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Our World Is Not For Sale: 25 Years Of Fighting The WTO

25 years ago, for the six months leading up to the World Trade Organization (WTO) summit in Seattle in 1999, I met Deborah in organizing meetings to prepare. Today, while many of us continue our efforts for a better world in many different places and movements, for 25 years Deborah has remained in constant combat with the WTO, together with global movements as part of the Our World is Not for Sale network. I asked if they could share insights on the impacts of the Seattle WTO confrontation and the current threat of the WTO–including obstruction of the needed transition off fossil fuels and the growing domination of Big Tech.

Iranian, Russian Card Payment Systems ‘Officially Linked’

Iranian and Russian card payment systems were formally linked on 11 November, coming as the two nations have been working together to circumvent economic sanctions imposed by Washington and the west. The announcement was made on Monday during a ceremony attended by the Governor of Iran’s Central Bank Mohammad-Reza Farzin. During the ceremony, “a previous agreement on the connection of Iran’s Shetab and Russia’s Mir card payment systems for electronic fund transfers took effect,” Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported.

Strikes Shut Down Canada’s Container Ports From East To West Coast

Key ports on Canada’s West Coast, including its largest container port in Vancouver and the Port of Prince Rupert, were shut down by a labor strike on Monday. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Ship & Dock Foreman Local 514 began striking on Monday morning, stopping containers and cargo immediately. According to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, $800 million in trade flows through West Coast ports every day. Approximately 20% of U.S. trade arrives in the Canadian ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, where strikes broke out after union leadership and industry representatives failed to reach a deal before a cooling-off period expired.

The United Nations Summit Of The Future Appears Stuck In The Past

The United Nations is hosting world leaders on September 22 and 23 for a “Summit of the Future.” Unfortunately, the draft action plan for the summit, while full of lofty language and some good intentions, does not challenge the neoliberal model or corporate control of the global economy. On the contrary, it proposes, for example, to “facilitate access of developing countries to the WTO and promote trade and investment liberalization.” It’s astounding that this plan, which is supposed to serve as the basis for an inter-governmental agreement, is so stuck in the past. For decades now, social movements and elected officials in many countries have become increasingly opposed to trade and investment rules that grant enormous privileges and power to transnational corporations.

Venezuela’s Parliament To Request Break Of Relations With Spain

The president of the Venezuelan National Assembly (AN), Jorge Rodríguez, has asked the Foreign Policy Commission of parliament to prepare a report calling for President Nicolás Maduro’s administration to break diplomatic, commercial, and consular relations with Spain—including the suspension of commercial passenger flights—in response to the decision of the Spanish Congress to ignore the democratic victory of President Nicolás Maduro in the July 28 Venezuelan elections, and instead “recognize” the fictitious “victory” of the far-right opposition’s former candidate, Edmundo González.

Competing Global Economic Initiatives: A Tale Of Two Routes

In recent years, two major economic initiatives have emerged in Asia, particularly in West Asia: China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). These initiatives represent a strategic contest between global powers vying for influence and economic dominance in a rapidly changing world. The Belt and Road Initiative, conceived by Chinese President Xi Jinping, is a modern resurrection of the ancient Silk Road. This initiative aims to connect China to the rest of the world through extensive infrastructure investments, including ports, roads, railways, and industrial zones.

The Price Of Biden’s New China Tariffs

I love the photograph The New York Times ran atop Jim Tankersley’s May 18 story analyzing the inadvisable raft of tariffs on Chinese imports President Biden authorized four days earlier. There is the old coot signing the paperwork at a desk in the Rose Garden as a crowd of seven looks on admiringly. Polo shirts, sneakers, a baseball cap. Six of these seven are people of color; four are women. Perfect, just perfect. Study the picture. These dutiful onlookers are not officeholders or administration officials. They are union leaders from what were once powerful labor organizations: steelworkers, autoworkers, machinists, communications workers, the AFL–CIO.

The Land And Sea Blockade Against Israel Is Working

Israel’s aspirations to become the region’s transportation hub have taken a hit. The maritime and land blockade against Israel to stop the genocide in Gaza is working, as one of Israel’s main plans for a prospective “land bridge” connecting the Gulf countries with Israel and Europe has suffered an irrevocable setback.  The Israel-centered India Middle East Europe Economic Corridors project (IMEC), which was first proposed by U.S. President Biden in September of last year during the G20 meetings, is facing an existential threat.

