Multipolarity – Details, episodes & analysis

As Pavel Durov remains in French hands, we’re wondering whether Europe can finally develop its own Silicon Valley simply by mass detention of top entrepreneurial talent.

Or whether perhaps this is the desperate last whelp of a society increasingly bypassed by the global tech economy. 

Meanwhile, in Germany, the story of the day is that the AfD have taken a great swath of Thuringia and Saxony, while Sara Wagenknecht has gobbled the rest. This is democracy in action –  so can it be stopped? 

At the same time, the EU is redefining its central budget. For member states, that 1.2 trillion annual pocket money is no longer free - it will be conditional on economic reforms. We’re about to find out what exactly Slovenia is prepared to do for its slice. Better yet, what will Hungary do?

Finally, as Turkey applies to be the latest BRIC, we’re wondering: is this the point when it’s quicker to build a new acronym from states who aren’t in the club?

As you may have noticed, this week is an extended, four-story gutbuster of an episode. 

That’s because it’s Premium Week –  and we believe in giving our Patreons a little extra on the side. And round the back.

If you want to join the club, you too can sign up on Patreon to listen to the full version - it's 5 Pounds, Euros or Dollars a month. Cancel any time. 

Simply go to https://www.Patreon.com/multipolarity.

Thomas Fazi has been watching the EU implode for over a decade.

He's widely known as a contributor to UnHerd and Compact, and for his 2014 book: Battle For Europe: How An Elite Hijacked A Continent.

His work on the corruption of European institutions stretches back to the 2011 Sovereign Debt Crisis.

Multipolarity has been consistently arguing that the jesses of central bank policy are being used as political levers to keep the EU's wayward member states together - in contravention of both the letter and the spirit of its treaties.

Fazi has been another voice, consistently been making a similar critique, but from a Marxist perspective.

This week, the lads invite him on, to compare notes.

You can find Thomas' popular Substack here:

https://substack.com/@tfazi

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Be excellent to each other, and -

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This week, it’s a double header of audio essays on Europe’s elite power-plays. 

One From Andrew Collingwood - on the Atlanticists and the Autonomists taking their battle for supremacy into the new EU administration.  

And another from Philip Pilkington setting out how a new kind of Trussification may be coming for the states within the ECB… 

Is Le Pen mightier than La Banque? 

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It’s premium week, so if you’re not already a subscriber, head over to Patreon where for five pounds, Euros or dollars a month, you can get access to this, and all our previous premium episodes. Cancel any time. 

As Vladimir Putin meets Kim Jong Un, big trade plans are afoot. Much to the chagrin of Western leaders. 

Seems like we’re about to answer an important question: what happens when the collective set of people you’ve sanctioned gets so large that they can all successfully trade with each other? Which invites yet another question - did no one think of this? 

Javier Milei decided he would rip the band aid off Argentine inflation. 

Now, finally, beneath that band aid, we can see… a gaping wound. 

Inflation is coming down - but in this case, what comes down must go up. 

We’ll be explaining why The Crazy One’s apparent success in containing the money supply is about to lead to another run on the peso.

Finally, last week, the EU was assailed by a wave of populists. It all felt suitably dramatic. A blow against the blob. 

But have you ever punched a blob before? 

As the permanent Brussels mandarin class regroups, it's time for the Empire Strikes Back. 

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Military-industrial blogger Malcom Kyeyune spends his life talking and thinking about US war preparations.

So what was it like when he finally left his Swedish fortress and visited the capital of the Global American Empire, Washington DC?

Malcom is just back from his first international conference. The Lads pick up on his time talking to the generals and the bureaucrats, and wonder whether the numbers match the vibes.

Kyeyune is famously pessimistic. What did the DC Blob make of this Jonah commanding them to repent?

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Mexico has a new President. 

She’s the first woman President.

She’s the first Jewish president. 

But most importantly, she’s the second Andrés Manuel López Obrador President. 

As the outgoing leader’s hand picked successor takes over, what does the continuity version of his wiley non-orthodox socialism look like when it comes to Mexico’s global standing? 

