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Beijing Urges US Not to Use ‘China Threat’ Narrative to Control Greenland

Sputnik – 05.01.2026

BEIJING – The United States must stop using the so-called “China threat” narrative to justify its personal interests, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Monday, commenting on US President Donald Trump’s claims to Greenland.

On Sunday, Trump told The Atlantic that the United States “absolutely” needed Greenland, claiming the island was “surrounded by Russian and Chinese ships.” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen urged Trump to stop threatening Greenland, an autonomous part of Denmark, with annexation.

“We urge the US to stop using the so-called ‘China threat’ as a pretext for itself to seek selfish gains,” Lin told the briefing.

Earlier in the day, Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said that the island is open to dialogue with the United States as long as communication occurs through the proper channels.

Trump has repeatedly said that Greenland should become part of the United States, citing its strategic importance for national security and the defense of the “free world,” including from China and Russia. Former Greenlandic Prime Minister Mute Egede said the island was not for sale.

The island was a Danish colony until 1953. It has remained a part of the Kingdom of Denmark after gaining autonomy in 2009, with the ability to self-govern and determine its own domestic policy.

January 5, 2026 Posted by | Russophobia, Sinophobia | , , | Leave a comment

US Strikes Leave Venezuelans Without Homes, Money to Pay for Funerals – Victim

Sputnik – 05.01.2026

CARACAS – A Venezuelan family living in a Caracas suburb has told Sputnik that they have been left homeless and without means of subsistence after US airstrikes.

“We have nowhere to live. We need to bury my aunt, but we also have no money for that — we are a poor family,” the 62-year-old man said.

The US attack partially destroyed the family’s home in the coastal state of La Guaira, north of Caracas, killing the 80-year-old woman.

Another Venezuelan, from the city of Catia La Mar near Caracas, told Sputnik that his elderly neighbor had been killed by a rocket fragment. The attack also destroyed the apartment building that was home to 17 families. He said Venezuelans were struggling to get over the shock caused by US strikes.

On January 3, the United States launched a massive attack on Venezuela, capturing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and taking them to New York. US President Donald Trump announced that Maduro and Flores would face trial for allegedly being involved in “narco-terrorism” and posing a threat, including to the United States.

Caracas requested an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council in response to the US operation. The Venezuelan Supreme Court appointed Vice President Delcy Rodriguez as the acting head of state.

The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed solidarity with the Venezuelan people, called for the release of Maduro and his wife, as well as for the prevention of further escalation. China called for the immediate release of the Maduros, emphasizing that US actions violated international law.

January 5, 2026 Posted by | War Crimes | , , , | Leave a comment

Oil tankers depart Venezuela in ‘dark mode’ amid US blockade: Report

The Cradle | January 5, 2026

About a dozen tankers loaded with Venezuelan oil and fuel departed the country in recent days, despite a blockade imposed by US President Donald Trump as part of the pressure campaign to depose Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, TankerTrackers.com reported on 5 January.

The US military launched an operation on Friday to abduct Maduro and his wife, bringing them to the US to face trumped-up drug trafficking charges in a New York court.

Four of the departed tankers recently left Venezuelan waters through a route north of Margarita Island, TankerTrackers.com revealed, after identifying the vessels in satellite images.

At least four of the tankers had been cleared by Caracas authorities in recent days to leave Venezuelan waters, a source with knowledge of the departures’ paperwork told Reuters. The tankers traveled in “dark mode” after switching off their transponders.

According to Reuters, Venezuela’s state-run oil company PDVSA had accumulated a very large inventory of floating storage amid the US blockade imposed by Trump last month, which had brought the country’s oil exports to a standstill.

The ability of the tankers, all of which are under US sanctions, to depart the country loaded with oil will provide relief for PDVSA, which was running out of storage capacity.

Oil provides Venezuela’s primary source of revenue, making the continued export of the country’s crude crucial for maintaining stability following the US regime-change operation.

Oil minister and vice president Delcy Rodriguez now leads the country in Maduro’s absence.

It was not immediately clear if the US allowed the tankers to depart Venezuela or if they managed to break the US blockade.

Trump claimed on Saturday that the “oil embargo” on Venezuela was still in force, but said Caracas’s largest customers, including China, would keep receiving oil as long as it was paid for using dollars, not yuan.

However, Maduro’s ouster will likely [???] lead Venezuelan oil to be rerouted toward the US and away from China moving forward.

“A smooth transition in Caracas will likely result in a rapid rerouting of Venezuelan oil exports, re-establishing the US as the major buyer of the country’s volumes,” Reuters wrote on Sunday.

