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☆ Putin replaces Russia's defense minister with civilian economist in unexpected move
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin attends the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2024. Mikhail Klimentyev | Afp | Getty ImagesRussian President Vladimir Putin tapped a civilian economist as his surprise new defense minister on Sunday in an attempt to gird Russia for economic war by trying to better utilize the defense budget and harness greater innovation to win in Ukraine. More than two years into the conflict, which has cost both sides heavy casualties, Putin proposed Andrei Belousov, a 65-year-old former deputy prime minister who specializes in economics, to replace his long-term ally, Sergei Shoigu, 68, as defense minister. That, said Peskov, meant it was vital to ensure such spending aligned with and was better integrated into the country's overall economy, which was why Putin now wanted a civilian economist in the defense ministry job. Putin's move, though unexpected, preserves balance at the top of the complex system of personal loyalties that make up the current political system.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Klimentyev, Putin, Andrei Belousov, Sergei Shoigu, Nikolai Patrushev, Patrushev, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Belousov, Alexander Baunov Organizations: Sputnik, Victory Day, Afp, Getty, Security, Putin, West, Defence, Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center Locations: Russian, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Soviet Union

☆ Russia’s Victory Day parade masks simmering tensions inside Putin’s government and beyond
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Russian President Vladimir Putin presided over a pared-back Victory Day parade Thursday, showcasing his country’s unity and resolve to continue the war on Ukraine. But since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the massive military parade has been somewhat downsized. “The fate of the motherland, its future depends on each of us … We celebrate Victory Day in the context of the special military operation. All of Russia is with you!”But this year’s Victory Day is also happening against the background of a bribery scandal roiling Russia’s Ministry of Defense. Under Putin, Victory Day has assumed greater importance in national life.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Putin —, “, ”, Timur Ivanov, Mikhail Klimentyev, Alexander Nemenov, Ivanov, Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu’s protégé, —, Alexey Navalny, Stanislav Krasilnikov, Maria Pevchikh, that’s Organizations: CNN, Nazi, “, Ministry of Defense, Defence, Sputnik, Getty, Financial, Corruption Foundation, AP, ACF, Prestige, — Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Nazi Germany, Russian, It’s, AFP, Mariupol, Putin’s Russia, Sochi, Moscow

☆ Putin’s War Will Soon Reach Russians’ Tax Bills
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Paul Sonne | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia is about to institute a rare tax increase on corporations and high earners, a move that reflects both the burgeoning costs of his war in Ukraine and the firm control he has over the Russian elite as he embarks on a fifth term in office. Financial technocrats in Mr. Putin’s government are searching for new ways to fund not just an expensive war in Ukraine but also a broader confrontation with the West that is likely to remain costly for years. Russia is allocating nearly a third of its overall 2024 budget to national defense spending this year, a huge increase, adding to a deficit that the Kremlin has taken pains to keep in check. The proposed tax increase underscores Mr. Putin’s rising confidence about his political control over the Russian elite and his country’s economic resilience at home, showing that he is willing to risk alienating parts of society to fund the war. It would represent the first major tax overhaul in over a decade.

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin Locations: Russia, Ukraine

☆ Analysis: As Putin sails to re-election, Russia’s leader has a succession problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Russian President Vladimir Putin is widely expected to sail to re-election in a nationwide vote that begins on March 15, securing a fifth term in office and a full third decade as Russia’s paramount leader. As Kremlin chairman, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin would become the country's leader temporarily if Putin were to die or be incarcerated while in office. In 2008, Putin reached the end of his second presidential term, and stepped aside for a handpicked placeholder, Dmitry Medvedev. Some Russian political observers speculate that the real competition to succeed Putin is not likely until the 2030s, when Putin reaches his sixth term. Even the former president Medvedev, who lost the number two slot in 2020 when he stepped down in a government shakeup, may still have aspirations.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexey Navalny, Joseph Stalin, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Putin “, Joe Biden, Putin’s, …, ”, Andreas Umland, “ Putin, ” Umland, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin –, “ It’s, Umland, Mikhail Mishustin, Gleb Schelkunov, Dmitry Medvedev, Medvedev, Irina Buzhor, Leonid Brezhnev, Alexander Lukashenko, Xi Jinping, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Nazarbayev, President Kassym, Tokayev, Andrey Pertsev Organizations: CNN, Stockholm Centre, Eastern European Studies, Russian, Russian Federation, Soviet, Air Force One, United Russia, Russian Security Council, AP, Chinese Communist Party, country’s Security, Kremlin Locations: Soviet, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, Russian, Belarusian, Kazakhstan

