Wall Street Journal (November 4)
By year end, the U.S. is likely to unseat Russia and become the second largest global producer of liquid fuels. The U.S. is now well positioned to escape the capricious yoke of OPEC and “even could surpass Saudi Arabia to become the leading global producer within the next decade.” Former Secretary of State George Schultz and FedEx CEO Fred Smith write, the nation’s leaders should “embrace both the supply revolution now well under way and the emerging demand revolution in oil-displacement technology that, together, promise a more secure and prosperous future.”
Tags: Demand, Energy security, FedEx, Fred Smith, Fuel, Future, George Schultz, Oil-displacement, OPEC, Producer, Revolution, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Supply, Technology, U.S.
Washington Post (September 12)
“Whatever the twisted path, whether by design or accident, the Obama administration has ended up in a better place on Syria than looked possible even days ago. The president was wise to take up and begin to test the Russian offer to remove and possibly destroy Syria’s arsenal of chemical weapons.”“Whatever the twisted path, whether by design or accident, the Obama administration has ended up in a better place on Syria than looked possible even days ago. The president was wise to take up and begin to test the Russian offer to remove and possibly destroy Syria’s arsenal of chemical weapons.”
Tags: Chemical weapons, Obama, Russia, Syria, U.S.
Washington Post (September 5)
Russian President Vladimir Putin “has been a stalwart backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the civil war, but that does not give him license to ignore the facts and gloss over inconvenient truths,” especially since Syria’s chemical weapon stockpile has roots extending to the USSR. “The sarin gas attack near Damascus should not be so glibly dismissed as “ludicrous” by a Russian president. Instead of mocking the West, Mr. Putin should throw Russia’s support behind an investigation of this atrocity. A horrible crime was committed.”Russian President Vladimir Putin “has been a stalwart backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the civil war, but that does not give him license to ignore the facts and gloss over inconvenient truths,” especially since Syria’s chemical weapon stockpile has roots extending to the USSR. “The sarin gas attack near Damascus should not be so glibly dismissed as “ludicrous” by a Russian president. Instead of mocking the West, Mr. Putin should throw Russia’s support behind an investigation of this atrocity. A horrible crime was committed.”
Tags: Atrocity, Chemical weapon, Crime, Damascus, Investigation, Putin, Russia, Sarin, Stockpile, Syria
New York Times (May 9, 2013)
Three years of fighting in Syria have cost 70,000 lives. “There are reasons to be skeptical about plans by Russia and the United States to hold an international conference on Syria — diplomats often propose meetings when they don’t have solutions. But, at a time when the civil war is worsening in every way, this initiative counts as a hopeful sign.”
Washington Post (April 12, 2013)Washington Post (April 12, 2013)
“One unlikely benefit of the North Korea crisis is that the world may be getting fed up with the country’s pugnacious young leader, Kim Jong Un. In his belligerent talk of war, Kim appears to have crossed a line, upsetting traditional allies such as China and Russia as well as the United States and South Korea.”
Tags: China, Kim Jong Un, North Korea, Russia, South Korea, U.S.
The Economist (December 1)
Since October, officials at the highest level have been tumbling due to corruption. These include former defense minister Anatoly Serdyukov who was dismissed, Vlladimir Putin’s chief of staff Sergei Ivanov whose job is in question, and former agriculture minister Yelena Skrynnik. Putin has embraced the anti-corruption campaign to shore up public support and eliminate his enemies’ ammunition. “Vladimir Putin has initiated some high-profile battles against corruption. But to many he seems increasingly isolated and out of touch.”
National Geographic (November 12)
“In an indication how ‘fracking’ is reshaping the global energy picture, the International Energy Agency today projected that the United States will overtake Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest oil producer by 2017. And within just three years, the United States will unseat Russia as the largest producer of natural gas. Both results would have been unthinkable even few short years ago.”
Tags: Fracking, IEA, Natural gas, Oil, Producer, Russia, Saudi Arabia, U.S.
Wall Street Journal (September 4)
A potential agreement with Russia for an LNG terminal in Vladivostok is “the latest sign of how Japan’s heightened quest for energy is shaping its relations with the rest of the world.” The $13 billion terminal could be finished by 2018 and provide 10 million tons of LNG annually (about 12% of Japan’s imports). The new focus on securing stable energy supplies is warming “Japan’s long-frosty relations with Russia.”
The Economist (July 21)
“In the past decade emerging markets have established themselves as the world’s best sprinters. As serial crises tripped up America and then Europe, China barely broke stride…. Lately, though, the sprinters have started to wheeze.” China, India and Brazil have all recently reported weak performance. Russia is the only BRIC with a resilient economy, but this is vulnerable to oil prices. What does the “Great Slowdown” mean for long-term growth and the world economy? The Economist believes, “no crisis looms, but serious concern is justified.”
“In the past decade emerging markets have established themselves as the world’s best sprinters. As serial crises tripped up America and then Europe, China barely broke stride…. Lately, though, the sprinters have started to wheeze.” China, India and Brazil have all recently reported weak performance. Russia is the only BRIC with a resilient economy, but this is vulnerable to oil prices. What does the “Great Slowdown” mean for long-term growth and the world economy? The Economist believes, “no crisis looms, but serious concern is justified.”
Tags: BRICS, Oil, Russia, Slowdown, World economy
New York Times (April 10)
International attempts to end Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s reign of terror are failing. “Instead of abiding by a commitment to a cease-fire negotiated with the United Nations, he has kept his killing machine rolling, raising the death toll to an estimated 9,000 Syrians in the year since the start of the uprising.” It is time for the United Nations Security Council “to take tough and unified action.” Russia and China must drop their veto and quit protecting Bashar al-Assad.
International attempts to end Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s reign of terror are failing. “Instead of abiding by a commitment to a cease-fire negotiated with the United Nations, he has kept his killing machine rolling, raising the death toll to an estimated 9,000 Syrians in the year since the start of the uprising.” It is time for the United Nations Security Council “to take tough and unified action.” Russia and China must drop their veto and quit protecting Bashar al-Assad.