Meanwhile, for once America’s not going for a Mexican. It’s going for a British. The world’s least fashionable takeaway destination is also presently the world’s most underpriced stock market. As American money swoops in, it’s not clear whether they’ll leave the bones. 

Finally, news is that Turkey is drifting closer to BRICS membership. 

Nato’s most fragile member seems to be ever-further out of alignment with the West. It’s certainly the dawning of a golden age of Multipolarity. 

But will it improve on the acronym? 

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This week: in light of the upcoming UK General Election, we're digging into what Britain will look like in five years time.

Caught in a low growth high-debt trap, with currency and trade issues cutting off any room to manoeuvre, what's the softest landing for the G7's most vulnerable economy? 

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The assassination attempt on Robert Fico has left Europe bemused. 

Shouldn’t it have left Europe stunned?    

In an age where condemnation of violent rhetoric has never been fiercer, it seems condemnation of actual violence has seldom been milder.  

As we move into a more fractious and populist age, what are the implications of the media’s seemingly divergent views on who it is and is not acceptable to assassinate?          

The G7 are meeting in Italy - just after Joe Biden dropped his massive package of trade tariffs onto China. 

So in the spirit of “never interrupt your enemy when he’s making a mistake”, are the Europeans going to clap as he blows America’s head off?  

Nope — turns out they’re going to join him. We’ll be reporting from the G7 suicide pact. 

New figures say that China has dialled down its US government bond holdings by $53 billion in the first quarter of this year. Last week, we gave you the full doomsday 2025 scenario for when the Yuan stops backstopping America. Today we’re giving you the real world here and now version. The long slow slide goes on.

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This week, a special edition.

Two relatively short term scenarios, with very long term implications. Presented in audio essay form, by our two hosts.

In Part One, Philip Pilkington outlines his take on what could happen after the US election. An extended sketch on the possibilty of violent Trussification. He thinks that bond market bullying of the incoming Trump administration could in turn set off a chain of events, that demand a new wave of de-dollarisation.

In Part Two, Andrew Collingwood flips the perspective from West to East, and from currency wars, to trade wars.

He’ll be looking at the world from China’s point of view, in the light of this week’s US trade tariffs on Chinese goods - including a one hundred percent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles.

The Chinese have studied how nations rise, and they’ve come up with a plan to leapfrog US in the technological pecking order. As the low tariff liberal Washington order slips away, what becomes of a world where China is no longer content with low and medium-value manufacturing, but is instead actively targetting the crowning heights that America has long claimed as its unique domain?

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For more on the Chinese plan, be sure to subscribe to Multipolarity’s new Substack, where Andrew will be putting down some extended thoughts.

This week, we also have an introductory essay - called What Is Multipolarity?

And from next week, every Thursday we’ll have the Multipolarity Briefing - a series of links and brief thoughts to keep you up to date on the latest multipolar developments.

Simply search for Multipolarity on Substack.com

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Be excellent to each other, and -

Get us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/multipolarpod

On Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/multipolarity

Or on our Substack: https://substack.com/@multipolaritypod

Belgrade. Budapest. It’s not the classic tourist itinerary – but by his very footprints, Xi Jinping’s historic state visit is redrawing the power map of Europe. What does the continent look like once he’s done stomping about? 

Meanwhile, the Pound is in deep trouble - the Egyptian Pound, that is. 

As the land of the pharaohs takes a 45 % haircut on its currency, Egypt is spreading its multipolar tentacles. They’ve announced that they’re going to be settling their trade debts in currencies other than the US dollar. 

Egypt is the world’s biggest importer of grain. Russia is the world’s biggest exporter of grain. You do the math. 

Per capita GDP should be the default way to understand whether we’re all getting richer. 

But for years, Europe’s treasuries have been juicing their growth numbers simply by adding more people.

Now, with 13 countries in per capita recession, the migration-driven growth model is coming under the microscope as never before. 

Is Human Quantitative Easing about to unwind? 

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Be excellent to each other, and -

Get us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/multipolarpod

On Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/multipolarity

Or on our Substack: https://substack.com/@multipolaritypod