Articles
China–Arab States Expo: The Latest Event of the New Silk Road
The fifth China–Arab States Expo, held in Yinchuan, the capital of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (Northwest China), concluded on August 23, 2021. During the four-day event, 277 agreements worth CNY 156.7 billion (around USD 24 billion) concerning digital economy, clean energy, agriculture, cross-border e-commerce, and tourism, were signed. Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the organizers of the trade fair.
Tensions Rise Along NATO Border In The Run-Up To Zapad-2021 Drills
Communication forces kickstarted their part of the joint Russia-Belarus military exercise on August 26 in the run-up to the Zapad-2021 war games. Some Russian soldiers are already in Belarus while in the August 23 phone call, Vladimir Putin exchanged views on the drills with Alexander Lukashenko.
Crimea Platform: Ukraine’s Success, Russia’s Defeat
Inaugurated on August 23 in Kyiv, a worldwide platform causes serious headache to Russia and its reputation. Not only does the world refuse to recognize Moscow’s occupation of Crimea, but the issue is also gaining new momentum as the Crimea Platform was set up. That is the triumph of Ukraine’s authorities and symbol of Zelensky’s firm policy as the Ukrainian president does not focus solely on Donbas in his country’s ties with Moscow but also bring back the peninsula to the international agenda.
Antony Blinken and Wang Yi Hold Talks on Afghanistan
On Monday, August 16, a telephone conversation was held between Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. Its main topic was the tense situation in Afghanistan.
More Chinese Vaccines Head to Thailand
Faced with a surge of COVID-19 cases, the Thai government announced on August 17, 2021, that it will purchase 12 million vaccines from the Chinese company Sinovac Biotech. This is part of Thailand’s plan to combat the pandemic, which includes mixing vaccines from different manufacturers.
Nord Stream 2: U.S., Germany Make Fictitious Moves, Putin Triumphs
While Angela Merkel and Vladimir Putin made a symbolic deal to the completion of the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, the United States imposed new sanctions on the project. They do not change much while the gas pipeline is set to be completed any day now. Moscow does not conceal that not only will it scrap the existing transit deal with Ukraine after it expires, but also it has no intention of meeting its commitments by 2024. It is pointless for Merkel and the EU to promise to do their utmost to make Russia continue sending gas through Ukraine.
U.S. Failure In Afghanistan Runs Bigger Risk Of War In Ukraine
Possible Russian aggression gives rise to increasing concerns in Kyiv. First, the United States gave its green light to complete the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline that is a great danger to Ukraine. Now Washington is displaying helplessness in Afghanistan, which may encourage its enemies to take aggressive steps. Among them could be Russia, prone to attack Ukraine.
Covid-19: Delta Variant Takes Heavy Toll In Russia
New days are bringing more than 800 new coronavirus deaths in Russia. The number of new infections remains high, too. The authorities do not know how to persuade people to get vaccinated. The poor vaccination rate in Russia and an uptick fueled by the Delta variant are both responsible for the surge in new cases across the country.
Illegal Migration: A New Weapon?
After Donald Trump ordered to build his famous wall, illegal traffic dropped by roughly 90 percent between 2019 and 2020 in Yuma, Arizona. It is not an isolated example of ad-hoc measures to counter modern border threats to state security. A slew of EU and NATO countries, including Lithuania, Estonia, and Hungary, followed suit.
Russia Introduces New Sanctions, “Taking Revenge For Crimea Platform”
A few hours after German Chancellor Angela Merkel left Moscow, the Russian government published a new extended list of sanctions on Ukrainian officials. Kyiv says Moscow is taking its revenge for the Crimea Platform summit, scheduled for August 23. Merkel had been in Ukraine a day before.
Canadian Businessman Convicted of Espionage in China
On August 11, 2021, a court in the Chinese city of Dandong sentenced Canadian businessman Michael Spavor to 11 years in prison on espionage charges. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the sentence as “unjust” and “absolutely unacceptable.”
Russia Welcomes Positive Signals From Taliban
Russia has now a positive opinion about the new authorities in Afghanistan, seeking effective cooperation with the Taliban. For Moscow, it would be best for the Taliban to involve other political forces in forming a new government.
Event Summary: Three Seas Initiative (3SI) – New Developments?
The Three Seas Initiative (3SI) will not only support Europe and NATO’s Eastern flank, but also market competitiveness of the region – said Georgette Mosbacher. On Tuesday, April 17th 2021, Warsaw Institute had the honour to host another special guest within the Diplomacy Talks Series. This time we welcomed former US Ambassador to Poland (2018-2020) to talk about the future of the Three Seas Initiative.
European Strategic Autonomy: myth or future reality?
The European Commission has underlined several times how strategic autonomy should encompass a variety of sectors, ranging from economy to security. With the election of Joe Biden in the United States the pillar of security and defense, fundamental to European strategic autonomy has received growing attention.
