Geopolitics

Geopolitics describes the interactions between energy, the economy, technology and international power structures. Many developments that seem like isolated events in Europe are in fact part of larger strategic movements that have often been growing in the background for years or decades. In my analyses, I shed light on these connections soberly and without ideological filters: How do energy prices change political decisions? What role does AI play for global power blocs? And why is Europe losing strategic influence? If you want to understand where the world is really heading, you need geopolitical perspectives.

Understanding Iran: Everyday life, protests and interests beyond the headlines

by
Understanding Iran

Hardly any other country conjures up such fixed images as Iran. Even before a single detail is mentioned, the associations are already there: mullahs, oppression, protests, religious fanaticism, a state in permanent conflict with its own population. These images are so familiar that they are hardly questioned. They seem self-evident, almost like common knowledge.

And therein lies the problem. Because this „knowledge“ rarely comes from personal experience. It comes from headlines, from commentaries, from stories that have been repeated for years. Iran is one of those countries about which many people have very clear opinions - even though they have never been there, don't speak the language, don't know everyday life. The picture is complete, cohesive, seemingly free of contradictions. And that is precisely why it is so convincing. But what happens when a picture becomes too smooth?

Read more

Nord Stream demolition: sabotage, power politics and the uncomfortable unanswered questions

by
Nord Stream blasting

When people talk about energy, many think first of electricity - of light, of sockets, of power stations. In reality, however, Europe's everyday life depends on a quieter foundation: heat and process energy. Over the decades, natural gas has become a kind of invisible backbone. Not because it is particularly „beautiful“, but because it is practical: it is easy to transport, relatively flexible to use and can be reliably supplied in large quantities. For private households, this means heating and hot water. For industry, it means one thing above all: predictable production.

Particularly in industries such as chemicals, glass, steel, paper, ceramics or fertilizers, energy is not simply a cost factor that is „optimized“. Energy is an integral part of the process. If it fails or becomes unreliable, it is not just one machine that comes to a standstill - often an entire plant, sometimes an entire supply chain. This is the point at which „energy policy“ ceases to be an abstract controversial issue and begins to have a very concrete impact on jobs, prices, availability and stability. Anyone who understands this also understands why Nord Stream was far more than just an infrastructure project on the seabed for Europe.

Read more

Greenland, Trump and the question of belonging: history, law and reality

by
Greenland in the crosshairs: USA and Trump

There are topics that you don't actively engage with, but that simply force themselves on you at some point. For many people - including me - Greenland has long belonged in this category. A large, remote island in the far north, a small population, lots of ice, lots of nature. Not a classic everyday topic, not a political hot topic. That has changed noticeably in recent months.

The increasing number of reports, comments and headlines about Greenland - and especially Donald Trump's repeated statements - have suddenly put the island at the center of an international debate. When a former and possibly future US president speaks publicly about wanting to „buy“, „take over“ or take control of an area, this inevitably attracts attention. Not because such statements should immediately be taken seriously - but because they raise questions that should not be ignored.

Read more

Understanding Taiwan: History, status issues and the risks of an interconnected world

by
Taiwan as a tipping point

Taiwan has been in the headlines for years - sometimes because of military maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait, sometimes because of diplomatic tensions, sometimes because of the question of how reliable international rules are in an emergency. In recent days, this impression has become even more acute for many observers: the US operation in Venezuela, in which Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro was detained, is the subject of controversial international debate, not only politically but also in terms of international law.

Why this could be relevant for Taiwan is less a question of “Who's right?”, When major players interpret rules selectively or enforce them harshly, other powers ask themselves - soberly and guided by their own interests - where their own leeway begins and ends. And it is precisely at this point that Taiwan becomes more than a distant island issue.

Read more

Rule-based world order and international law: between claim, reality and breach of law

by
International law and rules-based world order

For years now, I have noticed how often politicians and the media talk about a „rules-based world order“ is being discussed. The current conflict between the USA and Venezuela has brought this topic back to the fore. In the past, this term hardly ever came up, but today it almost seems like a standard reflex: if something happens somewhere, it is quickly said that we have to „defend the rules“. At the same time, I have gained the impression that the same people who refer to these rules particularly often no longer feel consistently bound by them themselves when in doubt. It was precisely this contradiction that made me wonder.

What's more, the more often you hear such terms, the more vague they seem. „Rules-based“ sounds clear, but often remains vague. And „international law“ is often used as a moral seal of approval, although it is actually a legal framework - with conditions, limits and loopholes. I have therefore decided to take a closer look at this topic. Not as a lawyer, but as someone who wants to understand what this order once was at its core - and what its real strength lay in.

Read more

Propaganda: history, methods, modern forms and how to recognize them

by
What is propaganda?

For many - and I felt the same way myself for a long time - propaganda was something you learned about in history lessons. A topic that seemed to be firmly established: in the Third Reich, perhaps even in the GDR, i.e. in clearly defined, authoritarian systems. We were taught that propaganda existed there because these systems needed it - and that it didn't really play a role in an open, democratic society like the Federal Republic of Germany.

This view was comfortable. And it was plausible for a long time. Because propaganda was almost always shown as something obvious: as a slogan, as a poster, as martial imagery. Something that you recognize as soon as you see it - and from which you can distance yourself internally. Today, this certainty seems fragile. Not because people have suddenly changed, but because the form of influence has changed. And that is precisely why it is worth clarifying calmly and without agitation what propaganda actually is - and what it is not.

Read more

Understanding digital money: Bitcoin, stablecoins and CBDCs explained simply

by
CBDCs, cryptocurrencies and stablecoins

There were times when money was simply „there“ in everyday life. You earned it, withdrew it, paid with it, transferred bills - done. And that was one of the quiet qualities of the old system: it was so reliable that you hardly noticed it.

Many technical things work best when they remain invisible. Cash is a good example of this: it is tangible, easy to understand and allows for an exchange without a system immediately running in the background that logs or evaluates everything. This was normal for decades. You didn't have to be an expert to participate in business life. That will change in the future.

Read more

The Crimean Tatars - history, origins and present of a forgotten people

by
Crimean-Tartar steppe

Crimea has been in the headlines again and again for years. In this context, the name of the Crimean Tatars is often mentioned - usually briefly, often without explanation. However, if you want to understand who the Crimean Tatars are, you have to go much further back than the political conflicts of the present.

It is not about a single event or a clear „hour of birth“, but about a long historical process. This chapter attempts to explain this in detail: where this people comes from, how it was formed and why its identity cannot be pinned down to national borders.

Read more

↑