🔹German 🇩🇪 politician & former President of the Bundestag, Norbert Lammert complaints about Chinese influence in Namibia 🇳🇦 infuriates Namibian President, Hage Geingob.

🔹Angrily and visibly so, he reminds Lammert that the Namibians, for too long have allowed Germans on a “red carpet” to do what they want in Namibia without hindrance and complaint. While Namibia may not allow the Chinese to “come and play around” in Namibia, it troubles him, Geingob said, that it should take Europeans to worry about China in Namibia.

🔹Last week, China's 🇨🇳 new ambassador to Namibia, Zhao Weiping, has expressed his excitement about working with Namibia. A number of high-level Namibian gov't officials were present at the ceremony.

🔹Namibia’s 🇳🇦 PM Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, at the recent Munich Security Conference reiterated Namibia's focus on resolving the Ukraine conflict not on shifting blame. She exposed western hypocrisy by saying, "the money used to buy weapons, could be better utilized to promote development in Ukraine, in Africa, in Asia, in other places, in Europe itself, where many people are experiencing hardships.”

🔹Namibia 🇳🇦 is one of 16 countries that voted to abstain in all 4 UN 🇺🇳 resolutions to condemn Russia 🇷🇺.

🔹Germany announced new feminist guidelines to shape its diplomacy & development work including the creation of a new role for an "ambassador for feminist foreign policy".

🔹It is not a coincidence but an actual incident that the conference that partitioned Africa into countries such as Namibia took place in Germany, 1884-5. The Germans were central interested parties in the colonisation of Africa.

Video courtesy Intel Republic & BR24

🔹French 🇫🇷 unions stepped up their fight against President Emmanuel Macron's pension reform plans today (Mar. 7th). Most trains came to a halt, fuel deliveries were disrupted & schools shut in the sixth day of 2023 with nationwide strikes. Street protests are reportedly happening in over 300 towns & cities.

🔹To increase pressure on lawmakers not to raise the pension age by two years to 64, unions said there would be rolling strikes this time, which could go on for days, including at oil refineries 🏭 and railways. State railway 🚂 operator SNCF warned passengers to cancel or postpone trips, if possible, while Eurostar advised ticket holders to check whether their train is running.

🔹Garbage collectors and truck drivers joined the strike, in a sign the protests were spreading to more sectors. 30% of flights ✈️ were cancelled today & tomorrow as air traffic controllers strike. Some students, including at Rennes 2 University in Brittany, began blockading faculties.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 At least 1.1 million people protested on the streets of 🇫🇷 Paris & other French cities on 19th January amid nationwide strikes.

💠 France's state-owned nuclear operator EDF is considering using funds from depositors in a centuries-old savings account to finance part of a €50bn plan to build six nuclear reactors.

💠 French Finance Minister called for a new European policy to protect the EU's 🇪🇺 industrial base in the face of massive US subsidies.

💠 France issues vouchers for firewood to help families cope as European traders are evading sanctions with fake paperwork claiming Russian🇷🇺/Belarussian 🇧🇾firewood is from Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan.

🔹Russia 🇷🇺 started exporting diesel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) 🇸🇦. At least three cargoes carrying 190,000 tons of diesel loaded 🚢 in the Russian Baltic port of Primorsk were headed to the KSA. The Saudis could profitably export part of the Russian diesel to other countries after some refining. Europe imported a 7-year record volume of diesel from the Middle East & Asia last month.

🔹Saudi Aramco raised the official selling price for the crude oil 🛢it exports to Asia & Europe for yet another month. Several new refineries in Saudi Arabia are set to soon begin operating, and this would shrink the amount of crude available for exports.

🔹Saudi Aramco acquires US 🇺🇸 lubricant maker Valvoline for $2.65bn. Saudi Aramco will own the Valvoline brand in connection with its product business, while the US company will retain its brand for its retail services business.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 The KSA’s oil revenues hit $326 billion in 2022, the highest level since Crown Prince MBS’s reign began

💠 The KSA is open to discussions about trade in currencies other than the US dollar 💵, such as the Chinese yuan.

💠 The KSA leads OPEC+'s 2 million barrels of oil 🛢 per day production cut.

