Energy policy

Energy policy today determines whether Europe will still be a competitive continent in ten years' time. For decades, cheap energy was the foundation of industry, research and economic success. This foundation has been shaken in just a few years - by wrong political decisions, geopolitical risks and a misconceived climate strategy. In my analyses, I show how energy prices, geopolitical dependencies and technological developments are linked. If you want to understand why AI, raw materials and industry are equally linked to the energy issue, there is no way around a sober look at European energy policy.

Wealth in the Ice – Why Greenland’s Resource Boom Remains Uncertain

by
Natural Resources in Greenland

Beneath Greenland’s ice lies a promise that has captured the imagination of politicians, businesses, and investors for years: rare earth elements, critical minerals, oil, gas, and other natural resources that could become increasingly important in a world hungry for raw materials. The more climate change alters the Arctic regions, the more often Greenland is described as a future winner in this development.

But it’s not that simple. Between geological deposits and economically viable extraction lie political decisions, high costs, a lack of infrastructure, fluctuating commodity prices, and a population that is not necessarily willing to support every form of industrial development. Greenland is thus less of a surefire raw materials giant than an example of just how wide the gap between potential and reality can be.

Read more

Donald Trump in the US system - origins, power, media and impact

by
Donald Trump in the USA system

Donald Trump is no ordinary political figure. He is not a classic statesman, not an ideologically trained party soldier, not a product of decades of Washington networks. Trump is one thing above all: a projection screen. For hopes, for fears, for anger, for rejection - and for expectations that go far beyond concrete policies. This is precisely the reason why a portrait of him makes sense. You don't have to like or dislike him, but he definitely makes something visible that was already there.

Trump does not just stand for decisions or programs. He represents a rupture in the political self-image of the Western world. And this rupture cannot be explained by viewing him merely as a „populist“, „provocateur“ or „accident of history“. If you want to understand Trump, you have to see him as both a symptom and an actor.

Read more

How the pandemic taught economists a lesson about inflation, growth and economic recovery

by
Economists' assumptions during the pandemic

Even during the coronavirus pandemic, many economists were surprisingly unanimous: the great danger was a phase of low inflation, perhaps even deflation. A few years later, the picture is different. Inflation reached historic highs in many countries, supply chains collapsed and economic developments turned out differently than expected.

The pandemic was not just a health crisis - it was also a stress test for economic forecasts. This article shows where experts were wrong, why this was the case and what lessons can be learned for future assessments.

Read more

Fracking, LNG and energy policy: a sober analysis of risks, opportunities and reality

by
Natural gas fracking and energy policy

There are political and social discussions that are not linear. They come in waves. Fracking is one such issue. For years, the matter in Germany seemed settled. With the legislative package of 2016 and the resulting regulation from 2017, the framework was clear: commercial fracking in unconventional reservoirs will not take place. The debate calmed down and the issue largely disappeared from the public eye. It was as if a lid had been put on it.

But this impression was deceptive. Because while the debate in Germany was dying down, the world was changing in the background. The energy supply, which had long been considered relatively stable, came under increasing pressure. Prices began to fluctuate, supply chains became more fragile and geopolitical tensions increased. The events from 2022 at the latest made it clear that energy is not a matter of course, but a strategic commodity.

Read more

Who actually is J. D. Vance? A portrait of his origins, career, contradictions and future

by
Who is J. D. Vance?

International reporting on the United States is usually dominated by the big, loud figures. Names that polarize, that provoke, that generate headlines. For many European observers, politics in the USA is therefore often an interplay of escalation, conflict and clearly recognizable opposites. And then suddenly a name appears that doesn't fit into this picture at all: J. D. Vance.

Not a classic loudspeaker. Not a man of grand gestures. Not a politician who immediately attracts attention with his pithy words. And yet he is suddenly there - in interviews, in analyses, in political debates. Not as a marginal figure, but as someone who obviously plays a role that is bigger than it appears at first glance. For many readers in Germany or Europe, this is precisely where the real question begins: who is this man anyway - and why has he suddenly become so important?

Read more

The Iran-Israel conflict: Why this escalation is the West's strategic nightmare

by
Israel-Iran - Strategic nightmare

There are moments in the story when you sense that something is shifting. Not abruptly, not with a single decision, but like a line that slowly but inexorably runs through the dust of old certainties. The past few days have been such moments. I wondered for a long time whether I should really write this editorial - after all, I have already dealt with Iran in detail once before and made it clear that you can only understand this country and its power structures if you look at the decades-old lines. But it is precisely these lines that have now become visible again, more clearly than ever.

What makes me sit up and take notice is not just the hard facts: the nightly strikes, the overloading of Israeli missile defenses, the rhetoric of political leaders, the increasing shift of power in the background. It is the underlying pattern - the sense that here is a conflict entering a phase that will be a nightmare for any strategist. And that is precisely why I am writing this article: because many see the surface, but hardly anyone understands what is brewing underneath.

Read more

Energy, power and dependency: Europe's path from world export champion to consumer

by
Europe and energy

If you look around Germany today, you will notice one thing: The energy situation is different than it was twenty years ago. And fundamentally so. Two decades ago, Germany was considered the epitome of industrial stability. Reliable electricity supply, predictable gas prices, robust grid infrastructure. Energy was not an ongoing political issue, but a matter of course. It was there. It worked. It was affordable. It was - and this is crucial - plannable.

Today, however, energy has become a strategic uncertainty factor in Europe, especially in Germany. Prices fluctuate, industry is shifting investments, political debates revolve around subsidies, emergency reserves and dependencies. Energy is no longer just infrastructure - it is a power factor, a bargaining chip and a geopolitical lever.

In this article, we want to calmly trace this development. Not in an alarmist or conspiratorial way, but step by step. What has changed? What decisions have been made? Who benefits? And above all: how did a continent that was sovereign in terms of energy policy end up in a situation in which it hardly has any independent control over its most basic foundation - its energy supply?

Read more

Russia, NATO and the fear of war: what can be proven - and what can't

by
NATO, Russia and the fear of war

This article is not the result of a current impulse, indignation or partisanship. Rather, it is the result of a long period of observation - and a growing sense of unease. I have been studying Russia not just since the war in Ukraine. My interest goes back further. I had already studied Russian as a foreign language at school, and at that time I studied the language, history and mentality in a very relaxed way. This early interest led me to follow developments there over the years without constantly changing my perspective.

This is precisely why I am shocked today by how crude, how simplistic and how self-assured many images of Russia and its alleged goals are placed in the public sphere - often without sources, without context, sometimes even without any internal logic. It becomes particularly irritating when such narratives not only appear on talk shows or in commentary columns, but are also adopted almost without reflection by journalists, politicians or other official voices. At some point, the question inevitably arises:

Is that actually true?

Read more

↑