☆ Despite Hard-liners Winning Recent Elections, Iran Is Heading for a Big Change - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Arash Azizi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The vote, for the Parliament and Assembly of Experts, which appoints the supreme leader, was far from a referendum on current leaders, though. Iranians instead had the option to vote for varying degrees of conservative and hard-line candidates, often competing only in their effusive praise for the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Despite their Islamist declarations, many politicians in the Islamic Republic are not ideologues or revolutionaries, but technocrats or pragmatists who have gathered around Ayatollah Khamenei for proximity to his power. Today’s Iran is held together by the octogenarian Ayatollah Khamenei and his authority. A new Iran may be on the horizon, even if it’s not the Iran anti-regime protesters have hoped for.

Persons: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Khamenei, it’s Organizations: Experts Locations: Gaza, Islamic Republic, Iran

☆ ‘Two sessions’: China’s key political gathering gets underway as leaders try to repair broken economic confidence
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Xi is under the spotlight as economic pain has sparked growing frustration within China. Xi has also overseen a political shakeup in his own ranks, further marring the start of the new term. Those challenges may not pose a threat to Xi, who is China’s most powerful and authoritative leader in decades. But the two sessions provide an important platform for China’s notoriously opaque government to broadcast its strategy for economic, social and foreign policies and announce key indicators including China’s economic growth target, its budget deficit limit and military spending for the coming year. Analysts widely expect Li to reveal a relatively ambitious growth target of “around 5%,” showing that policymakers are still focused on economic growth, even as challenges pile up.

Persons: —, Xi Jinping, Xi, ”, Chen Gang, Li Qiang, It’s, Xuezhi Guo, Guo, Wang Yi, Qin Gang, Li Shangfu, Li, Qin, Pedro Pardo, Neil Thomas, Premier Li, Asia Society’s Thomas, “ Organizations: Beijing CNN —, Communist, National University of Singapore’s East Asian Institute, Getty, of, National People’s, Guilford College, Observers, Washington, Asia Society, Center for Locations: China, Beijing, Chongqing, AFP, Taiwan, China's, Henan, Center for China, Asia

☆ Russia’s Brutal War Calculus
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-24 | by ( Paul Sonne | Josh Holder | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +7 min

Russia’s Brutal War Calculus Freedoms Wages The costs of two years of war in Ukraine have been enormous. Here is a look at how Russia at war has changed — suffering enormous costs by some metrics but faring better than expected by others. But Mr. Putin has convinced many that in invading Ukraine, Russia is defending itself against an existential threat from the West. Blood and TreasureIn the early months of the war, Mr. Putin’s military made grave mistakes, but it has regrouped. But despite their stated support for the war, many Russians would be happy for it to end.

Persons: languish, Instagram, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, “, Putin’s, Aleksei A, Navalny Organizations: Daily Life People, Facebook, Travel, Trade, Russia, Military Locations: Ukraine, Russia, China, Soviet Union, India, Moscow, Europe, Turkey, Ukrainian

☆ China is heading for a 'lost decade' if it doesn't reform and grow, an analyst says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China risks a "lost decade" of slow growth if it doesn't reform its economy, warns an economist. AdvertisementChina faces a "lost decade" of sluggish economic growth much like Japan if it doesn't reform its economy, according to an economist. "China could certainly have a lost decade of growth," Rory Green, the chief China economist at GlobalData.TS Lombard, wrote in a note on Thursday. Leaders are attempting to create a new political-economic model, one less reliant on debt-fueled property-led growth," wrote Green. Meanwhile, technocrats in China generally believe China needs to reform and grow — or risk a Japan-style lost decade, Green added.

Persons: Beijing's, —, Rory Green, GlobalData.TS Lombard, Xi Jinping, Green Organizations: Service, cri sis Locations: China, Japan, GlobalData.TS, Beijing, technocrats

☆ Analysis-Indonesia's Prabowo Poised for Power, but How Will He Rule?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

One major question is how well, and for how long, his alliance with outgoing President Joko Widodo, or "Jokowi", will hold. On the campaign trail Prabowo has promised policy "continuity", but analysts say that is far from guaranteed. "Make no mistake a President Prabowo would be his own president." 'UNCERTAINTY' ON THE CARDSIn contrast to Jokowi, Prabowo is from an elite family, the son of a prominent Indonesian economist and the ex-son-law of the country's former authoritarian ruler, Suharto. Once his victory is officially endorsed, Prabowo will assume the controls of Southeast Asia's biggest economy on October 20.

