Tag Archives: Central Bank Digital Currency

Mar 7 2025

Orban v the European Union


Posted originally on Mar 7, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Zelensky with EU leaders

Viktor Orban is comfortable being the most hated person in the room if it means standing up for the nation he vowed to lead. Hungary has repeatedly called for a ceasefire, claiming that additional funding is NOT what Ukraine needs. Brussels is attempting to strong-arm Orban into agreeing to the next multi-billion euro package. “Right now, I see 26 member states that are ready to accept the conclusions about Ukraine,” an EU diplomat said on Thursday afternoon.

The general consensus seems to be that the Union will move forward without a unanimous vote. Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said unanimity was “not the most important thing.” Neocon Kaja Kallas said Hungary can “speak for themselves” if they want to deny Ukraine aid. But that is precisely the problem—EU member states CANNOT speak for themselves because unelected officials in Brussels override them.

I am disappointed that Slovakia’s Robert Fico failed to support Hungary despite his numerous calls to halt funding amid the gas transit debacle AND the blatant corruption in Ukraine. Fico had previously stated he believed at least half the aid to Ukraine had been stolen. Still, Fico said that resolving the Bratislava gas transit deal would be sufficient enough for him to approve the next spending package. So now it is Orban standing alone against the rest of the EU.

viktor orban

Orban favors boosting Europe’s defenses but wants to focus on empowering individual members, which goes against the entire premise of the EU. “While we may disagree on the modalities of peace, we do agree that we must strengthen the defence capabilities of European nations, and these efforts should empower member states rather than Brussels bureaucrats,” Orban stated.

The bureaucrats in Brussels have silenced Orban. The next big summit will be held on March 20 and it seems as if consent is no longer needed. Ukraine First policies will be upheld no matter how it impacts actual members of the EU. Orban is not ready to leave the EU. Around 80% of Hungary’s total exports are to EU nations, with 70% coming from other EU nations. Around 28% of all exports go to Germany alone. Orban sees an EU exit as “tantamount to economic suicide.” I would not put it past the EU to implement sanctions, cut all funding, and even freeze assets if Hungary dared to leave. The nation is in an extremely tight spot and it seems as if Orban lost the backing of the only other EU leader prepared to fight for peace.

Mar 7 2025

President Macron Tries to Position France as Replacement Head of NATO in Support of Ukraine


Posted originally on CTH on March 6, 2025 | Sundance

Previously French President Emmanuel Macron refused to commit to putting French troops together with U.K troops on the ground in Ukraine.  Politically in France, Macron is on the ropes.

Obviously, such a direct commitment of troops into Ukraine would put tenuously positioned Macron in an even worse position.  However, putting French technical support systems into place to replace the withdrawn U.S. targeting system just sounds better.

So, as the optics of French politics present, yeah, yeah, that’s the ticket – Macron goes that way.

Stepping into the spotlight Macron said in an address to the nation on Wednesday that Russia was “a threat for France and Europe”, that the Ukraine was already a “global conflict” and that he would open a debate about extending the French nuclear umbrella to allies in Europe.

Macron also said that he plans next week to hold a meeting of army chiefs from European countries willing to send troops to Ukraine after any eventual peace deal with Russia. Macron told the people of France that his nation needs to be ready if the United States is no longer by its side.

Russia Responds –MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian officials and lawmakers on Thursday poured scorn on French President Emmanuel Macron for saying that Russia threatened Europe and cautioned that such talk could lead the West towards the abyss of a new world war.

[…] the advance of Russian forces in Ukraine in 2024 and U.S. President Donald Trump’s upending of U.S. policy towards Ukraine and Russia and demand for a peace deal to end the war have triggered a crisis among European powers who fear the United States is turning its back on Europe.

“Such an erroneous analysis leads to fatal errors,” said Konstantin Kosachev, a senior Russian senator, who said Macron had mistaken Russia’s reaction to the enlargement and aggression of the U.S.-led military alliance towards Russia.

“Macron maniacally imposes on his citizens, allies and the entire world a completely false concept of what is happening – ‘the Russians are coming!’ Such false conclusions and false suggestions lead to the abyss.”

Russia and the United States are by far the world’s biggest nuclear powers, with over 5,000 nuclear warheads each, followed by China with about 500 and then France with 290 and the United Kingdom with 225, according to the Federation of American Scientists. (more)

“One ping Vasilli“…  Keep in mind, President Trump has withdrawn “intelligence sharing,” the targeting systems used by the elements in control of Ukraine warfighting.  {GO DEEP} This move is essentially leaving Ukraine naked to the possibility of Russia taking advantage of this moment of strategic vulnerability.

