Is Putin “in Another World?”

Marvin Kalb | March 4, 2014 12:30pm

Brookings

Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel, rarely one to engage in flights of fancy, finished a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the crisis in Ukraine, and then, turning to several of her aides, she said that “she was not sure he was in touch with reality.” The Russian leader, she added, seemed to be “in another world.”

President Obama’s foreign policy is based on fantasy

By Editorial Board, Published: March 3

The Washington Post

FOR FIVE YEARS, President Obama has led a foreign policy based more on how he thinks the world should operate than on reality. It was a world in which “the tide of war is receding” and the United States could, without much risk, radically reduce the size of its armed forces. Other leaders, in this vision, would behave rationally and in the interest of their people and the world. Invasions, brute force, great-power games and shifting alliances — these were things of the past. Secretary of State John F. Kerry displayed this mindset on ABC’s “This Week” Sunday when he said, of Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine, “It’s a 19th century act in the 21st century.”

Putin’s error in Ukraine is the kind that leads to catastrophe

By David Ignatius, Published: March 3

The Washington Post

Napoleon is said to have cautioned during an 1805 battle: “When the enemy is making a false movement we must take good care not to interrupt him.” The citation is also sometimes rendered as “Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.” Whatever the precise wording, the admonition is a useful starting point for thinking about the Ukraine situation.

High-Interest Web Banks on the Rise in China

By DAVID BARBOZAMARCH 2, 2014

The New York Times

SHANGHAI — Last June, an affiliate of the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba made an offer to its hundreds of millions of users: Give us your cash, and we will pay more than Chinese banks will.

Savers swamped the company seeking interest rates that were significantly higher than the low rates fixed by the government. By early February, 81 million people had signed up for the company’s money market product called Yu’e Bao, which translates as “leftover treasure.”

Ukraine's Perpetual East-West Balancing Act

Brookings

Striking the right balance between relations with the West and relations with Russia has always been Ukraine’s central foreign policy challenge. Ukraine’s leaders have sought to have it both ways: to grow relations with the United States, European Union and NATO while also trying to maintain a stable relationship with Russia.

Russian forces expand control of Crimea

By William Booth, Will Englund and Kathy Lally, Updated: Monday, March 3, 7:44 PM E-mail the writers

The Washington Post

SEVASTOPOL, Ukraine — