Intelligence
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100 reports in this category.
How Islam Spread to Russia
29 Apr 2021
2021 Forecast: Europe – Will The EU Collapse?
In 2021, Europe will face challenges both familiar and unforeseen. The future of the old continent will to a large extent depend on the evolving global constellation of forces, but also on the way the European Union chooses to position itself.
31 Jan 2021
2021 Forecast: Africa – Neocolonialism At Its Worst
On January 1, 2021, African countries began officially trading under a new continent-wide free trade area. The African Continental Free Trade Area aims to bring together 1.3 billion people in a $3.4 trillion economic bloc that will be the largest free trade area since the establishment of the World Trade Organization.
31 Jan 2021
Is COVID-19 crisis manufactured to stop China’s growth?
War against the "invisible enemy" goes on, even though it is still unclear how this fight started. The United States and China keep accusing each other of deliberately creating the novel coronavirus in order to achieve their own geopolitical agendas. The US officials blame Chinese authorities for fabricating information related to the origin of COVID-19, while Beijing claims it was the US Army that brought the coronavirus to China. There are theories that the US created the virus in order to slow China’s economic growth, while many Americans believe that People’s Republic of China sent hundreds of thousands of Chinese on aircraft to the West in order to spread the disease and destroy Western economies. In any case, the coronavirus has already caused a serious damage to both, the United States and China, and the two powers will likely take advantage of the situation and try to transform the global political, economic, financial and monetary systems.
25 May 2020
Middle East: Waiting for major war
4 Jan 2020
Will Kenya fall into China’s “Debt Trap”?
Kenya is among the African nations that China has had a growing influence in since the turn of the millennium. China has spent billions of dollars in Africa over the past few decades. Majority of its investments in Kenya go to infrastructure development, much like what China has been doing in the rest of Africa, as part of its Belt and Road Initiative, an estimated one trillion dollar plan to connect the country to trade routes all over the world. History China-Kenya relations date back to December 1963, when Kenya gained independence from British colonial rule. The alliance between the two nations started gaining momentum in the past couple of decades as China boosted investments aimed at infrastructure development in developing countries around the globe. It was the election of Mwai Kibaki as President of Kenya in 2002 that paved the way for a new era of Chinese investments in the country. Subscribe to read the full report We wish we didn't have to do this, but only paid subscribers can read the full article, Unlike other publishers, we are not the beneficiaries of State funds and are entirely dependent on our supporters to keep KJ Vids functioning. Please subscribe to read the rest of the article. Economic relations Latest trade deals Debt-trap Diplomacy Risks associated with the Belt and Road initiative Military/defence agreements By investing in KJ Vids, you are investing in yourself Our content succinctly contextualises the key geopolitical trends you need to know in order to make sense of world events. We can assure you that a regular dose of our content will be as healthy as fruit and vegetables for your mind. Subscribe for only £10 a month.
6 Aug 2019
Russia and Iran: Allies or Rivals?
In case of a major military confrontation between the US and Iran, Russia would be one of the main geopolitical beneficiaries. Such a conflict would return Iran to complete isolation and would help Russia to regain lost markets in Central Asia.
2 Aug 2019
The Geopolitics of the Strait of Hormuz
A vital crossroad for oil trade located in a geopolitically tense region, the Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important chokepoints. America’s presence in the Persian Gulf is largely motivated by the need to keep the Strait open. Yet, the recent tensions in the area are once again raising concerns about stability in this essential maritime passage.
28 Jul 2019
UAE Withdrawal from Yemen: Fact or Half-Truth?
By most credible accounts, the UAE’s involvement in the Yemen War has been greater than Saudi Arabia’s, and Abu Dhabi’s concealment of this fact, speaks volumes about the Emirates’ diplomatic and public relations prowess. By the same token, and in view of the depth of the UAE’s involvement in the Yemen conflict, it would be surprising, to say the least, if the UAE suddenly stopped its involvement there.
26 Jul 2019
Authoritarians Fool the World, But for How Long?