Pro-Israel billionaire and Trump supporter Paul Singer is expected to be the largest beneficiary of the rerouting.

In November, a judge in the US District Court in Delaware awarded the assets of PDVSA’s US subsidiary, CITGO, to Amber Energy, which is funded by Singer’s Elliott Management.

Elliot Management paid just $5.9 billion for CITGO’s assets, which include oil refineries in Texas, Louisiana, and Illinois. Estimates of the actual value of CITGO’s assets are as high as $18 billion.

CITGO’s refineries in the US were custom-built to refine Venezuela’s heavy crude, meaning that due to Trump’s regime-change operation, Singer will now be able to purchase Venezuelan oil, refine it, and sell it as fuel in the US.

Jaime Brito, an oil analyst at OPIS, said access to Venezuelan oil imports “will be a game changer for US Gulf Coast … refiners in terms of profitability.”

January 5, 2026 Posted by | Economics | , , | Leave a comment

Chinese embassy expresses extreme shock, indignation over demolition of Chinese monument in Panama

File photo of the China-Panama Friendship Park and the monument commemorating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Chinese people in Panama
By Fan Anqi | Global Times | December 29, 2025

The Chinese embassy in Panama on Monday expressed extreme shock, strong indignation, and firm opposition to the demolition of the China-Panama Friendship Park and the monument commemorating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Chinese people in Panama, on Saturday night without any prior notice or communication with Chinese community.

“The move not only brutally trampled on the collective sentiments of the 300,000 Chinese nationals and people of Chinese descent in Panama, but also severely harmed the friendly feelings of the Chinese people toward the Panamanian people,” read an embassy statement issued on Monday morning.

Chinese ambassador to the country, Xu Xueyuan, said in a post on Saturday that she rushed to the place upon hearing the news, but the monument was already on the ground. “Countrymen tried to protect the remains, but they were prevented from doing so,” she said.

Xu called the day “a darkened day for the 300,000 Chinese-Panamanians” and “a day of great pain for Chinese-Panamanian friendship.”

According to local media reports, Arraiján Mayor Stefany Peñalba announced plans to “rescue public spaces to promote culture, tourism, the economy and business,” with renderings of a new park without the monument. The 20-year concession for the monument had expired, and the municipality did not respond to the Chinese Association of Panama’s requests to renovate it.

The embassy statement also noted that the Chinese community organizations engaged in repeated communications with the Arraiján city government as early as 2024, but received no substantive response. The Chinese Embassy in Panama also likewise conveyed its goodwill to support the renovation of the park, only to be met with silence.

The Chinese side urged a thorough investigation into the demolition incident, and strict accountability for any illegal acts that undermined Panama’s historical heritage and social unity and stability. Meanwhile, it asked to restore the China-Panama Park and the Chinese memorial at the original site after consultation with Chinese community groups, the embassy statement read.

Panama President José Raúl Mulino, several government officials, and deputies from various political parties have strongly condemned the brutal demolition of the Park and the monument, Xu noted in a later post on Monday, saying that she finds it encouraging that the public throughout Panama has reacted with strong indignation.

Mulino on Sunday condemned the “act of irrationality” as unforgivable, and an investigation should be initiated immediately. He said there is no justification whatsoever for the barbarity committed by the mayor of Arraijan in demolishing the monument to the Chinese Community, he said in a post on X.

The Government of Panama on Sunday ordered the Ministry of Culture to coordinate the restoration of the Chinese Monument as part of a Historical Heritage together with the Chinese community in Panama, per local media reports.

According to Newsroom Panama, the demolition unleashed a wave of political and diplomatic outrage that continues to grow. Government figures, former presidents, and opposition leaders all agreed in describing the act as shameful, irrational, and unforgivable.

The Minister for Canal Affairs, José Ramón Icaza, was one of the first to react and strongly supported the position of President José Raúl Mulino. “Nobody tears down a monument on a Saturday at 9 pm —in the dead of night, typical of criminal acts— unless it is to commit an aberrant and irrational act,” he stated, Newsroom Panama reported.

The issue also exploded on social media, with many netizens flooding the Chinese ambassador’s X posts expressing their sorrow and shame for such a behavior. One netizen EdwinRodrigo2 wrote, “Many Chinese participated in the construction of the Canal and their descendants integrated into the multi-racial society of which we are proud. I don’t know who ordered the demolition of the monument, but it is outrageous to know that we have authorities capable of doing whatever it takes, to please the US.”

