Geopolitical Economy Report

The US is backing Israel as it bombs Palestinian civilians in Rafah. Both are blatantly defying the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and International Criminal Court (ICC). Ben Norton documents the hypocrisy of the Biden administration's claims to uphold the "rules-based international order" as it sponsors Netanyahu's crimes against humanity in Gaza. Topics 0:00 Intro 1:30 ICJ orders Israel to stop attacking Rafah 2:38 Israel bombs tent camp in Rafah 3:51 US & UK help Israel violate ICJ rulings 4:34 UN expert calls for sanctions on Israel 6:28 Netanyahu: "Nobody will stop us - not the Hague" 7:19 US threatens to sanction ICC 8:19 Israeli spy chief threatened ICC 9:23 Trump & Biden attack ICC 9:50 Hypocrisy of "rules-based order" 13:02 US House Speaker Mike Johnson threatens ICC 13:48 US "rules-based order" vs. international law-based order 14:40 UK PM Rishi Sunak praises "rules-based order" 15:00 Germany's hypocrisy on Israel 17:55 Western neocolonialism 23:58 China defends international law 26:16 Outro

Putin met with Xi Jinping in Beijing, where China and Russia released a joint statement blasting Western "colonialism and hegemonism", supporting a multipolar world and more representation for the Global South, and calling for de-dollarization and expansion of BRICS. Ben Norton analyzes the historic document. Full text of the joint statement with links here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/05/24/china-russia-joint-statement-new-era-75th-anniversary/ Topics 0:00 Intro 0:49 Putin's visit to China 1:42 Summary of the joint statement 4:58 Russia deepens economic integration with China 7:18 China expands trade with anti-hegemonic nations 8:50 Note on translation of joint statement 11:20 75th anniversary of China-Russia relations 13:46 Supporting Global South & multipolar world 17:58 Condemning Western neocolonialism & hegemony 20:49 Expanding cooperation 23:03 "True multilateralism" 25:14 Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter 27:35 Shanghai Cooperation Organization 28:33 Expanding BRICS 30:10 Nuclear weapons 30:33 Condemning US militarism 34:26 Climate change & pollution 36:01 Ukraine war 38:58 Non-interference 40:29 ASEAN 40:46 East Asia 41:33 North Korea 42:36 West Asia (Middle East) & Palestine 44:07 Afghanistan 45:18 Africa 46:25 Latin America 48:17 Outro

While BlackRock veterans run Joe Biden's Treasury, Donald Trump's presidential campaign is financed by Wall Street's highest-paid CEO, of Blackstone, the world's largest commercial landlord. Ben Norton explains how Wall Street investment companies, asset managers, and banks essentially buy US elections. TOPICS 0:00 Wall Street always wins US elections 0:57 Blackstone CEO funds Trump 2:58 BlackRock backs Biden 3:48 BlackRock vs Blackstone - What's the difference? 7:30 Wall Street's highest paid CEO, Stephen Schwarzman 10:15 Oil & gas industry moguls fund Trump 10:53 Fossil fuel profits tripled under Biden 13:15 Oligarchs back fellow billionaire Trump 15:14 Biden promised: "Nothing would fundamentally change" 15:54 10% of Americans own 93% of stocks & 67% of all wealth 17:23 USA is not a democracy; it's an oligarchy 18:43 Wall Street funded Barack Obama 19:20 Wall Street funded Mitt Romney 20:07 US government represents Wall Street 21:54 BlackRock veterans run Biden's Treasury 25:08 Goldman Sachs veterans ran Trump's Treasury 27:16 Blackstone: the largest landlord in the US (& on Earth) 30:53 De-industrialization & financialization 32:25 Private equity destroyed Toys“R”Us 33:11 Private equity firms buy up retirement homes, hospitals, vets 34:53 2008 crisis & subprime mortgages 37:22 Financial parasites 38:39 Outro