💠 The KSA's 🇸🇦 energy minister warns nations who use emergency oil reserves to manipulate prices.

💠 The KSA imports Russian 🇷🇺 fuel oil to reduce its need to refine crude, resulting in having more unrefined crude to sell on international markets at higher prices.

🔹Russia 🇷🇺 now supplies around 35% of India’s 🇮🇳 total oil imports, it was at 1% before Feb. 2022. India imported around 1.62 million bpd in February from Russia. These record levels are almost the same as India’s imports from Iraq (940,000 bpd) & Saudi Arabia (648,000 bpd) combined.

🔹Indian companies pay on a delivered basis, meaning they don't handle the shipping and insurance. Russia can maximize its profits for the whole transaction in its charges for those extras. Chinese 🇨🇳 purchasers, in contrast, might insist on using their own fleets.

🔹A large amount of Russian oil continues to be transferred between tankers just a few miles off the coast of Spain 🇪🇸 even after Spanish authorities reminded firms of a prohibition on providing fenders for ship-to-ship Russian oil transfers, even in international waters.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Around 70% of Jan. 2023 loading cargoes of Russian Urals was destined to India 🇮🇳.

💠 Russia cuts oil 🛢 production in March by 500,000 bpd.

💠 Indian refiners have begun paying for most of their Russian 🇷🇺 oil purchased via Dubai-based traders in UAE dirhams instead of USD.

💠 Around half of Russian crude is now estimated to be sold via its growing "shadow fleet" 🚢 of off-book tankers.

💠 India buying thirty-three (33) times more 📈 Russian oil than a year earlier.

Video courtesy Sean Foo

🔹The parliamentary majority in Georgia 🇬🇪 has withdrawn a bill on registering ‘foreign agents’ following 2 nights of massive protests in the capital, Tbilisi. Despite the move, the opposition has vowed to continue its protests. If the bill was approved, it would mandate all organizations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as foreign agents.

🔹Coincidentally, the US 🇺🇸 Assistant Secretary of State for INLE, Todd Robinson, arrived in Tbilisi the day before protests started & proclaimed that the bill is a "Russian-inspired law" on “foreign agents” & is not in line with the country’s interests to work toward Euro-Atlantic integration.

🔹US 🇺🇸 State Dep't spokesman Ned Price, threatened the Georgian gov't with sanctions for cracking down on the protests. While the EU is currently considering Georgia's application for candidate status, the EU's 🇪🇺 foreign policy chief J. Borrell warned that the bill was "incompatible with EU values and standards".

🔹Either versions of the a 'foreign agents' bill would make it difficult for USAID, NED, George Soro's Open Society Foundation and EU 🇪🇺 backed NGOS to operate in Georgia 🇬🇪. Example: The Shame Movement & Tbilisi Pride, two NGOs promoting LGBT policies in Georgia, receive their funding from the US, UK & the Netherlands.

🔹Today, hundreds of cars (4km long) with both Russian 🇷🇺 & Georgian license plates have lined up outside the Verkhny Lars checkpoint, heading into Russia. (Possibly a mix of those afraid of a 'Maidan 2.0' or those who fled Russia last fall during a partial mobilization.)

🔹Ukraine's 🇺🇦 President V. Zelensky thanked the violent Georgian protestors for playing Ukrainian anthem in their capital Tbilisi.

Video credit to SouthFront Analysis & Intelligence. Support SouthFront @ https://southfront.org/

🔹The US 🇺🇸 will not allow Iran 🇮🇷 to acquire a nuclear weapon, Lloyd Austin, US Secretary of Defense, said during a joint press conference with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

🔹Israeli 🇮🇱 PM Benjamin Netanyahu on Washington-based Iran International said, A “horrible nuclear war” will break out if the world does not stop Tehran from obtaining atomic weapons.

🔹5 days ago, the head of the U.N.'s 🇺🇳 nuclear agency said that Iran pledged to restore cameras and other monitoring equipment at its nuclear site and to allow more inspections.

🔹The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran ⚛️ (AEOI) said the West's only option in dealing with Iran is diplomacy.

