A Deal Without the Victim – But With Spoils – Alaska Postscript 1.5
Alaska. The show. Yes, there was a press conference. Putin spoke, most the time. Trump spoke too. Cameras clicked. Microphones were on – but nothing was actually said. Nothing that mattered. Nothing that explained. Nothing that would justify the wave of outrage now washing over Europe. What really happened wasn’t broadcast. It’s only now, days […]
Alaska-Summit: No Deal, No Order – Just a Show
Trump–Putin in Alaska: The summit that wasn’t I. The Stage, Not the Summit Jets in the sky. Limos on the runway. Red-white-blue banners waving. Two men looking pleased with themselves. What you didn’t see: diplomacy. What you didn’t hear: responsibility. The so-called “summit” between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska was all […]
Maps Beat Mines – And Brussels Just Found Out
It started with a postcard. White sand. A pier. A boy in yellow rubber boots staring at a container ship on the horizon. My daughter drew it last week, apparently inspired by some thoughts about where “stuff comes from.” I looked at the picture longer than she expected. She thought I was proud. Yes, I […]
Quick Bite – Critical Minerals: Who Sets the Standards?
Brussels loves its grand unveilings. On March 16, 2023, the European Commission rolled out the Critical Raw Materials Act with all the usual fanfare – speeches about “strategic autonomy” and “reducing dependency,” delivered in a room full of people who depend on coffee from Kenya, gas from Norway, and rare earths from… China. Fast-forward two […]
Concert of Powers – Why the World Isn’t Multipolar but Fragmented
I. Introduction: From Yalta to YouTube Diplomacy We are not living in a multipolar world order. We are living among the ruins of its promises. The usual analytical vocabulary – “liberal order,” “rules-based system,” “Westphalian sovereignty” – resembles yellowed theater props, now repurposed as backdrops for influencer-ambassadors vlogging their diplomatic intentions. International politics is no […]
Gold Dust Over Graves
How Latin America is Burying Its Future It’s a curious blend of naivety and theatre when Western media suddenly “discover” that illegal gold mining is taking place in Peru — as if it were breaking news. The reality is quite different. For years, entire regions of the Andes and the Amazon have been transformed into […]
Command Without Community – The New Art of Western Power
An air war without mandate. A summit without consequence. Israel strikes, the U.S. follows. NATO celebrates itself. Welcome to the post-consensus world. 1. Three Dates, One Pattern June 13: Israel bombs Iranian targets deep inside the country. Air defenses, missile silos, nuclear centers, military leaders, scientists – all included. The operation is called “Rising […]
The Age of Tactical Alliances — What Comes After Loyalty?
Diplomacy didn’t die. It just stopped believing in fairy tales. As the NATO summit in The Hague (June 24–25, 2025) approaches, the optics are in place—flags fluttering, podiums staged, declarations rehearsed. But the real diplomacy happens elsewhere: in encrypted chats, backroom nods, and discreet recalibrations. This isn’t the age of shared destiny. It’s the age […]
Victory’s Price — Netanyahu’s Faustian Pact with Trump
He got the war he wanted—but not the control. When the bunker-busting bombs dropped on Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan, a decades-old Israeli wish was fulfilled—not by Tel Aviv, but by Washington. Under Trump’s command, America struck Iran’s nuclear program at its core. For Netanyahu, it seemed like strategic triumph. But the fine print of victory is written […]
The War That Wants to Happen and Just Did
1. The Illusion Dies First Wars used to start with declarations. Now they begin with deniability, misdirection, and carefully worded truths. The emerging war between Israel and Iran—with the United States now fully engaged—is not an accident. It’s a script. Some wars are accidental. Others are structural. This one is theatrical. With the US strike […]