Sun Yanfeng, director of Latin American research at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Monday that “the demolition decision, made by a local government, reflects a degree of compromise by certain local authorities under US pressure.” Sun added that the choice to carry out the demolition at night during the Christmas holiday reveals a sense of unease on the part of the local authorities – an apparent attempt to avoid public scrutiny and the risk of a broader social backlash.

The expert noted that the eruption of public reaction to this incident has demonstrated that, even amid intense US pressure, Panamanian society at large maintains a strong desire to develop and uphold friendly relations with China. “It also reflects widespread public dissatisfaction with US interference in Panama’s internal affairs, including pressure related to the Panama Canal and China’s cultural presence in the country,” Sun said.

At another level, the regrettable incident may serve as an opportunity to provide new social momentum for deeper ties and cooperation between China and Panama, the expert noted.

171 years ago, large numbers of Chinese people crossed the oceans to Panama to take part in the construction of the trans-isthmian railway. In recognition of the contributions made by the Chinese community, the Panamanian government in 2004 designated March 30 each year as “Chinese Day,” fully reflecting Panama’s openness and diversity. That same year, with funds raised by Chinese community organizations and support from the Chinese government, the China-Panama Park and the monument commemorating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Chinese people in Panama were completed—an expression of respect for history.

December 29, 2025 Posted by | Sinophobia | , | Leave a comment

US Arms Sales to Taiwan Push Region Toward Conflict – Chinese Embassy

Sputnik – 28.12.2025

WASHINGTON – The arms supply from the United States to Taiwan is pushing the region closer to conflict, the Chinese Embassy in Washington told RIA Novosti.

“Such moves will not reverse the inevitable failure of ‘Taiwan independence,’ and will only push the Taiwan Strait into the danger of military conflict at a faster pace,” Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said, commenting on the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency announcement of $11.1 billion worth of weapons, equipment, and military services approved for sale to Taiwan.

Specifically, the US arms shipment includes Javelin systems, ALTIUS-700M and ALTIUS-600 unmanned aerial vehicles, spare parts for AH-1W SuperCobra helicopters, HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems, M107A7 self-propelled artillery units, and TOW anti-tank missile systems.

“For the US, assisting the ‘independence’ agenda by arming Taiwan will only backfire,” the spokesman added.

China has repeatedly called on the United States to stop selling arms to Taiwan and creating tension in the Taiwan Strait. The Chinese Foreign Ministry noted that military interaction between the United States and the island, as well as the US leadership’s arms sales to Taiwan, grossly violated the “one China” principle and the three joint Sino-American communiques, causing great harm to China’s sovereignty and security interests and threatening stability in the Taiwan Strait.

Official relations between the central government of the People’s Republic of China and its island province were severed in 1949 after the Kuomintang forces led by Chiang Kai-shek, defeated in the civil war with the Communist Party of China, relocated to Taiwan. Business and informal contacts between the island and mainland China resumed in the late 1980s. Since the early 1990s, the two sides have been in contact through non-governmental organizations.

December 28, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , | Leave a comment

Iran says no basis for inspection of bombed nuclear sites

Press TV – December 24, 2025

Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) says that political and psychological pressure over inspection of damaged nuclear facilities will have no effect, calling for clear procedures to be established for such occasions.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Mohammad Eslami said there is currently no codified instruction for inspecting nuclear facilities that have been damaged by military attacks.

“Until this issue is clarified, political and psychological pressure and irrelevant follow-ups aimed at re-inspecting bombed facilities and completing the enemy’s operations are unacceptable and will not be responded to,” he said.

Back in June, during the US-Israeli aggression against Iran, the US bombed three Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, in a clear violation of international law and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Eslami noted that Article 68 of the Safeguards Agreement refers only to natural accidents and damage, not military attacks or war.

“If the IAEA considers military attacks on safeguarded nuclear facilities acceptable, it must explicitly approve and declare that,” he said. “But if such attacks are illegal, they must be condemned, and the post-war procedures must be clearly defined.”

He added that until such conditions are formally defined by the agency, Iran will not accept demands for renewed inspections of damaged sites.

On Iran’s cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Eslami said no country in history has cooperated with the agency to the extent Iran has.

“The most extensive and intensive inspections ever conducted have been imposed on Iran’s nuclear industry, and there is not a single report indicating non-compliance or diversion from safeguards,” he said.

He characterized current pressure as politically motivated and aimed at harming and weakening the Iranian people, stressing that Iran’s nuclear activities remain entirely peaceful.

Referring to the UN Security Council meeting held on Tuesday, Eslami said the discussions no longer merely warranted regret but instead exposed the reality of long-standing US pressure on Iran’s nuclear industry.