Persons: Kate Lamb JAKARTA, Prabowo Subianto, Prabowo, Long, general's, Joko Widodo, Liam Gammon, Jokowi, Doug Ramage, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Indonesia's, Kevin O'Rourke, Suharto, “, He's, ANU's Gammon, Gammon, Kay Johnson, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Defence, Australian National University, ANU, Jokowi, Analysts, Human Rights Watch Locations: Indonesia, Prabowo, BowerGroupAsia, Indonesian, Ukraine, Qatar

Adam Bodnar, Poland’s new justice minister, recently explained to me the immense challenge of rebuilding liberal democracy in his country after an eight-year slide toward authoritarianism. Imagine, he said, that Donald Trump had won the last election and been in power for two terms instead of one. Poland is a country that has just gone through something like what Trumpists hope to impose on us in a second term. And now it’s trying to repair itself, which is why I flew there last month. The parallels to the backlash against the American Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade, were impossible to miss.

Persons: Adam Bodnar, Donald Trump, Trump, Biden, MAGA, —, Roe, Wade, that’s, Daniel Ziblatt, ” Organizations: Jackson, Health Organization Locations: Poland, American, Dobbs v, Warsaw, America

Here's why European farmers are taking their anger to the streets:THE HISTORYPolitical Cartoons View All 253 ImagesWorld War II had spread hunger on a bountiful continent. When the war ended, Western European leaders knew that the way to people's hearts was through their stomachs. The vision of EU farming from early on was economy of scale — bigger farms, bigger holdings, setting standard rules across borders. “European farmers have found themselves under increasing pressure from many sides,” European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič said. On Wednesday, the European Commission made two key proposals — one to shield EU farmers from cheap Ukrainian imports and one to sidestep an environmental measure.

Persons: Ursula, Ursula von der Leyen, —, von der, “ Ursula, ”, Jean, Francois Deflandre, Paolo Pepponi, It’s, it’s, Pepponi, Benoit Laqueue, Nicolas Abbeloos, “, Maroš Šefčovič, Šefčovič, Emmanuel Macron Organizations: HALLE, European, Agriculture, EU, European Commission, South Locations: Belgium, Paris, Brussels, EU, Ukraine, Kyiv, Halle, Lithuania, France, Spain, Italy, Rome, Europe, Sedan, New Zealand, Chile

☆ Trump is building his power at home while global leaders dread his return
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Trump has invigorated an initially lackluster White House bid by leveraging his multiple criminal indictments to create a narrative of political persecution. On Thursday, CNN’s congressional team reported that senators trying to cut an immigration deal with the White House are running into a problem: Trump. The aid measure is being held up by the immigration showdown to which it was linked — perhaps unwisely many Democrats now think — by the White House. It has caused particular consternation in Europe after the transatlantic alliance was constantly rattled by Trump during his White House term. That’s likely to be a pale imitation of what awaits if he gets back to the White House.

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Haley, Kevin Roberts –, “, can’t, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden’s, Biden, he’s, ”, Sen, Kevin Cramer, Trump’s, Vladimir Putin, Mike Quigley of, Jim Sciutto, CNN Max, Putin, Michael McFaul, Obama, ” McFaul, ” Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Alejandro Mayorkas, Mike Johnson, Mitch McConnell, reverberations, America’s, Christine Lagarde, Heritage’s Roberts, Roberts, that’s, ” Roberts, Jamie Dimon, ” Dimon, Philipp Hildebrand, Emmanuel Macron, ” Macron Organizations: CNN, Florida Gov, South Carolina Gov, New Hampshire, Trump, Economic, Business titans, Heritage Foundation, Republicans, Capitol, GOP, Representatives, Republican, North Dakota Republican, Ukraine, Democratic, Congressional Ukraine Caucus, White, Spirit of, Homeland, US, Colorado Supreme, America, tony, European Central Bank, NATO, CNBC, ” BlackRock, Swiss National Bank Locations: Iowa, Washington, Ukraine, New, Davos, Swiss, Mike Quigley of Illinois, Moscow, Russian, Spirit of America, Ted Cruz of Texas, Marco Rubio of Florida, Europe, Iran, Paris, Switzerland, it’s, China, United States, France

