Why Europe will not be the next superpower

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Many political analysts and observers have predicted that the EU will rise up to be the next power, stronger and more unified than the United States. Nevertheless, there are many reasons why this may not happen and it is important to note this in order to understand the reasons for Europe lagging behind its scheduled growth and why the EU, with its bigger markets and greater population, has not risen above America yet.

Although today Europe is a multinational union that has integrated …

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…indication enough that Europe is not sovereign enough. Western Europe is fairly independent of the US, considering the fact that they’ve blocked most major US companies from becoming major players in Europe’s economy (GE, Microsoft, Boeing to name a few). Nevertheless, Eastern Europe is not needed for the market share. It is needed for political leverage and for presence close to Russia.

Although the EU knows this, it also knows that getting in the way of US global aspirations will end up hurting them in the end. After all, it was the American Marshall Plan that rebuilt Western Europe after World War Two. It was the Americans that helped Europe keep the “evil” USSR from attacking the weakened Europe throughout the Cold War. Most of all, it was the Americans that helped Europe, including Germany, to get back up after being destroyed by war.

To reiterate – Europe will not be more powerful than the United States. It is closely tied to America economically and by past “favors”. Moreover, the fact that the EU is not socially integrated is still a problem. Eastern and Western Europe are still different and even some Western European nations are still unfriendly towards some of their partners and neighbors. Most of all, the fact that the US has some control over Eastern Europe is an indication that Brussels is still not the one in control over the whole EU. Once someone is in the US’s pocket (IMF, World Bank loans), then it will most likely not get out of it. Eastern Europe is in and thus half of the EU is under American influence. It is essential to understand this to understand relationships within Europe and of Europe to the rest of the world.

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American Bailouts – Keeping Europeans Away

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News about U.S. bailout packages have been on every newsstand and news website in the past months. There is talk constantly of American companies being bailed out and discussions about the topic are abundant. The stir is caused not because America is considered a superpower and not because United States economy is the symbol of economics success that many nations are aspiring for. It makes news because America is becoming less and less American. With the U.S. economy being the weakest that it has been since the Great Depression, many Europeans and Asians are taking advantage of this and buying out American companies and their assets.

The bailout packages that are being considered and hundreds of billions of dollars that have already been committed are aimed at buying up failing U.S. companies for one reason – to keep the U.S. economy dependant on itself and its own workforce rather than European parent companies and…

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Effects of Israel’s Operations in Gaza

READ THE FULL ARTICLE Israel’s military operation in Gaza is in full swing. The current situation in the Gaza strip puts to the test world leaders’ abilities to protect peace and to bring about a resolution before a calamity strikes. Implications of Israel’s military operations are already becoming evident.
Israel Proves a Point

Israel’s operations proved that none of the radical Islamist organizations want to fight an open all-out war with Israel. The eagerness of radical Islamists to wage war on Israel has been more than evident and has grown in recent years. However, when the fight has been brought to them, they are not ready to face an enemy that is as ruthless as them and one that has its forces up to 21st century standards.

Israel has been striking targets with precision, bombing not random buildings, but those that have had top ranking Hamas officials or have been of strategic value to the organization. Israel obviously has prepared well for the operations because they are carrying out precision strikes and their every move looks to be well thought through. Although there are casualties among civilians, it is only because Islamists use civilians as cover. Evidently, Israel has made a choice to engage Hamas where they are. This is a good strategy because this will hopefully make Palestinians reject Hamas and leave them out to dry on their own, without popular support. It will not take long before Hamas’ use of civilians for cover will be condemned by the Palestinians themselves.

Implications

Tel-Aviv’s operation in Gaza could also spell disaster of global proportions. Most likely, Hamas and other radical organizations will spin this situation to their advantage claiming that this is a crusade. Iran’s Ayatollah already stated that anyone that dies in this fight against Israel will become a martyr. Moreover, Israel’s actions could READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Washington’s Ambitions in Crimea

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Crimea is the current target of Washington’s campaign in Ukraine. Overall, the United States is after lucrative business opportunities in Ukraine, aside from becoming a bigger thorn in Russia’s side. A recent announcement by the U.S. Department of State stating that U.S. may open a diplomatic post in Simferopol in Crimea is another step toward escalation of tensions between Washington and Moscow over Ukraine.
 
Washington’s goals are fairly simple – business opportunities galore coupled with putting more pressure on Russia. Most importantly, if U.S. influence in Ukraine grows, it will be able to keep Russian gas companies in check by becoming the direct negotiator representing Ukraine on the issues regarding gas. In addition, it will be able to play its role in the politics of Europe regarding gas, thus increasing pressure on Russia.

Ukraine’s president is already a Washington supporter. Yushchenko’s …FULL ARTICLE AT RUSSIATODAY.COM

Energy Wars: Diversify or Die

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It would be very naïve to think that oil producing countries would all come together during the financial crisis in order to adjust prices to suit all the parties involved. Even more naïve would be to think that Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela, Iran and other oil economies are good friends. Well, Russia, Iran, and Venezuela are definitely closer than, for example, Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Nevertheless, competition drives prices lower and also takes away market share from other competitors in a given industry. According to the New York Times, Iran and Venezuela both need US $95/barrel in order to maintain balanced budgets. Russia’s ideal oil price is US $70/barrel. Saudi Arabia needs a price of US $55/barrel in order to meet … FULL ARTICLE HERE