🔹A majority of members of the US House of Representatives have reportedly declared their support for a bipartisan resolution calling for a nuclear-free ☢️ Iran and regime change in the country. House Resolution 100 is noscriptd “Expressing support for the Iranian people’s desire for a democratic, secular, and nonnuclear Republic of Iran,..."

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Former Qatari 🇶🇦PM warns that a collapse of international efforts to renew Iran’s 🇮🇷 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA) could lead to war in the Gulf region.

💠 US claims to see no progress with the Iran nuclear deal after a video of US President Biden calling the JCPOA “dead” surfaced online.

💠 Ebtesam Al Ketbi, President, Emirates 🇦🇪 Policy Center, on the security threat Iran poses to the region.

Video courtesy PressTV

🔹Another European aluminum smelter is closing, in a fresh sign that sanctions on Russia 🇷🇺 exacerbated Europe's energy crisis and pushes Europe into further de-industrialization. Aluminum is one of the most energy intensive metals to produce, & European production capacity has fallen by more than half since the start of the energy crisis.

🔹Despite electricity prices retreating sharply from last year’s peaks, Speira Gmbh will shut its Rheinwork plant in Germany 🇩🇪 this year due to challenges in the energy market. That follows a 50% cut in aluminum production announced in Sept. '22.

🔹Europe is at risk of losing out to the US 🇺🇸 in attracting investment, due to the billions of dollars in subsidies available through the US's Inflation Reduction Act.

🔹The US recently announced tariffs on Russian aluminium, which will significantly increase costs for aluminium that was smelted or cast in Russia to enter the US market. Russia was the sixth largest exporter of aluminium into the US in 2022, behind Canada 🇨🇦 with the biggest share, then UAE 🇦🇪, Bahrain 🇧🇭, China 🇨🇳 and Australia 🇦🇺.

🔹Commodity trader Trafigura Group is in talks to buy aluminum from United Co. 🇷🇺 Rusal International, highlighting its willingness to strike new deals with Russian companies.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Russia's 🇷🇺 Rusal, cautions that suspending its brands in the current low-stocks environment would create increased aluminium price & physical premium volatility.

💠Europe has lost about half of its zinc and aluminum smelting capacity within the past year.

💠 Norwegian 🇳🇴 owned Norsk Hydro is planning to shutter a 175,000-ton annual capacity aluminum smelter in Slovakia.

🔹The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 (KSA) and Iran 🇮🇷 agreed to resume diplomatic ties and re-open embassies within the next two months. The agreement followed months of talks (prior to the past 4 days of negotiations) mediated in China 🇨🇳 between Saudi & Iranian delegations .

🔹Iran and the KSA highlighted the need to respect each others’ national sovereignty and refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of one another.

🔹Riyadh and Tehran said they would resume a security cooperation agreement signed in 2001, and would work to enhance “regional and international peace and security.” The official statement did not mention any specific concessions between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

🔹Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party Wang Yi, said "the success of these talks is the victory of dialogue, the victory of peace, and it brings us major good news in the current turbulent world,"

Preceding developments reported on this channel:

💠 Iranian 🇮🇷 President E. Raeisi visited Beijing last month, with a high-ranking politico-economic delegation.

💠 China's President Xi Jinping visited the KSA 🇸🇦, last month for the Saudi-Chinese Summit & Gulf -China Summit.

💠 China’s 🇨🇳 imports from and exports to the KSA now exceeds the Saudi's combined trade with the US 🇺🇸 & the EU 🇪🇺.

💠 Iran’s Constitutional Council, has approved the bill on Iran's membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

Video courtesy CNA and TRT World

🔹USA 🇺🇸- The abrupt failure of Silicon Valley Bank 🏦 (SVB) and its takeover by federal regulators today (March 10th) sent a shock wave through the Boston technology & biotech communities, with companies and depositors unable to withdraw funds and facing the prospect of not being able to pay bills or make payroll. Withdrawals was limited to $250,000 per account.

🔹The sudden failure, the second-largest in US history, was triggered by SVB’s disclosure of growing losses on gov't bonds due to rising interest rates 📈. The announcement prompted a run on the bank. As depositors withdrew their savings this week, the bank had to sell Treasury bonds it owned at a loss, eroding its capital.