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the weekend that the PA in its current form should not take charge of Gaza. In the wake of Netanyahu's comments, Israeli officials have insisted that Israel does not intend to occupy the Gaza Strip. Dahlan has the backing of the influential United Arab Emirates to lead a post-war administration in Gaza, according to diplomats and Arab officials. So far, the U.S. and its allies have not seen any clear roadmap from Israel for its exit strategy from Gaza beyond the declared aim of eradicating Hamas, diplomats say. Not since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 has there been such widespread concern about military action raging across the Middle East, according to Arab officials and diplomats.

Persons: Israel tightens, Gaza's, Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohammed Dahlan, Israel, Dahlan, Joe Biden, Netanyahu, Gaza –, –, Abu Mohammad, We're, Biden, Jonathan Panikoff, government's, Biden's, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Abbas –, Abbas, Mohammad Shtayyeh, Abu Dhabi, Marwan Barghouti, Washington, Joost R, John Kirby, Nidal al, Humeyra Pamuk, Matt Spetalnick, Andrew Mills, James Mackenzie, Crispian Balmer, John Irish, Aidan Lewis, Alexander Cornwell, Samia Nakhoul, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, Israel Defense Forces, REUTERS, Authority, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, United, Israel, U.S, policymaking, Reuters, Atlantic Council, Gaza, Western, Israel ., UAE, North Africa, Crisis, House, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Gaza Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestinian, U.S, United States, Washington, Hamas, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, America, Egypt, Jordan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Tokyo, Oslo, European, technocrats, United Nations, Middle East, Iran, GAZA, Doha, Jerusalem, Paris, Cairo, Dubai

☆ Italy Weighs Ban on Technocrat-Led Government in Proposed Constitution Reform
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Angelo Amante and Giuseppe FonteROME (Reuters) - Italy's cabinet was set to propose on Friday a ban on technocrat-led governments, a draft law bill seen by Reuters showed, as part of a constitutional reform to introduce the direct election of the prime minister. Italy has had almost 70 governments since World War Two, more than twice the number in Britain and Germany. The right-wing administration of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who took office last year, made ending the country's chronic political instability strengthening the bond between governments and voters a key policy plank. The main opposition groups, the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) and the 5-Star Movement, have already spoken out against the plan. Only the small centrist Italia Viva party of former premier Matteo Renzi said it might back the government.

Persons: Angelo Amante, Giuseppe Fonte, Giorgia Meloni, Mario Draghi, Sergio Mattarella, COVID, Matteo Renzi, Alison Williams Organizations: Reuters, European Central Bank, Democratic Party, Star Movement, Italia Viva Locations: Italy, Britain, Germany, technocrats

☆ Opinion | Why Hamas Must Go
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Dennis B. Ross | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +9 min

If Hamas persists as a military force and is still running Gaza after this war is over, it will attack Israel again. And whether or not Hezbollah opens a true second front from Lebanon during this conflict, it, too, will attack Israel in the future. As one commander in the Israeli military said, “If we do not defeat Hamas, we cannot survive here.”Israel is not alone in believing it must defeat Hamas. Only a few Arab states openly condemned the Hamas massacre of more than 1,400 people in Israel. An outcome that leaves Hamas in control will doom not just Gaza but also much of the rest of the Middle East.

Persons: I’ve, Israel —, it’s, Israel, Ali Khamenei, Iran’s, “, Al, Emmanuel Macron, —, Benjamin Netanyahu Organizations: Soviet, Hezbollah, Israel, Hamas, United Arab Emirates, Ahli Baptist Hospital, West Bank, United Nations, Ad, Committee, ISIS, United Arab, Health Ministry Locations: Soviet Union, Germany, Iraq, Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Iran, Al, Ahli, Israeli, Hamas, Mosul, Raqqa, Syria, United States, Palestinian, United, France, Morocco, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Canada, Ukraine

☆ A Financial Crisis in China Is No Longer Unthinkable
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Greg Ip | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Country Garden, once seen as one of China’s most stable property developers, is now struggling financially, leaving the future of unfinished megadevelopments like Malaysia’s Forest City in doubt. Here’s how overbuilding, and a streak of bad luck, have left China’s real-estate developers in the red. Photo: Adam AdadaThe world’s second-largest economy has a deflating property bubble, local governments struggling to pay their debts and a banking system heavily exposed to both. Anywhere else these factors would be seen as precursors of a financial crisis. But not in China, conventional wisdom goes, because its debts are owed to domestic rather than foreign investors, the government already stands behind much of the financial system and capable technocrats are on top of things.

