The Peter Zeihan Podcast Series

Have you ever seen a couple of 3-year-olds sitting on the playground talking gibberish and acting like they're making life-changing decisions? Well, that's what's going on at the BRICS summit in South Africa this week. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-brics-summit-significant-or-hoopla

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner Group, has reportedly died in a plane crash. The question that comes to mind isn't why this happened (because Prigozhin's hands were plenty dirty), but who did it?Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/prigozhin-is-dead-but-who-did-it

Texas is known for many things - cowboys, bbq, oil, and who could forget the Alamo - but none of those are why Texas has been (and will continue to be) the fastest-growing state in the US. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/what-makes-texas-so-successful

Biden recently announced that he'd be making a trip to Vietnam, which will likely occur in September when he visits other regional powers. But what makes Vietnam such a valuable asset to have in the US portfolio of allies? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/what-makes-vietnam-a-valuable-us-ally

Last week the Ukrainians got the news that the Biden administration issued the thumbs up for the Netherlands and Denmark to send Zelensky some F-16s. But this development is by no means black and white.Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/f-16-fighter-jets-updates-to-ukraines-defense-strategy

The Biden administration has issued its first wave of investment bans on the Chinese tech space - things like AI or tech with military applications. However, money isn't the problem for the Chinese; the real kicker is losing access to American know-how. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/making-life-hard-for-chinese-tech

Things over in Ukraine are in a bit of a holding period, which makes getting these updates out consistently that much harder...and let's not forget that most of the data we're seeing is shaky at best. But here's what I got for you. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ukraine-war-updates-talking-strategy-and-tactics

If you're thinking, "There's no way China's situation could possibly get worse," you may need to talk to mother nature about the rains and typhoons causing flooding in northern China. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/why-should-northern-china-worry-about-flooding

There's finally a deal on the table between the US and Iran that everyone can live with...it even looks like Israel has given it the green light. So what does this deal actually look like? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/an-iran-deal-we-can-live-with

Before I answer the question about what news sources I use, we must understand how our society became so uninformed... Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/why-cant-we-trust-the-media

The current Chinese system has been staring down the barrel of a number of serious challenges for quite a while now, and this new economic data just took the safety off that gun. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-chinese-slide-into-deflation

Is the superconductor of every Green's dreams finally here? I hate to burst your bubble, but the LK-99 is just too good to be true. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/is-the-lk-99-superconductor-the-key-to-green-energy

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) set Monday, Aug. 7, as the deadline for the Niger Coup plotters to step down and renounce power. That deadline has come and gone without any change, so what happens now? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ecowas-deadline-on-the-niger-coup

Before we dive into today's video, let me start by saying that if you want to defect somewhere...maybe don't choose the same place as Travis King. Now let's look at where things are with North Korea. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/lets-talk-north-korea-and-travis-king

The Ukrainians and Russians had a hectic weekend, so let's get caught up. On Friday, the Ukrainians used a naval drone (a motorboat loaded with a crap ton of explosives) to hit a Russian vessel in the port of Novorossiysk. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/russias-largest-port-comes-under-fire

As the Biden administration piles on more drilling restrictions on public land, will America's energy independence be jeopardized? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ask-peter-is-biden-killing-us-energy-independence

Yesterday we covered the key players in the US and Saudi relations. Today we'll look at the strategic implications of this relationship over the past 40 years and what it looks like moving forward. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/us-and-saudi-arabia-relations-part-2

Today we're talking about key players in US - Saudi relations. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan went to Saudi Arabia to lay the framework for a new relationship. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/us-and-saudi-arabia-relations-part-1

Most of the developing world has relatively similar demographics...the defining characteristic being a boatload of kids. And until recently, Mexico was no exception to that. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/mexican-demographics-where-are-all-the-kids

The French have found themselves caught between a rock and a hard place, and a coup in Niger happens to be the catalyst for this predicament. To be clear, we're only talking about Niger because of what it means for the French. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/what-the-coup-in-niger-means-for-france

Russia has pulled out of the grain deal brokered by Turkey and the UN, and the countdown on Ukrainian agriculture has officially started. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-end-of-ukrainian-agriculture

***Apologies for the audio today; you can watch with subtitles at this link: https://youtu.be/-rANSHB4q1Y At the start of the Ukraine War, many of the world's advanced central banks placed sanctions and embargos on Russian financial assets. As Putin tries to repatriate gold reserves from these hubs worldwide, what does this mean for the leprechauns who think we should switch to an asset-backed currency? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/why-fiat-currencies-will-always-beat-gold

Today's new factoid is that youth unemployment in China is higher than in Italy (in percentage terms). And if China's unemployment resembles Italy's, it is a very, very bad sign. Let's break this down in the context of manufacturing. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/chinas-labor-problem-youth-unemployment

Over the last few weeks, we've seen Iranian oil hit markets at nearly decade-high volumes...but production has remained relatively flat. So what's really happening here? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/whats-going-on-with-iran-and-oil-markets

As I was heading out on this trip, a fire broke out in Mexico's Cantarell oil field, which has long been Mexico's largest oil-producing asset. However, even before this fire, oil production from this field was already down to but 1/8 of peak production. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/why-is-the-mexican-energy-sector-collapsing

Unless you've been living under a rock (or stuck in the mountains), you've probably heard that the Kerch Strait Bridge was attacked again. While this attack took Russia's vehicular transport capabilities offline, there's much more at stake here. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/brain-drain-and-capital-issues-plague-indias-tech-industry

Unless you've been living under a rock (or stuck in the mountains), you've probably heard that the Kerch Strait Bridge was attacked again. While this attack took Russia's vehicular transport capabilities offline, there's much more at stake here. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/why-the-kerch-strait-bridge-attack-is-bad-for-russia