He noted that Washington has openly stated in its national security strategy that it does not pursue its interests through international organizations and, instead, relies on “the law of the jungle and the use of force.”

Eslami described the report, statements, and references made during the Security Council session as “completely unprofessional and non-legal.”

He emphasized that UN Security Council Resolution 2231 has expired, and even if it were to be cited, its procedural requirements were not followed.

Claims that Iran’s alleged non-compliance with the JCPOA justifies the reinstatement of previous UN sanctions, he said, are “entirely rejected and unacceptable.”

He added that China and Russia, both permanent members of the Security Council with veto power, have explicitly rejected these claims, stating that the push by the three European countries and the United States—backed by Israeli lobbying—has no legal standing and is not enforceable.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Eslami announced the launch of a nationwide multimedia festival titled “Nuclear Technology for Life,” organized jointly with Iran’s national broadcaster.

He said the initiative aims to counter misinformation and distorted narratives about Iran’s nuclear program by presenting multi-layered accounts through public and media participation.

December 24, 2025 Posted by | War Crimes, Wars for Israel | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

US Navy effectively becomes a tool of modern piracy

By Drago Bosnic | December 24, 2025 

The political West has been conducting an unprovoked aggression against the entire world for at least half a millennium at this point. Whether through direct attacks and occupation or various forms of colonialism (that lasts to this day), the world’s most aggressive power pole has been a threat to every other country on this unfortunate planet. Although certainly not the only one, the primary tool of Western power projection have been navies, which is hardly surprising given the political West’s thalassocratic nature. Through naval supremacy, Western (primarily Anglo) powers have spread their colonial empires to virtually every corner of the world, exterminating the native populations along the way and settling in their lands.

Entire continents (such as North America and Australia) were secured through brutal genocide of the locals who now live in small, scattered communities (so-called “reservations/reserves”). The genocidal campaign continued throughout the Atlantic and Pacific, where numerous islands and maritime trade routes remain in Western hands to this very day. Controlling these areas is key to maintaining its stranglehold over global trade, as seen during the latest US attacks on inbound and outbound Venezuelan shipping. However, the Pentagon seems to be expanding this aggression to other countries trading with Caracas, including China, which is a major importer of Venezuelan commodities (particularly crude oil).

Namely, the US Navy and Coast Guard hijacked the “Centuries”, an oil tanker carrying up to two million barrels of Venezuelan crude to China. According to military sources, American forces, operating MH-60T helicopters and reportedly including a Maritime Security Response Team, led the raid. The oil belongs to the Chinese Satau Tijana Oil Trading company. In December alone, this is the third such incident where US naval assets effectively engaged in piracy, as these civilian ships were hijacked in international waters. The Chinese Foreign Ministry condemned the illegal raid, slamming it as a “serious violation of international maritime law and an illegal interference in legitimate global trade”.

This is an attempt to continue the policy of economic strangulation of Venezuela after the sanctions failed to produce the desired result (a color revolution that would bring a pro-American puppet regime to power). It comes less than a week after US President Donald Trump formally ordered the “total and complete blockade” of Venezuela, claiming that its government is now designated as a “foreign terrorist organization” (FTO). In his signature manner of communicating through the unchecked use of superlatives, Trump also bragged that the US Navy “completely surrounded” Venezuela with “the largest armada ever assembled in the history of South America”. Considering Caracas’ already difficult position, this is effectively a declaration of war.

Namely, Venezuela has a highly complex geographical and geopolitical position that makes lands routes largely unusable. Its coastline is the main lifeline that enables trade with the rest of the world, so Washington DC’s decision to engage in piracy against Caracas is a clear indicator that it doesn’t want to allow any sovereign nations to exist in the Western Hemisphere (especially now that the new US National Security Strategy and the restructuring of the Pentagon’s commands is putting an emphasis on the resurgent Monroe Doctrine). Venezuela is probably the most fiercely independent Latin American country, making it the No. 1 target for warmongers and war criminals in the monstrous American oligarchy.

What’s more, considering the fact that these pirates, thugs and goons in suits are terrified of China and its unprecedented development, they wouldn’t want to miss an opportunity to hurt Beijing’s interests. The Chinese economy, the world’s largest and most powerful since 2014, needs a constant supply of critical resources (particularly natural gas and oil). The US is unable to prevent Russia and other multipolar powers from trading with China, so it’s focused on disrupting this with other, more vulnerable countries, such as Venezuela. This is precisely why Beijing perceives the US, its vassals and satellite states as the primary threat to Chinese shipping and maritime trade (and naval security interests in general).