🔹Customers will get receivership certificates for balances above $250,000 💵 and won’t have immediate access to the funds unless the bank is quickly acquired by a healthy rival. The firm was the bank of startups where venture capital firms turned to finance their endeavors.

🔹The bank ranked 11th largest in Massachusetts, with $5.5 billion of deposits as of June 30, '22. The trouble started this week after SVB said it had lost $1.8 billion on bond investments and was raising a $2.25 billion capital infusion.

🔹The 🇺🇸 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) took control and is now the manager of $175 billion in customer deposits.

Video courtesy Fox News

🔹More than 10,000 Dutch 🇳🇱 farmers protested at Zuiderpark in The Hague, Netherlands today (March 11th) against the gov'ts nitrogen policy that will result in many farmers being forced to close down their farms. Hundreds of Dutch farmers 🚜 defied a ban and drove their tractors into The Hague.

🔹The Dutch army was placed on stand-by as farmers headed to The Hague. Army vehicles drive into the center of The Hague to prevent tractors from entering the city. The mayor of The Hague issued an emergency decree granting police extra powers.

🔹Dutch 🇷🇺 politician, Wybren van Haga was present during the protests. He exposed the Netherlands gov't nitrogen policy as an agenda for control. Dutch flags were flown upside down in defiance of the gov't.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Farmers from Belgium 🇧🇪 drove thousands of tractors during protests in Brussels on March 3rd.

💠 Dutch farmers protests end in clashes with police 🚓 & arrests.

💠 The Dutch gov't plans to buy & close down, up to 3,000 farms near environmentally sensitive areas.

💠 🇳🇱 Farmers Defence Force, representing 8 agro-organisations, (95% of the industry), locked out of the 1st round of negotiations.

💠 Protests previously erupted over the gov't's draconian nitrogen oxides curbing plan.

💠 Gov't policy will result in the destruction of meat/diary farming 🐂 🐄 in The Netherlands.

🔹The EU's 🇪🇺 LNG imports from Russia 🇷🇺 in 2022 rose by 31% and 35% compared to 2020 and 2021 volumes, respectively, despite an 80% drop in pipeline gas imports from Russia one year after the start of the conflict. In 2022, the EU's LNG imports from Russia reached a three-year high of 19.2 billion cubic meters.

🔹The EU's daily fossil fuel imports from Russia remain at €100 million, with pipeline gas accounting for $30 million, & LNG accounting for $10 million.

🔹About 8% of EU pipeline gas imports still come from Russia. Norway 🇳🇴 replaced Russia as Europe’s top pipeline natural gas supplier after the Nord Streams 1 & 2 sabotage. Russia increased its total LNG exports in 2022 by 8.6%. Plans are on the way in Russia for expanding the list of gas fields permitted to export LNG.

🔹EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson urges all EU member states & all companies not to sign new LNG 🚢 contracts with Russia.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 LNG from Russia's Sakhalin 2 accounts for roughly 9% of Japan's 🇯🇵 total LNG imports.

💠 China's 🇨🇳 CNPC, is in the late stages of finalizing a huge long-term LNG import deal with Qatar. China's Sinopec recently signed a 27-year landmark $60 billion agreement for purchases of LNG from Qatar 🇶🇦.

💠 Head of the EU 🇪🇺Energy Regulator admits, the EU’s price cap is an untested tool that may not work as intended to prevent gas price spikes. "The gas price cap is “a difficult creature, it’s unprecedented, it’s untested”.

🔹Thousands of Czechs 🇨🇿 took part today (March 12th), in anti-gov't protests in Prague, Czech Republic (Czechia). A new political party, PRO, organised the rallies, as people protested against high inflation rates & the gov't’s assistance to Ukraine 🇺🇦. The party expressed its opposition to NATO. Some called for a peaceful end to the war in Ukraine, while others called for an end to the military assistance the Czech gov't has provided to Ukraine.

🔹Police detained 18 persons. Czechia has been struggling with record levels of inflation for a year, mainly due to a spike in energy prices. In February, annual inflation in the EU 🇪🇺 & NATO member of 10.5 million people reached 16.7%. Critics accuse the gov't of caring more about Ukraine.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Czechia is concerned over any possible EU sanctions on the Druzbha oil 🛢pipeline from Russia that supplies the country.

