China Was Once Buying Up Sri Lankan Ports. Now It’s India’s Turn.
April 19th, 2026
Courtesy of The Diplomat, a look at how the Indian Ocean has no shortage of distressed strategic assets: financially stressed yards, ports, and logistics infrastructure in small states that cannot sustain them independently. Nearly 20 years after China stirred fears about “debt trap diplomacy” with its construction and takeover of the Hambantota Port in Sri […]
Read more »A Gateway to the Gulf: India Inks Economic Pact With Oman
December 19th, 2025
Via Modern Diplomacy, a report on a new deal between India and Oman that strategically diversifies India’s trade partnerships at a time of escalating U.S. tariffs, which have risen to 50% on certain Indian goods: India has signed a landmark economic partnership agreement with Oman, securing zero-duty access for over 98% of its exports as […]
Read more »China, Quad and the Rare Earths Mineral Competition in Myanmar
December 10th, 2025
Via Asia Times, a look at how ethnic rebel groups’ advances against the junta have disrupted Chinese resource-extraction dominance: As the US-China rivalry spirals, it is spilling over into new domains, particularly those involving rare earth minerals, regional supply chains, and emerging technologies. Countries with fragile political systems but high geoeconomic value are increasingly turning […]
Read more »Great Game Intensifies for Myanmar’s Kachin Rare Earths
November 28th, 2025
Via the Asia Times, a look at how US-India cooperation in REE refining could give Kachin rebels controlling mines a strategic alternative to China In the global contest over critical minerals, Myanmar has emerged as an unlikely pivot. Rare earth elements (REE)—dysprosium, terbium, and others indispensable for magnets in wind turbines, electric vehicles, and advanced […]
Read more »Sanctions, the Taliban, and an Iranian Port: The Uncertain Future of India’s Kabul Route
November 7th, 2025
Via The Diplomat, commentary on how India’s approach to the Taliban has gradually shifted from purely humanitarian aid to a focus on trade and transit. On October 30, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs announced that the United States had granted India a six-month extension to the sanctions waiver for operations at Iran’s Chabahar Port. Issued under […]
Read more »India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor: Promise, Peril, and the Politics of Connectivity
October 22nd, 2025
Via Modern Diplomacy, a look at the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) which was announced as a transformative connectivity framework which aims to link India, the Arabian Peninsula, and Europe through maritime, rail, energy, and digital networks: Source: Siasat.com During a recent meeting of Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in […]
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.