“Things fall apart. The center cannot hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” These lines, written in 1919 after the upheaval and carnage of World War I, still apply to many parts of the world today. The United States, the leader of the post-World War II order, elected a president who is in a competition with Baghdad Bob, the famously delusional spokesperson for Saddam Hussein during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Donald Trump seems intent on destroying trade agreements and alliances with friends while praising dictators with blood on their hands. And polls suggest he has 40 to 45 percent support from voters while Republican senators dare not oppose policies antithetical to their professed ideology and contrary to the interests of their constituents. The United Kingdom, once a builder of a globe-spanning empire, is undecided on whether or how to sever ties with Europe – ignoring the cries of firms that make plans to relocate and drain the country of future tax revenues. India overwhelmingly reelected a Hindu nationalist whose leadership resulted in economic backsliding. Under his leadership as minister, hundreds of Muslims were killed in Gujarat, and as prime minister, Narendra Modi largely remained silent when innocent Muslims were lynched. China has a supreme leader who tries to fit a dynamic and complex society into a 1960s Maoist mold that had proven disastrous. In doing so, he has made many enemies at home and abroad, likely contributing to the collapse of an integrated global economy that had lifted hundreds of millions of Chinese out of poverty.
17 Jul 2019
The Economics of HAJJ
The sheer scale of demand by Muslims all around the world to complete their Hajj has given rise to consumer-capitalist models of religious tourism on an unprecedented scale. The cost of Hajj has increased significantly in recent years generating billions of dollars for the Saudi economy. In this article we will look at the economics of Hajj. Until the introduction of modern transport systems, most Muslims beyond the Arab world had little expectation of completing this vital Islamic obligation. Before the mid-1950s, the number of overseas pilgrims rarely exceeded 100,000 and modern Saudi institutions were still developing. Yet by the early 2000s, the total number of Hajj pilgrims had passed the 2m mark, reaching a recent peak of just over 3m in 2012.
17 Jul 2019
Russia and OPEC get closer
The increase of American shale oil production and the oil crisis of 2014 have brought the OPEC closer to Russia. If bringing Russia in the OPEC negotiation has proven to give the organisation more weight on the international market, the relations between the organisation and Moscow comes with a lot of ups and downs.
16 Jul 2019
The History of Uyghur Muslims
For over a decade, under the guise of counter-terrorism and ‘anti-separatism’ efforts, the government maintains a pervasive system of ethnic discrimination against Uyghurs Muslims and sharply curbs their Islamic practises and expression. China is accused of encouraging internal migration into the Xinjiang province to increase the non-Uyghur population and power in the region. In this piece we take a look at the history of Uyghur Muslims.
14 Jul 2019
Is China a catalyst for Transatlantic Relations?
The second decade of the 21st century is marked by the restoration of a concert of powers. The multilateral world order is slowly fading into the past with new alliances forming and established ones questioned by their founders. The United States seems to pursue an isolationist policy, Europe is internally undecided, and China and Russia have cemented their marriage of convenience. In this battle for hearts, minds and wallets the transatlantic relationship has never been weaker. But there is one actor that could bring the United States and Europe closer together again. China’s rise is not a new phenomenon. Its economy is already as large as that of the United States, and over the next decade, Beijing will contribute three times more than Washington to global commerce. The Chinese challenge is multidimensional including trade, military, technology and values. A US rivalry with China is of civilizational and ideological nature, suggested Kiron Skinner, who heads policy planning for the US Department of State. The Trump administration has officially called Beijing a strategic competitor while the new strategy paper from the European Commission describes this Asian power as a “systemic rival” with the ambition to become a technological leader promoting alternative models of governance. Could the Chinese factor be enough for Europe and the United States to close ranks and present a united front vis-à-vis a formidable adversary?
14 Jul 2019
The Geopolitics of Ethiopia
Ethiopia is an emerging economy and the Horn of Africa’s power hub. But in spite of its considerable potential, it also has to face significant challenges to its rise. Depending on how it copes with them, Ethiopia could either become a leader of African progress or another fragmented state torn by conflict.
12 Jul 2019
Pakistan’s Crippling Economy
Pakistan’s current economic situation is very worrying with the growth rate falling by almost 50 percent, and is expected to go down even further next year, which will be the country’s lowest in the past 10 years.
11 Jul 2019
The Chinese-Israel Connection
As widely known, Israel is also closely affiliated with China’s main competitor in the world, the United States. However, the China-Israel relationship has been expanding rapidly on a number of fronts, and the past few years have seen stark upticks in trade, investment, education exchanges, and tourism between the two countries.
10 Jul 2019
As Cities grow, so do the number of Homeless
Today, most of the world’s population of 7.6 billion, 55 percent, is concentrated in urban centres, in close proximity to the politically influential and economically well-to-do. Based on national reports, it’s estimated that no less than 150 million people, or about 2 percent of the world’s population, are homeless. However, about 1.6 billion, more than 20 percent of the world’s population, may lack adequate housing. Obtaining an accurate picture of homelessness globally is challenging for several reasons. First, and perhaps most problematic, is variations in definitions.
8 Jul 2019