💠 Despite being able to produce much of its own food, Czechia 🇨🇿 is still seeing a dramatic increase in food prices. 📈 Rising energy prices is only part of the problem because a substantial amount of domestically produced food is exported to the EU & abroad.

💠 Tens of thousands of Czechs protested in Prague, (Oct '22), to demand a neutral foreign policy & resume purchases of Russian 🇷🇺 natural gas.

💠 Czechia protests grow, (Sep '22) over the ongoing energy 🔌 crisis.

💠 Over 70,000 Czech protestors, (Sep '22) demand the gov't take a neutral stand on Russia-Ukraine.

Video courtesy Press TV

🔹Over the past 2 days, Mar. 11th-12th, protests across France 🇫🇷 has been increasingly violent as protestors pushed for a withdrawal of President E. Macron's pension reform plan, which raises the retirement age from 62 to 64. Police 🚓 clashed with rioters dressed in black who set fires to piles of trash.

🔹Today, the French Senate 🏛 adopted the reform bill with a 195-112 vote. A commission is then to elaborate a final version of the draft law which will be submitted to both houses of parliament for a final vote.

🔹Protests were bolstered by ongoing strikes in key sectors, from energy to transport and garbage workers. Uncollected trash piled up in Paris and other cities.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 French unions stepped up protests and strikes against pension reform plans on Mar. 7th.

💠 At least 1.1 million people protested on the streets of 🇫🇷 Paris & other French cities on 19th January amid nationwide strikes.

💠 France's state-owned nuclear operator EDF is considering using funds from depositors in a centuries-old savings account to finance part of a €50bn plan to build six nuclear reactors.

💠 French Finance Minister called for a new European policy to protect the EU's 🇪🇺 industrial base in the face of massive US subsidies.

💠 France issues vouchers for firewood to help families cope as European traders are evading sanctions with fake paperwork claiming Russian🇷🇺/Belarussian 🇧🇾firewood is from Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan.

🔹Belarusian 🇧🇾 President A. Lukashenko and Iranian 🇮🇷 President E. Raisi, today (Mar. 13th), signed a roadmap of comprehensive cooperation between the countries for 2023-2026 following President Lukashenko's state visit in Tehran. The roadmap provides for comprehensive cooperation between Belarus and Iran in the political, economic, consular, scientific and technological avenues and other areas.

🔹President Raisi said, "despite the threats and sanctions that are used against the Islamic Republic of Iran, we have been able to achieve high results and transform sanctions into opportunities. We are ready to share our experience with the friendly Belarus in this regard".

🔹President Lukashenko in a meeting with First Vice-President M. Mokhber, expressed his willingness on setting up joint high-tech manufacturing facilities. Both countries saw a significant progress in bilateral trade for 2022, which was a three-fold increase 📈 over 2021.

🔹Belarus increased exports of timber 🪵 to Iran by 2.3 times in 2022. Both presidents visited an exhibition of Iran's healthcare products & advanced scientific solutions.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Iran’s Constitutional Council, approved Iran's membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Belarus is ready to expedite the fulfillment of international legal procedures for joining the SCO as a full member.

💠 Iran 🇮🇷 transport officials & the EAEU Trade Council, expressed willingness over launching rail transit across Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬, Russia 🇷🇺, Belarus 🇧🇾.

💠 Iran & Belarus work towards integrating with Russian payment system MIR.

USA 🇺🇸 Regional Banks 🏦 update on Monday March 13th:

🔹 Signature Bank was closed down by the state regulators yesterday, investors have been wiped out, but the regulators have stepped in to guarantee 100% of deposits within the bank. This follows the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank just two days prior.

🔹The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. transferred all deposits 💵, both insured and uninsured, of the former SVB to a newly created full-service FDIC-operated bridge bank in an action that seeks to protect all depositors of the bank.

🔹There is an even larger elephant in the room: derivatives. Volatility increased last Thursday & Friday.

🔹Anyone holding assets like stocks or bonds in U.S. banks now needs to reconsider the disappeared line between gov't & the bank assets. If the gov't can assume, control & backstop every single account balance within the bank, the gov't can assume & control all activity of the bank. #nationalisation

🔹Regional Banks stocks closed today at:

First Republic Bank 🔻62% after big losses late last week.