The Joe Biden White House imposed high tariffs on Chinese technological products, including electric vehicles (EVs), solar panels, batteries, and semiconductors. Ben Norton analyzes the hypocrisy of US government accusations that Beijing provides unfair subsidies to its industries, while Washington is spending trillions on industrial policy -- and how this exposes the "free trade" dogma spread by neoliberal economists as a myth. Topics 0:00 Biden puts tariffs on China 1:05 Elon Musk demanded tariffs on Chinese EVs 1:55 US "overcapacity" allegations 2:40 Europe threatens tariffs too 3:19 Biden condemned tariffs in 2019 4:58 Climate change hypocrisy 6:13 "Free market" myth 8:47 "Forced" technology transfer myth 13:12 BYD outcompetes Tesla 13:56 Neoliberalism: de-industrialization & financialization 18:26 Subsidies: US gov't plans trillions in benefits 23:52 More tariffs on Chinese products 25:30 Washington Consensus 29:01 US destroys WTO (after creating it) 31:28 Protectionism: How US & UK really developed 39:39 Outro

Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash, sought to unite the Global South against Western imperialism. He joined BRICS, advocated de-dollarization, supported Palestine, promoted a "Look East" strategy toward China and Russia, and allied with Africa and Latin America. Ben Norton analyzes the late Iranian leader's anti-colonial foreign policy. Sources and links here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/05/21/iran-raisi-brics-dollar-imperialism/ Topics 0:00 Raisi's death & Iran's future 2:51 Raisi's anti-colonial foreign policy 4:54 Palestine 6:10 Anti-imperialism 8:42 BRICS 10:53 Dedollarization 11:45 Shanghai Cooperation Organization 12:46 "Look East" strategy 13:19 China 18:11 Russia 20:02 Indonesia 20:42 Africa 23:32 Latin America 28:40 Nicaragua & Iran: sister revolutions 33:08 Outro

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has applied for an arrest warrant for Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu over crimes against humanity in Gaza. The Biden administration is threatening sanctions on Prosecutor Karim Khan. US Senator Lindsey Graham warned, "if they'll do this to Israel, we’re next!" Ben Norton discusses Washington's extreme hypocrisy and shows the real face of the so-called "rules-based international order". Intro 0:00 "We're next!" 0:15 ICC seeks to arrest Israeli officials 1:50 US gov't threatens ICC 4:08 Lindsey Graham quote: "if they'll do this to Israel, we’re next!" 5:01 Protest 5:27 Bipartisan barbarism 6:57 Karim Khan dropped previous investigation into US/NATO war crimes 8:26 Both sides-ism 9:35 ICC charges against PM Netanyahu & DM Yoav Gallant 10:38 ICJ or ICC? 11:59 Western officials says ICC "was built for Africa" 12:39 Netanyahu responds: "No one will stop us" 13:16 20,000 US citizens in IDF 14:04 Israel is an outpost of the US empire 15:29 Biden, Blinken, & Republicans agree 16:54 Trump imposed sanctions on ICC 18:53 US hypocritically backs ICC charges against Putin 20:15 US & Israel: rogue states 22:57 Outro

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) is one of the most popular leaders on Earth, with an 80% approval rating, according to polling firm Gallup. Ben Norton discusses how corporate media outlets have absurdly smeared him as "authoritarian", and the US government has funded right-wing opposition groups, meddling in Mexico's internal affairs, while the candidate Claudia Sheinbaum from AMLO's left-wing Morena party was on the verge of winning the election. Topics 0:00 80% of Mexicans support President AMLO 1:32 US government & media smear AMLO 3:15 Why is López Obrador so popular? 4:20 AMLO: "Mexico is not a US colony or protectorate!" 5:01 Mexico's natural resources & sovereignty 7:21 US meddles in Mexico's 2024 election 8:36 AMLO's successor Claudia Sheinbaum 10:06 "Democratic backsliding", or more democracy? 12:25 AMLO is twice as popular as Biden & Trump 13:41 Real minimum wage rose 83.5% 14:25 Rising real incomes 15:45 Falling poverty 17:05 Mexicans hopeful about economy (unlike in USA) 19:49 AMLO blasts US oligarchy & hypocrisy 20:40 AMLO supports Julian Assange 21:00 AMLO condemns US blockade of Cuba 21:51 Outro

