttled supplies. Russia’s Gazprom said on Tuesday that it had to reduce natural gas supplies to Europe via a Baltic Sea pipeline by about...

Daily Memo: France’s War Economy, Germany’s Record Inflation

Geopolitical Futures - June 14, 2022

War economy. French President Emmanuel Macron said he would ask his defense minister and chief of defense staff to reassess the Military Programming Law,...

Daily Memo: Trade War Warnings, Competition in South Asia

Geopolitical Futures - June 13, 2022

Trade war preparations. The European Union will decide on Wednesday whether to restart legal proceedings against the United Kingdom for breaches of the Brexit...

Daily Memo: New Disruptions to Chip and Gas Supplies

Geopolitical Futures - June 10, 2022

Trucker strike. Approximately 1,000 South Korean truckers, angry about rising fuel costs, launched a strike in front of Hyundai Motors’ largest factory complex in...

Daily Memo: New Syria Deployments, Putin-Raisi Talks

Geopolitical Futures - June 9, 2022

Reinforcements. According to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Russia sent personnel carriers, armored vehicles, medium and heavy weapons, and anti-aircraft missiles to...

Daily Memo: Grain Shipments Still Blocked, Chinese-US Defense Talks

Geopolitical Futures - June 8, 2022

No resolution. Negotiations between Russia and Turkey to unlock Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea ended without a breakthrough. The secretary of Ukraine’s...

Daily Memo: Germany Approves New Military Spending, Lavrov Cancels Trip to Serbia

Geopolitical Futures - June 6, 2022

New military spending. Germany’s parliament approved a constitutional amendment that will unlock 100 billion euros ($107 billion) in military spending for the country. Approximately...

The Global Economy Rebounds, Stumbles Again

Geopolitical Futures - June 3, 2022

(click to enlarge) Economic data for the past two years – that is, the majority of the COVID-19 pandemic – has finally been processed and...

Daily Memo: Beijing Searches for Ways to Help Moscow

Geopolitical Futures - June 3, 2022

Chinese support. Chinese President Xi Jinping has instructed his closest advisers to propose ways to help Russia financially without conflicting with the sanctions imposed...