There's been a lot of movement in Turkey's neck of the woods, so the Turks have had to change their stance on several issues. Given Turkey's strategic positioning and importance, expect huge regional implications. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/lets-talk-turkey

Russia announced on Monday that the Black Sea grain deal will not be extended. This initiative has enabled Ukraine to export agricultural products through Russia’s blockade of the Black Sea; however, Ukrainian exports are only at a fraction of pre-war levels. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/russia-terminates-the-black-sea-grain-deal

California has been one of the most successful states in the US, primarily because of things outside its control. But all those external factors are flipping on them, so California must reinvent itself. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/lets-talk-california

By the time you see this, the knot should be tied on Sweden joining NATO. There's still a little arm-twisting that will go on behind the scenes, but most of the heavy lifting is done (and Turkey got the bribe they wanted, sooo everyone's happy). Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/sweden-joins-nato

As the NATO summit in Vilnius wraps up, we're left with a result that was more or less expected. Ukraine won't be getting called up to the big leagues anytime soon, but it's not all bad news for Zelensky... Note: This video was recorded back in June, but it helps paint a picture of what is going down at the NATO summit. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ukraines-waiting-game-zelenskys-quest-for-nato-membership

With weapon systems moving toward hypersonics, what's the point of holding geographic positions anymore? Theoretically, this works...at the push of a button, you can deliver a precise payload across huge distances...but the Russians have shown us this isn't quite reality. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ask-peter-will-hypersonics-replace-the-need-for-an-army

More than a few countries out there couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time...but the US isn't one of them. Today's question in the 'Ask Peter Series' looks at whether or not the US has stretched itself too thin in Ukraine to deal with another major conflict. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ask-peter-has-the-us-overcommitted-itself-to-the-ukraine-war

You know those little 'Made in China' stickers on everything you can buy in the US? Well, don't be surprised when those all say 'Made in America' after the US carries out the greatest reindustrialization process ever... Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-greatest-reindustrialization-process-in-us-history

We're continuing our conversation on China's inability to govern itself, and this is the cherry on top of it all...China restricting the export of metals used in greentech and semiconductor tech to the United States. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/china-bans-greentech-metal-exports-to-the-us

The news of the day is that the Chinese have canceled their upcoming summit with EU foreign minister Borrell. You all know I'm less than pessimistic about China's leadership as of late, and this is just icing on the cake...we'll talk about the cherry on top tomorrow. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/china-cancels-summit-with-eus-foreign-affairs-minister-borrell

New York is a service-based economy, and anytime you have a system like that, cost of living becomes an issue. While the finance bros working 80-hour weeks might be able to afford NYC prices, there's a three-headed dragon wreaking havoc on everyone else...real estate. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/real-estate-the-three-headed-dragon-plaguing-nyc

As the roman-candle-carrying-beer-drinkin’-red-white-and-blue-bald-eagles soar across the US in honor of American Independence, I figured we should talk about a country that will never experience that feeling…Scotland. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ask-peter-why-is-scottish-independence-a-suicide-pact

Should businesses play a role in pushing society towards positive outcomes regarding environmental and social issues? Today we're breaking down my thoughts on ESG by looking at what it should be, what it is, and what it is not. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ask-peter-my-thoughts-on-environmental-social-governance-esg

Riots have broken out in France after police killed a 17-year-old kid. When a similar situation occurred in '05, there were weeks of riots. We can't be sure if the same will happen here, but it's worth looking into based on France's unique demographic situation. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/frances-demographic-blindspot-racial-inequality

Today we're breaking down the new demographic data from the Chinese space. This will allow us to make some much-needed updates to an already bleak assessment...and spoiler alert, it's going to get a lot worse. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/new-chinese-demographic-data-population-collapse

The Russian state has kept a degree of separation from the Wagner Group for the past decade, but years of war crimes and avoided sanctions are about to come crashing down on Putin... Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/putin-admits-the-wagner-group-is-an-arm-of-the-russian-state

Despite all the hullabaloo about the not-coup in Russia over the weekend, this assessment that we had initially planned to publish still holds true for the tactical situation in Ukraine...as well as some of the strategic implications with the Russians. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/and-now-we-return-to-our-regularly-scheduled-program

For those of you who did more normal things this weekend, you missed a coup in Russia! (Or not...) Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-russia-coup-part-4-psych

While the future of the Russian government is very much up in the air, the chances of an outright overthrow are thin. However, the future of the Wagner mercenary group is most assuredly not. That puts every Russian military mission outside of the former Soviet Union in terminal danger. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-russia-coup-part-3-russias-global-footprint

Whether at home or abroad, Russia is the world’s primary provider of lies, misinformation and propaganda. With the future of the Russian government now being challenged, expect wild, competing noise on any and all topics. The issue at hand is not all the Russian propagandists are on the same side. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-russia-coup-part-2-the-propaganda-war

An attempted coup is in progress in Russia. The mercenary group Wagner, led by a one-time confidant of Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozin, is attempting to overthrow the Kremlin. The implications for the Ukraine War are…massive. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/the-russia-coup-part-1-what-the-hell-is-going-on-and-the-ukraine-angle

Democrat Joe Manchin managed to sneak a few clauses into the debt ceiling extension deal for the completion of his Mountain Valley Pipeline. Environmentalists are pissed, and fossil fuel lovers gave Machin a double thumbs up. So who's right and who's wrong? Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/ask-peter-whats-the-deal-with-manchins-gas-pipeline

Prime Minister Modi is stateside and prepping for his address to Congress and state dinner. While a summit with Modi may have been inevitable (as he's the leader of the most populous country and up-and-coming power), we need to look at India's relationship with the rest of the world to see what might come of this meeting. Full Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/zeihan/mr-modi-goes-to-washington