Central Asia’s Great (Oil and Gas) Game
June 13th, 2008
Via The Geotimes, an interesting look at the machinations around Central Asian hydrocarbon resources. As the article notes: “…Today for Central Asiatic countries of the Caspian project (via Russia), there are only two alternatives for the West and the East. The Western direction is represented by the trans-Caspian gas pipeline, which passes at the bottom […]
Read more »A Knot of Pipeline Projects/Proposals: The Caspian Conundrum
June 6th, 2008
Via Radio Free Europe, an insightful look at the multitude of Caspian pipeline projects that leaders of the Caspian Sea littoral states — Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Iran — and others such as the EU and U.S. are discussing, debating, funding, and developing. As the article notes: “…we are in the middle of a […]
Read more »India and Central Asia
June 3rd, 2008
As recently presented by the Foreign Policy Association, India has recently increased its diplomatic and strategic movements in Central Asia. Given that we examined China’s interest in Central Asia in a previous post, we wanted to offer this analysis of India’s growing interests as well: …India has many reasons to desire greater influence in Central […]
Read more »The Iron Silk Road (2): China Railroads Central Asia
February 3rd, 2008
As we have discussed earlier in this forum, China is attempting to draw Central Asia into its orbit by developing extensive energy links with the region’s nations but, as noted here earlier & reinforced by a recent Stratfor analysis, it now attempting to capture the whole of Central Asian economic life. As the analysis notes: […]
Read more »The Second World: Key Players in the Geopolitical Marketplace
January 28th, 2008
An excellent piece in yesterday’s New York Times magazine effectively argues that the US’s position in the global order of things is changing and, that in addition to the three powers in today’s world (i.e. the U.S., China and the European Union), a set of “second world†nations that are part developed & part developing […]
Read more »The Iron Silk Road? China’s Western Rails To Form Link With Central Asia
January 28th, 2008
As reported by Xinhua, China is planning to start construction on two railways linking its westernmost Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region with the central Asian nations of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan in 2008. Upon its completion in 2010, experts say the railway will provide a faster link between western China and central Asia and improve the […]
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.