Mexico Provides Non-GM Corn Opportunity For US Farmers

United States commodity organizations have cheered on the U.S. government as it tries to get Mexico’s restrictions on genetically modified (GM) corn declared in violation of our trade agreement with Mexico and Canada, arguing that it cuts farmers’ export markets and sales revenues. But what if Mexico’s modest restrictions could instead turn out to benefit U.S. farmers who shift to premium non-genetically modified (GM) corn markets as international corn prices fall? It sounds counter-intuitive, but it might just be true. The math is pretty simple.

95% Of Trade Between China And Russia No Longer Done In US Currency

On a recent visit to China, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov stated that this year the use of the Russian ruble and Chinese yuan in trade between the two countries has already reached 95%. At the same time, from January to October, 68% of all Russian trade was carried out in the two countries’ currencies, according to Russian Minister of Economic Development Maksim Reshetnikov. The yuan has also been used by Russia in commercial transactions with Mongolia, the Philippines, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, Japan, Tajikistan, and Singapore.

Why Activists Shut Down The 2023 APEC Summit In San Francisco

From Nov. 11-17, leaders from 20 nations across the Pacific Rim gathered in San Francisco for the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit. An activist coalition known as No to APEC greeted the visiting world leaders with a countersummit decrying APEC as a forum to advance the interests of transnational corporations at the expense of workers and the environment. While the Biden administration worked to construct a new free trade regime in the Pacific exclusive of China, known as the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), grassroots organizations in the No to APEC Coalition advanced an alternate vision of international cooperation and development in opposition to the corporate, pro-war agenda pushed by the US and allied governments at APEC.

US Pressures Saudi Arabia To Sell Oil In Dollars, Not Chinese Yuan

The United States is negotiating behind the scenes with Saudi Arabia, pressuring the country to keep selling its oil in dollars. Washington is concerned that Riyadh may price its crude in other currencies, particularly China’s renminbi. Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s top three oil producers. Since the 1970s, Riyadh has agreed to sell its crude in dollars, helping maintain the greenback’s hegemonic status as the global reserve currency. The Wall Street Journal reported that the US is working on a diplomatic deal in which Saudi Arabia would agree to normalize relations with Israel’s apartheid regime.

Peoples Summit Against APEC

Seattle, WA - A delegation from Workers World Party branches in Seattle, Portland and New York City attended the People’s Summit Against APEC on July 29 and 30, put on by Pacific Northwest-People Over Profit. The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a neoliberal, free-trade conference where “government and big business collude to prioritize corporate profits at the expense of the global working class and poor”. The People’s Summit had over 350 people in attendance and was sponsored by nearly two dozen groups. Organizers included Anakbayan USA, Bayan Seattle, Oregon People Organizing for Philippines Solidarity, International Women’s Alliance and more.

Lula And Xi Jinping Pave The Way For Trade De-Dollarization

In September 2006, at the UN General Assembly, the foreign ministers of Brazil, China, Russia and India began to outline what would become a major trade and monetary support agreement. In 2010, during a meeting of the presidents of these countries in Brasilia and a year later in China, what is now known as the BRICS was ratified and began to take shape, with South Africa joining the group. Initially the BRICS countries showed their willingness to engage in closer dialogue with each other, but over the years the agenda began to include broader international cooperation and, above all, economic and financial partnerships in strategic sectors such as energy, agriculture, and scientific and technological development.

The Inevitable De-dollarization

Last week, we embarked on a journey along the de-dollarization process that was characterized as inevitable. Today we will continue the analysis, trying to reach some conclusions while considering that it is still unclear which currency will be the alternative to the US dollar as the main exchange currency. Several options are being considered. One of the options will come from the decision taken by the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) at their summit meeting to be held in South Africa in August. The governor of the South African Reserve Bank, Lesetja Kganyago, said that any discussion aimed at establishing a common currency will inevitably lead to another debate around the creation and location of a central bank.

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Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

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