By Pepe Escobar, Sputnik News Any – exceptionalist – wishful thinking that Russia and China will abandon their solid “win-win” strategic partnership, fully crafted to their mutual national interests, was dispelled by a crucial visit to Moscow by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. In Moscow, Wang stressed both Russia’s Look East policy and China’s Go West … Continue reading
By Nader Habibi The framework nuclear agreement that was announced earlier this month by Iran and the so-called P5+1 calls for a substantial rollback in the country’s nuclear program in return for a lifting of sanctions. While no specific time table was mentioned, the preliminary agreement calls for the suspension and then lifting of international sanctions … Continue reading
Turkey is pushing for Iran to switch to use local currencies in bilateral trade and ditch the euro and the U.S. dollar in the latest effort amongst emerging market nations to further de-dollarization. According to Bloomberg, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan used a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani in Tehran to lobby for dropping euros and … Continue reading
Iran is set to welcome international investment, particularly from the U.S. and Europe, an Iranian Ministry official said on Sunday. When sanctions are removed, U.S. and European companies will be able to invest in Iran’s various industrial projects, including its oil sector, Mehdi Hosseini, the head of the Oil Contracts Revision Committee of Iran’s Ministry of … Continue reading
By Etienne Lepers While Turkey – with its ceaselessly falling currency – is struggling with the same global forces as other emerging markets, an internal struggle between President Erdoğan, Central Bank Govenor Erdem and deputy PM for the economy Ali Babacan is undermining Turkish economic vitality. Interest and currency rates have become subject to inter-departmental feuding generating significant financial uncertainty. Over the … Continue reading
By Andrew Korybko, Sputnik News An important three-day conference entitled “Indian Ocean: Renewing the Maritime Trade and Civilisational Linkages” ended last week in Bhubaneswar, whereby multiple experts from nine government agencies and elsewhere announced the ‘Cotton Route’ to rival China’s Silk Road. The announcement came after Prime Minister Modi’s key visit to three Indian Ocean states — the Seychelles, Mauritius, and Sri … Continue reading
The transportation of containers by rail could grow substantially in China, particularly if the nation continues to adopt operating practices and regulatory reforms that have boosted the development of the North American rail network, according to a new research paper from The World Bank. Measures that include the ability of rail operators to tailor service offerings that … Continue reading
Iran and Russia have signed an agreement to create a joint regulation body that will oversee interbank financial transactions between the two nations, Iran’s Fars News Agency (FNA) reported on Saturday. According to FNA, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed by the deputy governors of the Central Banks of Iran and Russia on the supervision of the Central Banks over … Continue reading
Israel is planning to build another “separation wall” on its border with Jordan to protect it from possible infiltration by global jihadists, Israeli media reported on Thursday. The Israeli government’s plan to build the new wall has been revealed following the completion of a similar security fence on its border with Egypt. The Israeli government said that the first … Continue reading
There are no legal hurdles in expanding the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and expansion talks will be discussed in the near future with a decision possibly being announced at the summit of SCO and BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) in Russia over the summer, the SCO’s Secretary General Dmitry Mezentsev told TASS news agency on … Continue reading