China is reducing its holdings of US Treasury securities. Instead, the People's Bank of China is buying gold, and Beijing prioritizes imports of important commodities like oil and metals. Ben Norton discusses the geopolitical impact of de-dollarization in the world's largest economy. Topics 0:00 Why countries are de-dollarizing 1:05 Russia & China 1:41 Brazil & China 2:18 Persian Gulf oil & gas 3:29 Central bank FX reserves 4:54 China drops US Treasurys 6:15 Debate in Beijing 8:40 Gold 9:37 Charts: China buys metals & oil 11:21 Strategic petroleum reserve 11:53 Belt & Road Initiative 12:50 East Asia funds US deficits 14:25 Global South funds Global North 15:25 Japan replaces China as top US creditor 16:03 US inflation, interest rates, bond yields, & debt 18:48 Outro

US Senator Lindsey Graham insisted in a TV interview that Israel should drop nuclear bombs on Gaza, where more than 2 million Palestinian civilians, including 1 million children, are trapped under what the Israeli defense minister called a “complete siege”. Ben Norton discusses Washington's complicity in crimes against humanity. Atomic bombing of Japan was NOT necessary to end WWII. US gov't documents admit it: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2023/08/07/atomic-bombing-japan-not-necessary/ Links and sources here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/05/12/senator-lindsey-graham-israel-nuclear-weapons-gaza/ Topics 0:00 Intro 0:31 Lindsey Graham says Israel should nuke Gaza 1:11 Fact check 1:59 Israeli minister called to nuke Gaza 3:55 Crimes against humanity 4:47 US support is bipartisan 5:26 Israel's nuclear weapons 6:45 Israel offered nukes to apartheid South Africa 9:05 US atomic bombing of Japan was not necessary 13:10 Outro

How much does the US benefit from printing the global reserve currency? An economist calculated that US average daily income would fall by 27-57% if the dollar lost its "exorbitant privilege". Ben Norton explains how wealthy investors not only in North America but around the world hold much of their wealth in the dollar. Link to Philip Pilkington's report and Twitter account: https://twitter.com/philippilk/status/1782409654519128497 Topics 0:00 US dollar dominance 2:00 Economics of exorbitant privilege 5:23 Current account 9:29 Balance of payments 12:31 Effects of dollar hegemony 14:45 Neoliberalism & financialization 17:41 Foreign capital funds US deficits 19:28 Global 1% invests in US assets 20:35 Super Imperialism 22:25 Fed inflates asset bubbles 25:22 De-industrialization in West 28:06 Industrialization in BRICS 28:57 Investment & FDI 33:08 Wages & manufacturing 35:00 Re-industrialization? 38:16 Outro

Japan's currency the yen has fallen significantly against the dollar. It its economy in crisis? What is the role of US interest rates, inflation, debt, and deficits? What about China? Ben Norton explains the complex geoeconomic situation. Topics 0:00 Intro 1:40 Yen plunges against US dollar 3:32 Rising exports, falling imports 4:40 Did Germany overtake Japan? 5:58 Nominal GDP is misleading 7:27 PPP is much more accurate 9:25 Misunderstanding GDP figures 10:53 US deficits & debt drive GDP growth 12:37 Strong US dollar 13:58 Industrialization & manufacturing 15:31 Current account 16:15 US Treasury securities 18:09 Why is the yen falling? 18:43 Interest rates 20:37 Bond yields 23:28 Why doesn't Japan raise interest rates? 23:50 Japan's debt 26:18 Inflation 29:32 US Treasurys 30:29 De-dollarization: China drops US bonds 33:14 TL;DW (conclusion) 35:07 Outro

While visiting Serbia, China's President Xi Jinping condemned the US and NATO for bombing Beijing's embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in 1999. Ben Norton discusses why Washington launched the attack, and lied about it. Then Ben analyzes China-Serbia relations and the Belt and Road Initiative.

US Senators sent a letter to the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor, threatening to impose sanctions and even invade the Hague if it issues arrest warrants for Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Biden administration is also pressuring the ICC not to charge Israeli officials over their war crimes in Gaza. Ben Norton discusses Washington's deep hypocrisy. Sources and links: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/05/07/us-threat-icc-israel Topics 0:00 Intro 0:48 US politicians threaten ICC 2:26 Trump sanctioned ICC 3:17 Biden's hypocrisy 3:56 Republican senators' letter to ICC 6:47 Hague Invasion Act 8:44 Israel's gen0c1de in Gaza 9:48 Israel unleashed famine in Gaza 10:37 Israeli minister demands "total annihilation" of Gaza 11:26 Amalek 13:16 US hypocrisy on ICC warrant for Russia's Putin 14:51 Africa criticizes ICC 15:42 US/Israel lobbied for ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan 16:46 US & Israel refuse to join ICC 17:02 ICC vs ICJ 18:40 Save face, or save your empire? 21:13 Outro

US President Joe Biden signed a law that will force TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance to sell the app, or it will be banned in the US. Ben Norton explains how this is part of Washington's economic war, aimed at protecting Big Tech monopolies in Silicon Valley. Topics 0:00 Biden signs law to ban TikTok 1:39 US tech war on China 5:00 India banned Chinese apps, giving US Big Tech total control 6:38 Protectionism or economic war? 8:30 Silicon Valley lobbied against TikTok 9:37 Donald Trump tried to ban TikTok... before doing 180 12:15 Role of Israel/Palestine/Gaza? 13:42 US trade war with Japan in 1980s 15:38 "Free market" hypocrisy 18:25 US does not truly want "competition" with China 19:39 Outro

A major Congress member and top former Trump administration official published an article calling to overthrow China's government. They boasted that the US is waging a bipartisan new cold war, backed by both Republicans and Democrats, while proposing a military budget of $1.4 trillion per year. Ben Norton debunks the deceptions of the warmongers in Washington. CIA director calls China biggest ‘threat’, says Ukraine war benefits US geopolitically and economically: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/02/07/cia-director-china-threat-russia-ukraine-war/ Topics 0:00 Intro 1:07 2024 election 1:59 Council on Foreign Relations & CIA 3:30 Matt Pottinger & Mike Gallagher 5:07 US new cold war on China 8:21 Deceptively distorting Xi Jinping's speeches 12:50 Information warfare 16:00 Colonialism 17:32 Misquoting Chinese officials 20:29 Militarization of Asia 21:49 $1.37 trillion military budget 22:44 US domination of Asia 24:51 Recruit "cold warriors" 26:44 Regime change: Rollback, not just containment 28:05 Manufacturing consent for war 29:21 Outro

The US vetoed a resolution in the UN Security Council that called to recognize Palestine as a member state, while Israel launched attacks on Iran. Ben Norton shows how Washington is opposing peace. Topics 0:00 Intro 1:29 Israel attacks Iran 4:39 US vetoes Palestinian UN membership 7:31 What is Palestine's status at UN? 8:57 Which countries recognize Palestine? 10:18 "Two-state solution" hypocrisy 12:01 How USA prevents peace in Palestine 15:35 US defended South African apartheid at UN 18:30 South Africa's anti-apartheid leaders support Palestine 21:02 China supports Palestine 22:56 Russia supports Palestine 23:47 UNSC Gaza resolutions vetoed by US 25:53 US sponsors Israel's crimes against humanity 27:23 Outro

Israel attacked Iran's embassy in Syria on April 1, in a blatant act of war. Iran had a legal right to respond in self-defense, according to article 51 of the UN Charter, which is exactly what it did by launching missiles and drone strikes on April 13. But Western governments are absurdly portraying Tehran as the aggressor. Ben Norton explains. Topics 0:00 Intro 1:11 Israel attacked Iran first 2:50 Biden & Sunak erase history 3:57 US, UK, France blocked UN Security Council condemnation 5:14 Iran invoked article 51 of UN charter 7:02 UN chief Antonio Guterres' hypocrisy 8:32 West is destroying international law 10:46 World War III? 12:25 Outro

Washington accuses China of producing too many goods and demands "free market" policies. But the US government is spending trillions on industrial policy to protect its own manufacturing sector. Ben Norton details the hypocrisy of the "overcapacity" allegations: the latest strategy in the US economic war on China. Topics 0:00 Intro 1:00 Chinese 'overcapacity' allegations 3:38 Janet Yellen 5:21 US vows to 'slow down China's rate of innovation' 8:02 Elon Musk begs for tariffs on Chinese EVs 10:40 US wants China to be economically subordinated 12:27 US tech war on China 14:39 Western industrial policy 16:31 Protectionism 18:38 US Inflation Reduction Act 20:12 US Chips Act 22:03 US undercapacity is the real problem 25:11 BYD has just 1.5% of EU EV market share 27:04 China's car exports vs Japan & South Korea 30:37 Is overcapacity a problem? 32:39 Outro

In the United Nations Human Rights Council, the West voted against the rest of the world, supporting illegal sanctions (known as unilateral coercive measures). Ben Norton analyzes how the 14% of the population in the Global North constantly opposes the Global South, representing the Global Majority. || Geopolitical Economy Report || Please consider supporting us at https://GeopoliticalEconomy.com/Support Patreon: https://Patreon.com/GeopoliticalEconomy Podcast: https://Soundcloud.com/GeopoliticalEconomy Newsletter: https://GeopoliticalEconomy.Substack.com

Argentina's libertarian President Javier Milei ordered his intelligence agency to give full power to the CIA, while the US spy agency's director is welcomed to Buenos Aires. Ben Norton discusses how self-declared "anarcho-capitalist" Milei withdrew from BRICS, allied with Israel, and is implementing neoliberal shock therapy, selling off the South American nation in mass privatizations, as most workers live in poverty. Check out our related video "How extremist Javier Milei became Argentina's president: A story of debt, crisis, and empire": https://youtube.com/watch?v=FN6hoIb-QqA Topics 0:00 Foreign meddling in Argentina 1:08 Javier Milei 1:41 CIA 3:24 Billionaire oligarch 4:03 Anarcho-capitalism 5:05 IMF 7:17 Inflation 8:25 Poverty 9:43 Israel 11:00 Milei's geopolitical alignment: US & Israel 11:33 BRICS 12:13 US corporations 13:32 Beat the status quo... by joining it 14:24 US-backed coup & dictatorship 18:24 Outro

The US government has sent troops to Taiwan, just a few kilometers from mainland China, while also selling billions of dollars of weapons and military equipment. Is Washington preparing for war? Ben Norton analyzes the geopolitical situation. After Ukraine, US readies ‘transnational kill chain’ for Taiwan proxy war: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/03/01/ukraine-us-kill-chain-taiwan-war Topics 0:00 Intro 2:15 US sends troops to Taiwan 3:45 Map of US troop location 4:39 US general threatens war on China 5:28 Nuclear weapons 7:03 US once had nukes in Taiwan 10:22 US "arms Taiwan to the teeth" 13:27 US military surrounds China 16:22 Pentagon's "kill chain for the Pacific" 18:23 Elon Musk's role 19:19 US military interoperability with Taiwan 20:57 Washington threatens Chinese sovereignty 22:58 US communiqués recognizing One China policy 27:46 US violates agreements 29:28 Parallels to Ukraine 31:48 Outro

Israel is carrying out genocide against the Palestinian people and "systematic destruction of every aspect necessary to sustain life in Gaza", United Nations Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese detailed in her report titled "Anatomy of a Genocide". Ben Norton analyzes the political context.

The world economy is structured in an unjust way in which the West drains the wealth of the Global South. Ben Norton discusses the economics of imperialism - and how China has partially reversed it. China is now the 'world's sole manufacturing superpower'. How did it develop so fast?: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/01/31/china-world-manufacturing-superpower-production/ Topics 0:00 Global inequality 1:45 The China exception 3:01 World-systems analysis 4:37 Prebisch-Singer thesis 6:55 Dependency theory & commodity supercycles 8:27 Unequal exchange 11:01 Haiti & Honduras: Wage suppression in the periphery 13:57 New International Economic Order 15:22 China & the Asian Tigers 19:27 The Global South rebels 22:41 South Africa's President Ramaphosa on industrialization 25:13 Indonesia's economic development 26:34 (Neo)colonialism in Indonesia 29:29 Indonesia bans raw mineral exports 32:18 Protectionism (for the West, not for the rest) 37:38 China helps Indonesia industrialize 42:04 The myth of Chinese "imperialism" 43:04 India's economy vs. Indonesia's 46:41 China's South-South integration 49:33 Outro || Geopolitical Economy Report || Please consider supporting us at https://GeopoliticalEconomy.com/Support Patreon: https://Patreon.com/GeopoliticalEconomy Podcast: https://Soundcloud.com/GeopoliticalEconomy Newsletter: https://GeopoliticalEconomy.Substack.com

Why is the United States waging economic war on China? Ben Norton discusses how China became the world's industrial superpower and a leader in important technologies, why the US is unable to compete, and the clash between Western neoliberal capitalism and Chinese socialism. Check out our related video: China is now the 'world's sole manufacturing superpower'. How did it develop so fast?: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/01/31/china-world-manufacturing-superpower-production/ Topics 0:00 Bipartisan US economic war 2:19 China is world's #1 manufacturer 4:28 Clash of systems 6:29 Elon Musk laughed at Chinese competitors. Now they're beating him. 9:27 TikTok: Why US wants to ban it 10:56 EU threatens tariffs on China 11:20 West's hypocrisy on climate change 12:25 Solar panels: China installs more than rest of world combined 13:46 Clean energy is top driver of China's growth 14:56 China leads world in green transition 16:57 Neoliberal West can't outcompete China's state-led industrial development 18:27 The death of "free market" dogma 20:31 The myth of "free trade" 23:23 US opposes industrial policy when China does it 29:10 "Washington Consensus" failed, Washington admits 38:01 Ronald Reagan's trade war on Japan 43:25 Outro

The European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, admitted that the “era of Western dominance has indeed definitively ended”. He warned that the EU must not divide the world into “the West against the Rest”, as “many in the ‘Global South’ accuse us of ‘double standards’”. Ben Norton analyzes the historic shift. Sources and more information here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/02/26/western-dominance-ended-eu-josep-borrell/ Related videos: - EU confesses 'our prosperity was based on China & Russia': cheap energy, low-paid labor, big market: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2022/10/18/eu-prosperity-china-russia-energy-market/ - West votes against democracy, human rights, cultural equality at UN; promotes mercenaries, sanctions: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2023/11/26/west-vote-democracy-human-rights-un-sanctions/ Topics 0:00 "Western dominance has ended" 2:41 Europe's "prosperity was based on China and Russia" 4:05 West vs. the Rest 5:07 Ukraine and NATO 7:05 Europe becoming US "vassal" 8:06 West votes against rest of world at UN 12:44 US-led imperialist system 18:58 Terms "Global South" and "West" 24:54 Outro