Obviously, the most glaring example of this is China’s breakaway island province of Taiwan, where a US puppet government is escalating tensions and jeopardizing Beijing’s basic national security interests. However, the Asian giant certainly understands that this is only one segment of the Western so-called “China containment” strategy that seeks to limit its ability to conduct unimpeded trade with the world. This is why China keeps building an ever stronger navy that can respond to such challenges. Namely, the US-led political West will undoubtedly continue to conduct its unprovoked aggression against the entire world unless prevented through the use of the only language it understands – force and violence.

It should be noted that this isn’t some spontaneous reaction to Beijing’s growth. And it’s certainly not limited only to the Trump administration. Namely, starting in the early 2010s, Barack Obama launched the so-called “Pivot to Asia” initiative to build up US/NATO presence in the Asia-Pacific. This continued during Trump’s first term, as well as the troubled Biden administration. In practice, this means that the warmongering American oligarchy pulls the strings regardless of who’s president. The Pentagon has increasingly stressed the need to launch “distant blockade operations”, the strategic goal of which is to cut off Chinese trade. This would give the US-led political West significant leverage over Beijing.

The same goes for Russia, whose shipping has been under attack for years, particularly when the Neo-Nazi junta is not doing so great on the battlefield in NATO-occupied Ukraine. Although the political West is attributing these attacks to the Kiev regime, it’s difficult to imagine the latter could conduct such operations thousands of kilometers away without ample Western support (if not direct orders and participation). This form of piracy gives the US, its vassals and satellite states perfect “plausible deniability”, meaning they can disrupt Moscow’s and Beijing’s economic interests without the need to engage Russian and Chinese militaries directly. This is precisely how piracy was used geopolitically until the early 18th century.

Drago Bosnic is an independent geopolitical and military analyst.

December 24, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Militarism, War Crimes | , , | Leave a comment

Pentagon’s claim of China’s ICBM a pretext for US to upgrade nuclear power: FM

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian. Photo: China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
By Liu Xuanzun and Liu Caiyu | Global Times | December 23, 2025

A draft Pentagon report claimed China has likely loaded more than 100 ICBMs in silo fields, Reuters reported on Monday. Chinese military observers noted that the Pentagon’s reports are full of speculation and aim to hype up the so-called China threat rhetoric.

Citing the draft Pentagon report, Reuters claimed that China has loaded more than 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles into three newly constructed silo fields near its border with Mongolia and showed little interest in arms control talks.

In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian stated on Tuesday that “I’m not familiar with what you cited as a US draft report, but we’ve been hearing the same story told and retold by the US to create pretext for speeding up the upgrade of US nuclear power and disrupting global strategic stability. The international community needs to be soberly aware of that.”

“The US, as a nuclear superpower sitting on the world’s biggest nuclear arsenal, must fulfill its special and primary responsibility for nuclear disarmament, further make drastic and substantive cut to its nuclear arsenal, and create conditions for other nuclear-weapon states to join the nuclear disarmament process. This should be a high priority for the US,” Lin said.

Lin noted that just last month, the Chinese government released a white paper entitled China’s Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation in the New Era with a full overview of China’s nuclear policy and position on nuclear disarmament. China remains firmly committed to the policy of no first use of nuclear weapons and a nuclear strategy that focuses on self-defense.

China keeps its nuclear strength at the minimum level required by national security and does not engage in any nuclear arms race with any country, Lin said, noting that China takes an active part in the review process of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and meetings of the P5 (five nuclear-weapon states) mechanism, and maintains dialogue with various parties on nuclear disarmament.

Song Zhongping, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Tuesday that this report is fundamentally based on subjective speculation by the US and that its assessment is pure hype.

The US, possessing the largest nuclear arsenal, must take the lead in disarmament talks – a step that the country has yet to fulfill. Given that China’s nuclear arsenal is only a fraction of the size of America’s, there is no justification for China to join such negotiations at this stage, Song added.

Chinese military affairs expert Zhang Junshe told the Global Times that China’s nuclear capabilities are maintained at the minimum level necessary for defense, primarily intended for nuclear counterstrikes and retaliatory strikes in response to nuclear attacks. China has continuously and publicly stated its position clearly, which is that it will not be the first to use nuclear weapons.

The significant disparity in scale between China’s nuclear capabilities and those of the US and Russia makes it both unfair and unreasonable to demand China’s participation in nuclear arms control negotiations at this stage, Zhang said.

“So, by hyping this issue, the US is attempting to pressure China, with the ultimate goal of hindering the normal development of China’s national defense capabilities,” Zhang said.