Persons: Adam Adada Organizations: Malaysia’s Forest City Locations: Malaysia’s Forest, China

☆ Don’t Rule Out a Financial Crisis in China
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Greg Ip | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The International Monetary Fund envisions China’s growth averaging 4% over the next four years, down from its projection of 4.6% a year ago. Photo: Cfoto/Zuma PressThe world’s second largest economy has a deflating property bubble, local governments struggling to pay their debts and a banking system heavily exposed to both. Anywhere else these factors would be seen as precursors of a financial crisis. But not in China, conventional wisdom goes, because its debts are owed to domestic rather than foreign investors, the government already stands behind much of the financial system and capable technocrats are on top of things.

Organizations: Monetary Fund, Zuma Locations: China

☆ Elon Musk's grandfather belonged to a political party that believed the world should be governed by technology. Newspapers at the time described it as having 'the tone of an incipient Fascist movement
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-23 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Elon Musk's grandfather, Joshua Haldeman, was a "radical conspiracy theorist," the Atlantic reports. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe organization also referred to people as numbers (apparently, Musk's grandfather was 10450-1) and sometimes added Xs to their names. A newspaper cited by the magazine said the group gave off "the tone of an incipient Fascist movement ." Like grandfather, like grandsonHistorians note Musk's ideas that technology can solve most of society's ills reflect some of the same technocratic beliefs his grandfather promoted. Haldeman, Musk's maternal grandfather, was born in 1902 in the US before his family moved to Canada at a young age.

Persons: Elon Musk's, Joshua Haldeman, Haldeman, Howard Scott, Musk's, Hitler, Elders of Zion, Musk, Grimes, Technocrats, George Soros, Wyn Haldeman, née Fletcher, Maye Organizations: Service, Bettmann, Getty, North America . Heritage Art, Getty Canada, Social Credit Party, Elders of, Twitter, Defamation, ADL Locations: Canada, Wall, Silicon, Los Angeles , California, North America, California, Atlantic, Josephine County , Oregon, South Africa

☆ The Economy Is in a Pretty Good Place, After All - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Paul Krugman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. economic policy in 2021 was met with a firestorm of criticism from many economists. I’m not talking just about Republican loyalists, who always predict disaster when a Democrat moves into the White House. But the economy has defied that dire prediction. If the policy choices of 2021 did any lasting damage, it’s invisible in the data. So let’s talk about where the economy is now, and ask what, if any, lasting damage the Biden administration’s early policy may have done.

Persons: I’m, Larry Summers, Obama, Biden’s, we’ve, ” Mohamed El Organizations: Republican, Democrat, Democratic, Federal Reserve, Biden

The project launched on Monday, with eyeball scans taking place in countries including Britain, Japan and India. Applicants lined up to have their irises scanned by the device, before waiting for the 25 free Worldcoin tokens the company says verified users can claim. Worldcoin's data-collection is a "potential privacy nightmare," said the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a U.S. privacy campaigner. Worldcoin tokens were trading around $2.30 on the world's largest exchange, Binance, on Tuesday. For many users, the promise of financial gains from the crypto coins was enough to make them hand over personal data.

Persons: Sam Altman, Saeki Sasaki, Worldcoin, Ali, Madeleine Stone, Sujith, Elizabeth Howcroft, Medha, Mark Potter Organizations: Reuters, Privacy, Big Brother Watch, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, BENGALURU, Britain, Japan, India, Tokyo, U.S, London, Bengaluru, Medha Singh, Anton