However, 36 hours later and Russia is not attacking.

All of this is very interesting.

First, President Trump and President Putin have talked personally via phone.  Second, President Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, spent over three-and-a-half hours in a face-to-face meeting with President Putin {Go Deep}.

• Witkoff discussed the intentions of President Trump with President Putin, following the phone call between Trump and Putin. • President Trump has paused the long-range “targeting systems” being used by Ukraine. • President Putin is not taking the opportunity to attack. • Putin is restraining himself.  “One ping only Vasilli“… can you see it?

Put those points all together and you see a picture of peace being discussed by Trump and Putin, and a potential ceasefire being opposed by Zelenskyy (Ukraine), Starmer (UK), Macron (FR) and the EU leadership.

Yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly said, “for the past three years the U.S and Russia, two nuclear powers, have been in a proxy war.”  This is the U.S. Secretary of State saying this on television.

The EU nations are assembled in Brussels today to discuss how to finance a larger EU military.

The U.K is willing to support continued warfighting efforts in Ukraine.

France wants to keep supporting Ukraine warfighting efforts.

German leadership is now proposing changes to their constitution to enable them to spend and assemble a larger military.

It’s a little bit remarkable.  Germany is talking about assembling a larger military to support a move through NATO ally Poland putting German troops into Ukraine to fight Russians. 👀

Stop me when you realize this sounds a lot like EU history repeating.

Mar 5 2025

Capitol Cosm


Posted originally on Mar 5, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Mar 5 2025

Poland


Posted originally on Mar 5, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Poland ECM 1989 2041

QUESTION: Mr. Armstrong, I just write to you because you are the only source for reliable news and forecasting here in Poland and Estonia. Your computer forecast our election and the markets incredibly. I understand why people try to slander you. It is always kill the messenger because they cannot argue with the message. I was concerned that you said 2025 was 86 years from Hitler invading Poland. Do you have any updates? I fear for Poland’s future.

LK

2023 10 26 Poland_s_new_parliament_to_convene_on_November_13_president_English_Section_


ANSWER: Yes, President Duda called for a new Polish parliament to convene after the October 15th elections, one to be led by former (unelected) EU President Donald Tusk.

Poland Germany 3 28 1939

The tensions with similar rhetoric preceded Hitler’s invasion of September 1st, 1939, for several months. That began in January/February 1939, and curiously, it was about 8.6 months later when the invasion took place. The rhetoric is now equally hateful. This is not going to look good. Tusk wants war with Russia.

2025

This year is 86 years from the 1939 invasion of Poland. The target year 2025 was also showing up to the start of civil unrest in Romania. This is an important year overall for the Eastern European nations in general.

WarsawPoland_Stock_Index Q 3 3 25

The Warsaw Shar Index has an important Double Directional Change for the 2nd quarter here this year. With Trump suspending money to Ukraine, we must ask, will Europe pick up the tab? If not, will the Ukrainian politicians demanding Zelensky resign and flee the country while he still can? Maybe Britain will give him political asylum.

Mar 3 2025

Norway Disavows Private Company Refusing to Fuel American Ships & Russia Attacks Supply Line


Posted originally on Mar 2, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

2025_03_02_20_32_22_Norway_s_government_breaks_silence_after_major_supplier_says_it_will_no_longer_r

A private Norwegian fuel supplier Haltbakk Bunkers, has said after the way Zelensky was treated by Trump, they are cutting off all fuel for American Ships. The Norwegian government has disavowed that policy, assuring the United States this is not a government policy and that American ships will be refueled, contrary to the statement of Haltbakk Bunkers.

Ukraine Weapons Supplies

Meanwhile, since Zelensky has refused to accept any cease-fire, we should expect to see the fighting now escalate. Russia has now attacked a cargo ship, Swiss-owned MSC LEVANTE F, a Panama-flagged, with missiles to “sink” it after they received reliable information that the vessel carried British weapons to aid Ukraine that included drones and weaponry loaded in Turkey before being taken to the Ukrainian city of Odesa. This demonstrates that Zelensky’s refusal to accept any cease-fire warrants an escalation that will now target the Ukrainian supply line. This is a standard military tactic, and it is surprising that Russia has waited so long to take this step.

Mar 3 2025

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer Announces U.K. Troops Will be “Boots on the Ground in Ukraine” Leading a European “Coalition of the Willing”


Posted originally on CTH on March 2, 2025 | Sundance

Following a widely watched assembly of EU leaders, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announces that Britain will lead a “coalition of the willing” and the U.K. will put boots on the ground and planes in the air to create the “security guarantee” for a potential Russia-Ukraine ceasefire.