Western Alliance Bancorp 🔻 62.8%, after trading down more than 80% earlier in the day.

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. 🔻 43.8%.

Comerica Inc. 🔻 27.7%.

Customers Bancorp Inc. 🔻 23.8%.

PacWest Bancorp 🔻 21%.

Video courtesy Fox News

🔹UN 🇺🇳 - Russian 🇷🇺 delegations negotiate in Geneva, Switzerland 🇨🇭, over the Black Sea Grain Deal. The West has not fulfilled previous guarantees of removing all barriers to the export of Russian grain & fertilizers.

🔹The grain 🌾 deal was extended for 60 days instead of 120 days because of failures to remove restrictions on Russian agricultural exports. Moscow will insist on making sure that the guarantees given to Russia on the removal of both direct & indirect sanctions on Russian food & fertilizer exports are met.

🔹Türkiye 🇹🇷 welcomes the extension as 24 million tons of food have been exported through Ukrainian 🇺🇦 ports since the deal was implemented in July '22.

🔹Western countries are reluctant to connect the Russian bank Rosselkhozbank to SWIFT again out of fear that it will be used not only for transactions in the agriculture sector. Russian grain and fertilizer are stuck at European ports 🏗 due to western sanctions on shipping payments & insurance.

🔹Western media & politicians continue to blame Russia for a world-wide food crisis. However, during the first 6 months of the deal, it turned out that only 3% of Ukrainian grain went to countries where there is a shortage of food, while the rest of the grain was exported to Europe.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Most grain from Ukraine goes to the EU 🇪🇺 for animal feed at dumping prices, not to the poorest countries.

💠 Russia resumes participation to the Black Sea grain deal after guarantees to lift restrictions on Russian exports of food & fertilizers.

💠 Russia suspends grain deal after ships in the Black Sea were attacked by Ukraine.

💠 Grain 🌾 deal hypocrisy by western countries, exposed.

💠 Chairman of the African Union visits Russia to discuss food crisis in Africa.

💠 Grain deal signed with safe routes 🚢 made in Black Sea. Previous deal was botched by Ukraine.

🔹The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's (KSA) 🇸🇦 Energy Minister. Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman:

🎤 "We will not sell oil 🛢 to any country that imposes a price cap on our supply, and we will reduce oil production, and I would not be surprised if others do the same".

🎤 The G7/EU 🇪🇺 oil price cap would also undermine investments in oil capacity and will cause global supply to fall severely short of future demand. The impacts will be felt all over the world on producers and consumers alike, as well as on the oil industry.

🎤 Price caps whether imposed on a country or a group of countries, on oil or any other commodity will lead to individual or collective counter-responses with intolerable consequences in the form of massive volatility and instability.

🔹Saudi 🇸🇦 Aramco has announced record profits of $161billion USD for the year 2022.

🔹Saudi Aramco to supply petroleum products in Kenya 🇰🇪 for 6 months on credit, due to Kenya's shortage of US dollars.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 The KSA 🇸🇦 & Iran 🇮🇷 agreed to resume diplomatic ties.

💠 Russia 🇷🇺 started exporting diesel to the KSA, which could be refined further & re-exported.

💠 The KSA’s oil revenues hit $326 billion in 2022, the highest level since Crown Prince MBS’s reign began

💠 The KSA is open to discussions about trade in currencies other than the US dollar 💵, such as the Chinese yuan.

💠 The KSA leads OPEC+'s 2 million barrels of oil 🛢 per day production cut.

💠 The KSA's 🇸🇦 energy minister warns nations who use emergency oil reserves to manipulate prices.

💠 The KSA imports Russian fuel oil, resulting in having more unrefined crude to sell on international markets at higher prices.

Video courtesy Firstpost

🔹 An Indian 🇮🇳 oil ministry source told Reuters, "India is not obligated to buy Russian oil 🛢 at rates below the price cap imposed by the G7 & other Western nations". "India has not signed any agreement with the Western powers to impose a price cap on Russian oil", added the source, who could not be named due to the confidential nature of the matter.

