On Track: Nigerian Rail Projects Drive Home China’s BRI Commitment To African Infrastructure
February 21st, 2024
Via South China Morning Post, a look at Chinas BRI commitment to African infrastructure: Senior diplomat Wu Peng’s support of projects in Nigeria has reinforced China’s commitment to helping African growth But experts say a switch of banks financing a Nigerian rail project points to Beijing’s shift in focus from concessional to commercial lending Building […]
Read more »The United States’ Missed Opportunity in Latin America
February 20th, 2024
Courtesy of Foreign Affairs, a look at U.S.’s missed opportunity to prioritize investing in Latin America: When policymakers consider national security, they tend to think first of military capabilities: the weaponry and ammunition a country possesses, the state of its armed forces, its border defenses, its surveillance and cybersecurity. Since 2020, however, U.S. national security […]
Read more »‘Strings Attached’: Saudi Arabia Steps Up Demands In Tech Deals with China
February 20th, 2024
Courtesy of The Financial Times, a look at how Alibaba’s and SenseTime’s huge joint ventures in Gulf kingdom have come with stringent requirements around training local teams and investment: Saudi Arabia is mandating that leading Chinese technology companies invest in the Gulf kingdom in return for huge deals, as it leverages its petrodollar wealth to boost […]
Read more »China in the DRC
February 20th, 2024
Via Transcend Media Service, an article on China’s involvement in Congolese cobalt mining industry: Several weeks ago here I reviewed Siddharth Kara’s book “Cobalt Red, How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives ,” which describes horrific working conditions of “artisanal miners” in the cobalt mining industry in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Black Agenda Report then received […]
Read more »The New Tripartite Pact? China, Russia, and North Korea’s New Team Is Not Built to Last
February 20th, 2024
Courtesy of Foreign Affairs, commentary on why China, Russia, and North Korea’s new alliance is not build to last: North Korea has long been a source of instability, but a new development over the past year threatens to make things even worse: the country is teaming up with Russia. At a meeting in Pyongyang last July, […]
Read more »The China-Built Addis-Djibouti Railway Gains Steam
February 18th, 2024
Courtesy of The Diplomat, a look at a new approach to utilizing the potential of the two-country railway line between Ethiopia and Djibouti has already been producing several of the desired results. A people-centered turn is yet to come: The Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway (AADR) has been in operation since 2018 – the year when we […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.