Geopolitics
Every Geopolitics story Crosswise has covered, in one place.
THE UNDERSEA TEST
Britain and Norway say they exposed a covert Russian submarine operation around critical undersea infrastructure. Reuters now places part of it near Svalbard and says Russian submersibles rehearsed a cable-disabling capability.
14 min read
EUROPE MAPPED THE CHOKEPOINTS. IT STILL HASN'T PRICED THE ESCAPE.
Europe has identified the minerals, projects and dependencies it considers strategically dangerous. Twenty-three designated projects are now demanding more support. But the harder question is not whether Europe should spend more.
18 min read
America Wants to Economically Isolate Iran. China Shows Where the Limits Begin.
Washington has threatened to sever every economic lifeline sustaining Tehran. But years of sanctions have pushed much of Iran’s remaining China trade towards independent refiners, opaque intermediaries and non-dollar channels with less exposure to the US system.
26 min read
The Chokepoint Paradox
The dependencies that made globalisation work are becoming instruments of power. But trying to eliminate them may be just as dangerous.
20 min read
The Promise Is Real. The Alliance Is Not Yet.
On 7 August, three of the Muslim world’s largest militaries agreed that an attack on one would be treated as an attack on all. The sentence is real, and it is not small. Whether it amounts to an alliance is a different question
13 min read
WHO WILL WRITE THE NEW RULES OF HORMUZ?
Iran wants to turn wartime leverage into a greater role over the Strait. Oman and the Gulf states have another plan.
10 min read
America Says It Controls 65 Billion Barrels of Venezuelan Oil. That Is Not What Happened.
Washington says it has taken is something subtler and harder to name: an equity stake in the company that will work seventeen fields, a hand on that company’s governance, and the right to buy its oil cheaply. So the real question was never who owns the oil.
23 min read
Iceland Isn’t Voting to Join the EU. It’s Voting to Find Out the Price.
On 29 August, Icelanders will decide whether to reopen accession negotiations with the European Union—not whether to become members. That distinction is more than procedural.
25 min read