🔹 The structure of India’s oil trade means that the final price it pays includes shipping, insurance and other costs upon arrival at its ports, without a detailed breakdown. That makes it hard to know how much it’s actually paying Russia. The reality is this market has become extremely opaque & it is near-impossible to get middlemen costs.

🔹 The difference between the landed price — the cost when oil arrives at port — and the free-on-board price, which doesn’t include shipping, insurance and other ancillary fees, is the crux of the problem. Moreover, India often secures its oil after it’s in transit, having already left Russia 🇷🇺 and adding to the complexity of determining the original price.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Russia now supplies around 35% of India’s 🇮🇳 total oil imports, it was at 1% before Feb. 2022.

💠 Around 70% of Jan. 2023 loading cargoes of Russian Urals was destined to India.

💠 Indian refiners have begun paying for most of their Russian 🇷🇺 oil purchased via Dubai-based traders in UAE dirhams instead of USD.

💠 Around half of Russian crude is now estimated to be sold via its growing "shadow fleet" 🚢 of off-book tankers.

💠 India buying thirty-three (33) times more 📈 Russian oil than a year earlier.

Video courtesy World Affairs

🔹Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia 🇷🇺 and Bashar Assad of Syria 🇸🇾 held 3-hour long talks in Moscow to discuss a wide range of political and economic issues. Prospects for a comprehensive settlement of the situation in and around Syria was also discussed.

🔹 President Putin said, thanks to joint efforts by Russia & Syria significant success has been achieved in the fight against international terrorism. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said there is still a lot of work to be done in order to liberate Syria of international terrorism, but most of this work has been complete.

🔹 President Assad thanked Russia for the assistance rendered during the after effects of the recent earthquakes. He reiterated his support to Russia in the fight with "old and new Nazis."

🔹 Trade turnover between Russia, Syria was up 📈 7% in 2022. The topic of Syria 🇸🇾- Türkiye 🇹🇷 relations was also discussed.

🔹 The Syrian delegation was represented by the ministers of foreign affairs, economy & foreign trade, defense, finance, the general secretary of the cabinet and some others.

Last reported on this channel:

💠 Türkiye 🇹🇷 has agreed to fully withdraw its troops from northern Syria 🇸🇾 following tripartite talks involving Moscow, Ankara and Damascus.

💠 US sanctions on Syria restrict international aid arriving in Syria during the aftermath of recent earthquakes.

💠 Türkiye believes the presence of Iran in ongoing talks between Türkiye, Syria, & Russia is beneficial for resolving the conflict in Syria.

💠 Foreign Policy (FP) claims that Ankara’s real demand is the end of U.S. 🇺🇸 support for Kurds in Syria.

Video courtesy AZgeopolitics.

🔹French 🇫🇷 President E. Macron's gov't rammed a controversial pension reform through parliament without a vote today, Mar. 16th. The gov't lacked a majority in the National Assembly 🏛 to pass the legislation to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.

🔹Trade unions and political analysts had warned beforehand that adopting the legislation without a vote -- by invoking article 49.3 of the constitution -- risked radicalising opponents and would undercut the law's democratic legitimacy.

🔹At around 8:00 pm (1900 GMT), police 🚓 used tear gas and water cannon to clear protesters away from in front of the parliament at the historic Place de la Concorde.

🔹Several stores were looted during protests in the southern city of Marseille while clashes between protesters and security forces also erupted in the western cities of Nantes and Rennes as well as Lyon in the southeast

Last reported on this channel:

💠 French unions stepped up protests and strikes against pension reform plans on Mar. 7th & Mar. 11th-12th.

💠 At least 1.1 million people protested on the streets of 🇫🇷 Paris & other French cities on 19th January amid nationwide strikes.

💠 France's state-owned nuclear operator EDF is considering using funds from depositors in a centuries-old savings account to finance part of a €50bn plan to build six nuclear reactors.

💠 French Finance Minister called for a new European policy to protect the EU's 🇪🇺 industrial base in the face of massive US subsidies.

💠 France issues vouchers for firewood to help families cope as European traders are evading sanctions with fake paperwork claiming Russian🇷🇺/Belarussian 🇧🇾firewood is from Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan.