Argus Geopolitical Intel

TECHNOLOGY: Musk announces corporate HQ move to Texas  By GEO´ Newsteam - Gibraltar Newsroom  www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com Google Indexed on 081021 at 10:00  Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk took to the company´s annual shareholders meeting in Austin, Tx to announce that the electric motor manufacturers is to move its corporate headquarters from California to Texas in what is seen by industry analysts as a snub to local government in Alameda county, California where the futuristic Tesla is currently based.  He gave several reasons for the move, telling shareholders its Californian factory in Fremont was "jammed" however, the billionaire technology entrepreneur has had an fractious relationship at times with California. "There's a limit to how big you can scale it in the Bay Area. In Austin our factory is like five minutes from the airport, 15 minutes from downtown," he said.  Another strategic reason is of course that California is also a difficult place for his e...

AUKUS: What the U.S.-British-Australian Security Pact Means for Europe - Analysis Posted by GEO´ PRWire with Analysis by Iain Fraser, Reportage Editor - Gibraltar www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com Google Indexed on 011021 at 09:53 By sweeping France aside, the Biden administration has indicated that they neither trust nor value their European allies when it comes to China. Such misgivings raise serious questions about the state of transatlantic relations and the durability of NATO. In this in-depth article Carnegie Europe´s Rosa Balfour During the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, the complaint from some European NATO members of insufficient consultation by the U.S. administration may have come across as petulant. Four weeks later, the AUKUS—a security pact between Australia, the UK, and the United States, whereby Canberra acquires U.S. nuclear-powered submarines and scraps its submarine agreement with France—dispels any doubt. Whether the failure to warn France of the imminent agreement ...

PYONGYANG: Kim keen to re-open lines of communication with Seoul - Analysis By GEO´ Newsteam with Analysis by Iain Fraser - GEO´ Reportage Editor, Gibraltar www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com Google Indexed on 300921 at 09:56 North Korea leader Kim Jong Un has mooted his willingness to restore communications with Seoul in an effort to try and drive a wedge between Seoul and Washington as the U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency closed meeting on Thursday at the request of the United States, United Kingdom and France on North Korea’s recent tests. The move is seen by observers as a clear attempt to secure Seoul's support to secure relief from crippling U.S. led economic sanctions and other concessions in the week that saw a series missile tests, the first for six months. Kim also seized the opportunity to turn up the rhetoric and reiterate his criticism of United States dismissing offers from Washington to restart dialogue with Washington, the first for the Biden administration, as...

LATEST GEOPOLITICAL NEWS: Goldman slashes China growth forecast over power shortages By Iain Fraser - Consultant Editor, Gibraltar www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com Google Indexed on 280921 at 10:59 Wall street grandees Goldman Sachs have become the latest financial institution to cut its growth forecast for China, as the country struggles with energy shortages. Goldman´s revised forecasts of the super-economy suggests that the economy will rise by 7.8% this year, down from its previous forecast of 8.2% citing an overall decline in industrial output caused by power outages, adding that this alone is causing "significant downside pressures". It estimates as much as 44% of China's industrial activity has been affected. While China is juggling output versus its green credentials the country remains highly dependent on coal for electricity generation currently using about as much coal as the rest of the world put together but it's also a world leader in wind and solar productio...

VIRTUAL EVENT - CLIMATE: Getting cities to net zero - Institute for Government on GEO´  Posted via GEO´ PRWire www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com VIRTUAL EVENT - CLIMATE: Getting cities to net zero - Institute for Government on GEO´ Event Supported by Gowling WLG   This event will take place live on: Tuesday 12 October 2021, 12:30 - 13:30   Click Here to Register FREE Hitting the UK’s net zero target depends on the transformation of the UK’s cities. Many had already declared climate emergencies and set ambitious emissions targets before the pandemic, while big changes in the last 18 months – less commuting, more walking and cycling – have had big implications for urban areas. But to help people permanently shift to low-carbon lifestyles requires local leaders to develop long-term approaches to infrastructure, taxes and regulations. What needs to be done to ensure long-term transformation?  Which pandemic-enforced changes should remain in place?  How can cities and cent...

RUSSIA ELECTION 2021: Putin's United Russia party looks set for another landslide victory - Analysis By Iain Fraser - GEO´ Reportage Editor, Malaga City www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com Putin's United Russia party looks set for another landslide victory in the country's parliamentary elections, despite a drop in support. Initial results showed that with 64% of votes counted, United Russia had won nearly 48%, followed by the Communist Party with about 21%. The interim figures reveal that despite Mr Putin's party easily retaining its majority in parliament, it did lose some ground. In 2016, the party won 54% of the vote. The party claimed victory a few hours after the polls closed yesterday (Sunday, 20th September 2021) - A senior United Russia official, Andrei Turchak, said his party would win more than 300 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. Putin's most vocal critics were barred from running in the election, and candidates who were allowed to stand were heavily vetted. ...

LATEST GEOPOLITICAL NEWS: China applies to join Asia-Pacific trade pact to boost regional gravitas - Analysis By GEO´ Newsteam - Gibraltar www.GEOPoliticalMatters.com Google Indexed on 170921 at 09:09 Reuters has reported that China has filed an application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the commerce ministry said, as the world's second-biggest economy looks to bolster its clout in trade. The move comes the day after the historic security alliance AUKUS between the US, UK and Australia was unveiled was announced. Accession to the CPTPP would be a major boon for China following on from the the signing of the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) free trade agreement last year. The CPTPP previously known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was signed by 11 countries including Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan and New Zealand in 2018. Britain is currently in negotiations to enter the trade pact, while ...