The Prime Minister did not specify any other European country who will align and join their military forces on the ground in Ukraine; instead outlining that additional military elements will be rapidly organized.  PM Starmer stressed that U.S. military forces “must” backstop the EU military members and implied that Italian PM Meloni will only align with the principal of Italian military use if the USA is involved.

As secretary Rubio mentioned earlier in the day, the Ukraine/EU phrase “security guarantee” is more honestly described as “deterrence” or an insurance policy.  Prime Minister Starmer and this EU ‘coalition of the willing’ are only willing to put their military into Ukraine if the USA will be guaranteed to come into the conflict if the ceasefire falls apart.  This should not be a part of any reasonable consideration, given the 3rd parties (not Russia) that would intentionally seek to disrupt a ceasefire to suck the USA into battle.  WATCH: 

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None of the other EU nations are willing to publicly say they will put their military into Ukraine, because the EU just doesn’t have a military force capable to deal with the conflict.

Mar 3 2025

Sunday Talks: NSA Mike Waltz Says Zelenskyy is Going to Need to Make Territorial Concessions


Posted originally on CTH on March 2, 2025 | Sundance

National Security Advisor Mike Waltz appears on CNN to outline how the U.S. team no longer sees Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a man who can lead his nation to a place of peace.

Waltz notes that at a certain point there are going to be negotiations and discussions about Ukraine territory that Zelenskyy is going to need to face with pragmatic honesty. However, at the current state of conflict Zelenskyy is intransigent toward any ceasefire agreement that does not include U.S. troops on the ground as a “security guarantee.”  WATCH:

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Mar 3 2025

Sunday Talks: DNI Tulsi Gabbard Notes the EU/NATO Hypocrisy President Trump will Not Support


Posted originally on CTH on March 2, 2025 | Sundance

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard appears on Fox News to discuss the goal of the Trump administration toward Russia and Ukraine.

Within the discussion DNI Gabbard draws attention to the hypocrisy of Ukraine and the EU as they define democracy yet reject free speech, block and manipulate elections and shut down the voices of their own people.  Gabbard has very clear eyes in support of President Trump.  WATCH:

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Mar 3 2025

Sunday Talks: Secretary of State Marco Rubio Outlines Reality of Peace Deal Zelenskyy Refutes


Posted originally on CTH on March 2, 2025 | Sundance

Secretary of State Marco Rubio continues to shine as he speaks through the issues of the Ukraine-Russia conflict and speaks commonsense to the dynamic the western media pretends not to know.

Appearing on ABC, Secretary Rubio cuts to the chase in his support of President Trump and the administration officials who are organizing the most practical end to war, destruction and bloodshed.  ABC George Stephanopolous pushes the “security guarantee” talking point, while Rubio eloquently keeps the focus on ending the conflict.

The Zelenskyy defenders, NATO and the EU must pretend the U.S didn’t carry out a color revolution in Ukraine. They must also pretend they didn’t install Volodymyr Zelenskyy and pretend there was no civil war happening inside Ukraine for a decade. Lastly, the western group must pretend they didn’t try to provoke Vladimir Putin with expansions of NATO and an intentional breaking of the Minsk accords. There are other pretenses that must be maintained, but these are the top ones.

Secretary Marco Rubio and President Trump are not pretending.  WATCH:

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Mar 3 2025

British PM Keir Starmer Says He Will Organize EU Ceasefire Security Force with France +2, and Count on U.S. Military Backstop From Trump


Posted originally on CTH on March 2, 2025 | Sundance 

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is holding a Ukraine summit in London today with EU leaders, following two phone calls with President Trump.

According to the outline Starmer proposed on BBC News, following the disastrous Zelenskyy meeting in the White House, the British PM called President Trump and also Emmanuel Macron.  According to his statements, Starmer told Trump he would work with Macron +2 unidentified countries (a “coalition of the willing”), to organize an EU security force for a Ukraine ceasefire; then the group will require Trump to provide a U.S. troop “backstop” as an insurance policy.

Starmer completely ignores the NATO provocations against Russia that preceded the military operation by Vladimir Putin, instead blaming only the aggression of Putin for the expansion of NATO in Europe.  Interview Below:

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Starmer is meeting with EU leaders today, presumably to initiate a discussion of an EU security force that would form the peacekeeping group to secure a ceasefire.  However, Starmer consistently says the U.S. backstop is needed to protect the EU forces in the event the ceasefire doesn’t hold.

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