Category Archives: foreign policy
Escalation! On the Cusp of World War III?
Fair Dinkum
Putin announces partial mobilisation to boost the forces in Ukraine, as the two Donbass republics and two regions of Ukraine go to a referendum to join the Russian Federation. If the referendums support joining Russia, then the four areas must formally apply to join Russia. It then goes to the Duma for approval, and if they do, it goes to Putin to sign into law. Perhaps the mobilisation is timed to coincide with these 4 areas joining Russia which would mean Ukraine is at war with Russia, no longer against the two republics in the Donbass.
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Multi-faceted Campaign against the SL Government Crackdown on the Aragalaya
HRW …. 31 August 2022 …………. https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/08/31/sri-lanka-end-use-terrorism-law-against-protesters
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Riaz Hassan: Straddling the World …. An Ecumenical Scholar for All Ages
Michael Roberts
I met Riaz Hassan for the first time as one of the keynote speakers at a conference organised by Neelan Tiruchelvam in Sri Lanka circa 1974 (details forgotten) when I was teaching in the History Department at Peradeniya University and Riaz was at an university in Singapore. It was the best of serendipity (a word deriving perhaps from Serendib aka Sri Lanka) that I found him attached to Flinders University when I moved to the Anthropology Department at University in 1977.
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Power Balancing Moves in Asia: Displacing USA
Scott Ritter in Energy Intelligence, 9 September 2022, with this title “India And China Eye Asian Century”
As the world lurches through the growing pains of massive geopolitical change, the US’ relationship with India will increasingly take center stage. Washington likes to see itself as providing a geopolitical center of gravity that is inherently attractive to nations like India, especially against regional competitors such as China. As the US is about to discover, however, India and China have a shared ambition about who should dominate the Pacific in the coming century, and it doesn’t include the US.
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An Ukrainian General Speaks His Mind
Scott Ritter, interviewing Commander Khodakovsky, September 2022 ….. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOl7Yy7ljwo
On episode 3 of the show we are joined by Alexander Khodakovsky, commander of the Donetsk People’s Republic’s «Vostok» Battalion. Former commander of Ukraine’s Alpha special unit of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
A COMMENT from Fair Dinkum …. who sent me this reference, 8 September 2022
Interview with Alexander Khodakovsky, Commander of the Donetsk People’s Republic Battalion giving an update on what is currently occurring on the battlefield. It is not a voice found anywhere in the Western world. In the West, we only get Sir Winston Zelensky and the Ukrainian cheerleaders. Khodakovsky comes across as rationale, honest, straightforward, professional, and with a curious mixture of humility and a fighting spirit.
Alexander Khodokovsky
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China and Africa: A Lesson for Ranjan
“One Mr X”, 23 August 2022, responding to a Challenge extended within A Comment By Brig. Ranjan de Silva in X’s NOTE in the essay by Benjamin Norton …………………………. https://thuppahis.com/2022/08/22/china-jettisons-23-loans-to-african-states-wunderbar/#more-65196
I am glad Brigadier (Rtd) Ranjan de Silva has found time to ask for the names of the 17 countries as it enables me to expand on the context relating to this announcement which is important to understand.
The Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Li made the announcement for debt forgiveness to African countries on 18 August (just six days ago) in remarks he made at the Coordinators’ Meeting on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of The Eighth Ministerial Conference of The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
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China Jettisons 23 Loans to African States!!! Wunderbar!!!
Benjamin Norton, in Multipolarista, 21 August 2022, where the headline reads thus “China forgives 23 loans for 17 African countries, expands ‘win-win’ trade and infrastructure projects”
The Chinese government has announced that it is forgiving 23 interest-free loans for 17 African nations, while pledging to deepen its collaboration with the continent.
This is in addition to China’s cancellation of more than $3.4 billion in debt and restructuring of around $15 billion of debt in Africa between 2000 and 2019.
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Western Misrepresentations of China’s Actions in Sri Lanka Continue
Fair Dinkum, … an original set of thoughts … with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi
It’s good to see Australia providing aid to SL though its peanuts compared to the aid provided by India and China. This article is a good example of an Anglo-Saxon reading of an Asian situation.
Some flawed claims by the Anglo-Saxons at The Age in this article are,
– The claim China was “flexing its muscles” by “insisting on docking a giant scientific research ship despite concerns raised by India”. There is no mention that India had earlier flexed its muscles by insisting Sri Lanka deny entry to the vessel. And no analysis as to whether India had genuine security concerns or were simply politically posturing. There was also no mention of India’s interference into Sri Lanka’s sovereignty.
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