In Geopolitics Today - Thursday, March 31st
Indonesia Expresses Interest in Buying Discounted Russian Oil, The UAE Pushes to Become a Regional Cryptocurrency Hub, Geopolitical Realities Serve as a Lesson on Ukraine
Indonesia Expresses Interest in Buying Discounted Russian Oil
Despite the threat of secondary sanctions being imposed by the United States on any any country seeking to do business with Russia, Southeast Asian nations look set to continue their purchases of Russian energy moving forward. Indonesia is one such state in a region with soaring energy costs, so Jakarta is naturally considering whether the country should increase purchases of Russian fuel in an effort to ease rising consumer prices at home.
For Indonesia’s state-owned energy firm PT Pertamina, buying crude oil from Russia would align with a need to utilise a newly revamped oil refinery. Pertamina representatives announced their intention to purchase Russian crude oil due to the attractiveness of its low price, with Russian crude trading lower than that from other suppliers due to the risks associated with the imposition of secondary sanctions. Pertamina is key part in Indonesia’s efforts to refit an oil refinery in the city of Balongan. But Russian energy imports are somewhat poisoned commodities today after the imposition of a harsh sanctions regime by the US. Indonesia currently holds the G20 presidency and has sought to maintain a neutral stance amid the war in Ukraine. The Indonesian government has raised some concerns about the invasion but has not outright condemned it, leaving open the possibility to establish ties with a sanctioned Russia.
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The UAE Pushes to Become a Regional Cryptocurrency Hub
The UAE is cultivating Dubai as a regional hub for cryptocurrency trading. The Gulf state has recently made efforts to lay the necessary legal groundwork to entice international cryptocurrency companies to set up offices in Dubai. New laws were passed earlier this month that regulate virtual assets and the businesses which utilise them. Because of such moves to facilitate cryptocurrency forms, the new laws may have already helped to attract two key companies in this industry to Dubai.
The cryptocurrency trading platform Bybit has announced its intention to move its global headquarters from Singapore to Dubai, with a deal allowing the firm to conduct “virtual assets business” in the UAE said to be agreed “in-principle.” Another major firm — Crypto.com — also made an announcement stating the firm will soon establish a regional office in Dubai after signing a memorandum of understanding with the UAE government. The arrival of two major digital asset firms to Dubai indicates that the regulatory framework being prepared by the government is working, and may even serve as a model for other powers to replicate as more states seek to benefit from the sprawling digital asset industry.
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Geopolitical Realities Serve as a Lesson on Ukraine
Geography is a key pivot in international politics that in many ways determines the behaviour of agents within the international political arena. This reality is an essential component of geopolitics, a lens through which we can examine the political control of space by states which operate in competitive conditions imposed on them by anarchy. In this international arena, the importance of geography as a driver of state behaviour cannot be understated.
Rivers, oceans, mountains, steppes, forests and desserts all impose constraints upon whatever kingdoms, empires, states and rulers lay claim to geographic places. Unsurprisingly, the geopolitical history of Ukraine is that of a contested battlefield. The territory has for centuries functioned as a logistical corridor that connects the European peninsula with the core of the Eurasian heartland, an area that has proved pivotal to political and economic access of surrounding territories. Moreover, the territory of Ukraine holds significant value due to agricultural advantages, navigable waterways, warm water ports, infrastructure networks (especially gas and rail), demographics and abundant deposits of mineral resources. It is no wonder that the political structures which have ruled over the geographic space we consider Ukraine have been the target of subjugation campaigns by outside powers for centuries.
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