Drawing China into arms control negotiations serves as a strategic pretext for the US to assert a balance of power, analysts said.

The US government in October cited Russia’s missile tests and China’s growing nuclear capabilities as a justification for a decision to resume nuclear weapons testing “immediately,” according to a Fox News report.

Last year, a Pentagon report also alleged that China is rapidly growing its nuclear arsenal and likely to have 1,000 nuclear weapons by 2030. It hyped that China has added at least 100 nuclear warheads to its stockpile over the past year and now has more than 600 in its inventory, according to Politico report.

In response, China’s Defense Ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said that the report had misinterpreted China’s defense policies, speculated about China’s military capacity development, flagrantly interfered in China’s domestic affairs, desperately slandered the Chinese military and exaggerated the so-called military threat posed by China.

On China’s development of nuclear weapons, Zhang stressed that the intention is to safeguard the country’s strategic security.

But the US, which has the largest and most advanced nuclear arsenal in the world, sticks stubbornly to a policy of first use of nuclear weapons, undermining international and regional peace and stability. He called on the US to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in its national and collective security policy to respond responsibly to the international community, the spokesperson said.

December 23, 2025 Posted by | Mainstream Media, Warmongering, Militarism | , | Leave a comment

The Geopolitical Imperative Behind US Policy Toward Venezuela

By Leanna Yavelskaya | Ron Paul Institute | December 21, 2025

In the intensifying great-power competition of the 21st century, Venezuela has emerged as a pivotal battleground in the Western Hemisphere—a proxy arena where the United States confronts the encroaching ambitions of China and Russia to preserve its historic regional dominance.

Conventional explanations for Washington’s unrelenting pressure on Caracas, citing resource acquisition or counternarcotics imperatives, crumble under scrutiny amid America’s strategic primacy, energy independence, and the broader architecture of multipolar rivalry.

US policy toward Venezuela is fundamentally a defensive maneuver in the superpower contest, aimed at denying Beijing and Moscow a strategic foothold in America’s backyard. Venezuela’s vast oil reserves—the world’s largest—might superficially suggest energy motives, yet the United States, now the globe’s top petroleum producer and exporter, no longer depends on Venezuelan heavy crudes. Sanctions have deliberately slashed imports, while any genuine resource priority would favor diplomatic normalization over confrontation. Historical US behavior reinforces this: when energy security truly matters, Washington opts for pragmatic deals, not escalation. The current standoff, therefore, serves deeper geopolitical ends—blocking rival powers from entrenching influence proximate to US shores.

The counternarcotics rationale fares no better. Venezuela transits cocaine but plays minimal role in the fentanyl epidemic ravaging America. Washington’s dollar hegemony and financial levers could dismantle trafficking networks without military brinkmanship, yet global drug flows persist due to strategic tolerances. Venezuela’s marginal position in this trade renders anti-drug rhetoric an inadequate justification for the extraordinary measures deployed, including naval blockades and tanker seizures.

The core driver is Venezuela’s alignment with US adversaries, transforming it into a potential forward base for China and Russia in the Americas. Beijing has poured billions in loans-for-oil, infrastructure projects, and discounted crude purchases—securing long-term resource access while propping up the regime against Western isolation, even as recent US escalations test this lifeline. Moscow has supplied arms, intelligence, and diplomatic shielding, positioning Venezuela as a counterweight to US hegemony, much as it leverages proxies elsewhere. These partnerships challenge enduring American doctrines: the Monroe legacy rejecting extra-hemispheric powers in the Americas, and Cold War precedents like the Cuban Missile Crisis, where Soviet encroachment provoked crisis.

No US administration—Democratic or Republican—has tolerated a peer rival gaining decisive leverage in Latin America. The Trump administration’s 2025 campaign, with carrier groups, strikes on vessels, and a declared blockade of sanctioned tankers, underscores this zero-tolerance posture amid Maduro’s disputed reelection and pleas for Russian and Chinese aid. Venezuela embodies the frontline of eroding US unipolarity: proximity magnifies threats, just as China dominates the Indo-Pacific or Russia its near abroad.

This is no mere bilateral dispute over democracy or drugs—it is a superpower clash over spheres of influence in a fragmenting world order. Caracas’s geopolitical pivot toward Beijing and Moscow directly contests Washington’s hemispheric primacy. The United States will not permit rival superpowers to consolidate enduring control on its doorstep, a contest that will shape power balances in the Americas and beyond for decades. As great-power rivalry intensifies, Venezuela’s fate signals whether the US can stanch encroachment in its traditional domain or cede ground in the new multipolar era.