☆ Putin says Russian economy faring better than expected
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Lidia Kelly | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 5 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said late on Tuesday that the Russian economy was performing better than expected after Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin reported to him that gross domestic product growth and inflation have been surprisingly positive. GDP growth may exceed 2% this year and consumer price inflation may not rise above 5% in annual terms, Mishustin told Putin at a meeting at the Kremlin. The International Monetary Fund expects the Russian economy to grow 0.7% this year. "Our results, at least for the time being, let's say, cautiously, are better than previously expected, better than predicted," Putin said, according to a transcript on the Kremlin's website. On Tuesday, Mishustin told Putin that he had confidence that if there was no force majeure circumstances, the economy would perform well this year.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Mishustin, Mishustin, Putin, Kyiv's, Russia's technocrats, Vladimir Vladimirovich, Anton Siluanov, Lidia Kelly, David Gregorio, Michael Perry Organizations: Kremlin, Monetary Fund, Reuters, Moscow, Monetary, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Melbourne

☆ What Turkey’s new cabinet says about where the country is headed
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Gul Tuysuz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The cabinet appointments hint at a return to orthodox economic policy while holding course on foreign policy as the president heads into his third decade in power. Erdogan’s unorthodox economic policies over the past few years have led to a cost-of-living crisis and a plummeting Turkish lira. Shadow diplomatThe new foreign minister is a well-known figure to Turks and international players who have negotiated with Turkey of late. Hakan Fidan, who had served as head of Turkish Intelligence Agency (MIT) since 2010, has been in every room and every discussion that has been pivotal to Turkish foreign policy over the last few years. He’s been ever-present but rarely heard – a shadow diplomat in Erdogan’s foreign policy arsenal who has charted rough waters in Syria, Libya and beyond.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, –, Nureddin Nebati, ” Simsek, Erdogan, Simsek, Mehmet Celik, Cevdet Yilmaz, Omer Bolat, ” Celik, Hakan Fidan, He’s, Fidan, Ibrahim Kalin, “, ” Fidan, ”, Suleyman Soylu, Istanbul Ali Yerlikaya, Hulusi Akar, Mevlut Cavusoglu, They’ve Organizations: Istanbul CNN —, Reuters, Daily, Trade, CNN, NATO, Turkish Intelligence Agency, MIT, Kurdistan Workers ’ Party, EU, Defense, Development Party, AK Party Locations: Istanbul, Turkish Republic, Turkish, “ Turkey, Daily Sabah, Turkey, Syria, Libya, Greece, West, Celik, Damascus, Ankara, Sweden, Yerlikaya

The country nationalised its copper sector in 1971, provoking international outrage, particularly in the United States. President Gabriel Boric's lithium "nationalisation" is a more benign version, using an even earlier copper model. THE COPPER MODEL - GOOD AND BADIf President Boric's lithium policy is an echo of past copper policy, the comparison is with the "Chileanisation" programme of the Eduardo Frei Montalva administration in the late 1960s. Even the neo-liberals of the Augusto Pinochet regime kept the national jewel in the crown as they opened the rest of the country's' copper sector up to the private sector. It is now Codelco that is tasked with taking control of the country's lithium sector.

☆ Russia’s Technocrats Embraced the West, Then Enabled Putin’s War
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Anatoly Kurmanaev | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Soon after his airplane took off from Moscow last fall, a Russian energy official who had just resigned took his phone and typed up the emotions he had kept bottled inside since the invasion of Ukraine. “I am tired of feeling constant fear for myself, for my loved ones, for the future of my country and of my own,” Arseny Pogosyan wrote on his social media page as he flew into a hurried exile. “I am against this inhumane war.”The outburst in September did not receive much attention, gathering eight likes and one brief comment. After all, Mr. Pogosyan, 30, was among the hundreds of thousands of young Russian men fleeing the mobilization announced days earlier by President Vladimir V. Putin to replenish his battered military. But among his colleagues in the energy ministry, where he worked as a press officer, his decision to leave his job was rare.

But based on Friday's figures, Russia posted a surplus in March of 181 billion roubles, improving on deficits of 821 billion roubles in February and 1.76 trillion roubles in January. Spending accelerated 34% in the quarter to 8.1 trillion roubles, the preliminary data showed. Overall government income was down 20.8% in the quarter compared with 2022 at 5.7 trillion roubles, led by a 45% dive in energy revenues to 1.64 trillion roubles, the data showed. "The large budget deficit...increases nervousness on the market in relation to the price that geopolitical tensions are costing, and requires efforts directed at improving budget revenues," she said. The central bank has repeatedly warned that the budget deficit poses inflationary risks and may compel it to raise interest rates from the current 7.5%.

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