Leanna Yavelskaya is a freelance civilian journalist who focuses on geopolitical analysis, with particular emphasis on Eastern Europe.

December 22, 2025 Posted by | Militarism, Russophobia, Sinophobia | , , , , | Leave a comment

Medicinal plants hold key to Iran’s drought-resistant revenue

Press TV – December 16, 2025

Iran’s agriculture faces water scarcity, restricted market access, and declining returns from traditional crops, pushing farmers and policymakers toward low-water, high-value, and sanction-resilient export products.

Medicinal plants are among the few agricultural sectors meeting all three criteria, increasingly seen over the past decade as an expandable income source aligned with environmental limits and export needs.

Iran has one of the richest plant ecosystems in the world. More than 8,000 plant species have been identified across the country, of which around 2,300 have medicinal, aromatic, cosmetic, or industrial uses.

About 1,700 of these species are endemic, meaning they grow naturally only in Iran. This biodiversity is supported by wide climatic variation, from arid plains to high mountain ranges, with elevations from 900 to more than 4,000 meters above sea level.

These conditions allow different plants to grow with little or no irrigation. The scale and diversity of this natural resource provide Iran with a broad production base that few countries can replicate, enabling year-round cultivation and harvesting across different regions.

Most medicinal plants cultivated or harvested in Iran are naturally adapted to dry and semi-dry environments. Many grow under rain-fed conditions or require less than 3,000 cubic meters of water per hectare.

By comparison, crops such as wheat, rice, and corn often need between 10,000 and 15,000 cubic meters per hectare. As groundwater reserves shrink and rainfall becomes more erratic, this difference has direct economic value.

Lower water use reduces production costs while preserving agricultural land for sustained use over time. This makes medicinal plants particularly suitable for long-term planning in regions facing declining water availability.

According to official figures, Iran receives about 400 billion cubic meters of rainfall annually, but more than half is lost to evaporation. Crops that can grow using direct rainfall reduce pressure on dams, rivers, and aquifers.

Medicinal plants make effective use of this rainfall because they are already rooted in the soil when seasonal precipitation occurs, allowing moisture to be absorbed rather than lost. This characteristic strengthens their role in maintaining agricultural output without increasing water extraction.

Medicinal plants are produced both on farmland and in rangelands. In many provinces, farmers grow them under permits on national lands, relying on rainfall rather than irrigation. Because these plants are mostly perennial and slow-growing, high irrigation costs are not economically justified.

Harvesting, drying, and basic processing often take place close to production sites, creating seasonal employment in rural areas. Each hectare of medicinal plants generates between two and three direct jobs, according to agricultural authorities.

In addition to farming, jobs are created in collection, sorting, drying, distillation, and packaging, forming local value chains that support village-level incomes.

Export revenue from medicinal plants currently stands at about $600 million a year, accounting for roughly 9 to 10 percent of Iran’s total agricultural exports. Projections suggest exports could reach $700 million if production and processing improve.

Saffron dominates the sector. Iran produces more than 90 percent of the world’s saffron and accounts for around 40 percent of the total export value of medicinal plants.

Other major exports include rose products from damask rose, such as rose water and extracts, liquorice extract, mint, thyme, and natural gums like asafoetida locally called anguzeh.

These products are sold not only as raw materials but also as inputs for pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries.

Demand for medicinal plants continues to grow in international markets, including Central Asia, Eurasia, and China. These markets are accessible through regional trade routes and do not always require direct financial links with Western banking systems.

Products such as saffron, rose water, and herbal extracts have relatively high value-to-weight ratios, which lowers transport costs and makes them more suitable for indirect export channels. Their long shelf life further supports trade across longer distances and reduces losses during storage and transport.

Barijeh, scientifically known as ferula gummosa, is a plant native to Iran.

The internal economics of medicinal plant cultivation are also favorable. In several provinces, income from medicinal plants is many times higher than from grains.

For example, harvesting wild or cultivated plants such as musir can generate net income far above that of wheat or barley on the same land.

This income difference has encouraged farmers to shift land away from water-intensive crops, especially in drought-affected regions. Higher returns per hectare allow smaller landholdings to remain economically viable, supporting family-based farming systems.

Four provinces illustrate this potential clearly. Khorasan remains the center of saffron production. Kashan and surrounding areas specialize in rose cultivation and distillation.

Yazd produces lemon verbena, while Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province has emerged as a major center for wild and cultivated medicinal plants.

This province is largely mountainous, with 87 percent of its area classified as highland. More than 1,350 plant species have been identified there, including 270 with medicinal or industrial uses and 27 species found nowhere else in the world. Cool nights, diverse soils, and varied elevations contribute to high-quality yields and strong concentrations of active ingredients.

In Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, medicinal plants are grown on about 3,500 hectares, split between national rangelands and agricultural land. Since the early 2010s, the cultivated area has expanded sharply, supported by a national strategy to promote medicinal plants.

From a fiscal perspective, medicinal plants offer a rare combination for Iran under sanctions. They reduce water use, generate foreign currency, and support employment without heavy reliance on imported inputs.

Unlike major industrial exports, they do not require large-scale capital equipment or advanced foreign technology. Their production is decentralized, which spreads income across rural and underdeveloped regions. This decentralization strengthens local economies and reduces dependence on a limited number of export hubs.

Iran already holds dominant positions in several global markets, particularly saffron. Medicinal plants do not eliminate the economic impact of sanctions, but they provide a measurable source of revenue that fits Iran’s environmental constraints.

December 19, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Environmentalism | , , | Leave a comment

Kuwait set to sign multibillion-dollar port deal with China

The Cradle | December 19, 2025

Kuwait will sign a contract next week with China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) to complete the Mubarak al-Kabeer Port project, Kuwaiti Public Works Minister Noura al-Mashaan announced on 18 December.

The contract is valued at about $3.97 billion, according to a government document seen by Reuters.

The Central Agency for Public Tenders approved on 1 December a contract between the Public Works Ministry and CCCC for engineering, procurement, and construction of the first phase of the port, according to the official gazette.

Mashaan said Kuwait’s prime minister will attend the signing ceremony with the Chinese side.

Mubarak al-Kabeer Port, located on Bubiyan Island in northern Kuwait, is described as a strategic project aimed at creating a secure regional corridor and commercial hub, one that China has sought to include within its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Kuwait hopes the project will support economic diversification, boost GDP, and help restore its regional commercial and financial role in West Asia, with the government saying around 50 percent of the first phase of the Mubarak al-Kabeer Port project has been completed so far.

The Mubarak al-Kabeer Port project is part of a broader set of large-scale initiatives Kuwait is pursuing with Chinese support, spanning infrastructure, energy, environmental services, and urban development.

Kuwait and China have expanded cooperation in recent years, including the signing of multiple memorandums of understanding (MoU) during a 2023 visit to Beijing by then-crown prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, who later became emir.

Officials on both sides have framed these projects as part of a wider effort to deepen long-term economic ties, with a growing emphasis on infrastructure development, diversification, and connectivity.

Chinese firms are involved in several major projects across Kuwait, reflecting a shift toward broader strategic and economic engagement between the two countries beyond traditional trade relations.

China’s expanding economic footprint in West Asia has also extended to Saudi Arabia, where Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi recently said that Beijing is ready to be Riyadh’s “most trustworthy and dependable partner” following high-level talks in the kingdom.

The meetings reaffirmed Saudi support for the one-China principle and emphasized deeper cooperation in energy, infrastructure, and emerging industries, aligning with Beijing’s broader BRI-linked engagement across the region.

December 19, 2025 Posted by | Economics | , , | Leave a comment

China expands use of Iranian rail corridor for cargo transit

Press TV – December 14, 2025

China has increased its use of Iranian railway corridors for cargo transit, an Iranian official has said, as Tehran steps up efforts to position itself as a major regional rail freight hub.

Shahriar Naghizadeh, head of the foreign commerce department at the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways, said on Sunday that the number of Chinese cargo trains using Iranian rail corridors has reached 42, with another train arriving in the country earlier in the day.

Naghizadeh added that a Russian cargo train also arrived in Iran on Sunday as part of Moscow’s transit operations through Iran to destinations in the Persian Gulf, the Indian Ocean and Iraq.

He said Iran is coordinating the passage of a second Chinese cargo train through its territory to Europe, following a pilot journey conducted in March.

“These are major developments in the railway sector and signal a promising future for its expansion,” Naghizadeh was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

According to the official, Iran’s railway corridors are gaining popularity for cargo transit due to their shorter distances and fully overland routes, which eliminate the need for maritime transport.

He added that transit costs through Iran are lower than those of comparable routes, and that the country has offered guarantees to process cargo in the shortest possible time.

Iran has made significant investments in its transport infrastructure in recent years to capture a larger share of regional transit revenues.

The country has also adopted a long-term policy to expand its east–west transit infrastructure in line with China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a multi-trillion-dollar project aimed at improving transport links connecting China with Europe, Asia, and Africa.

December 15, 2025 Posted by | Economics | , | Leave a comment

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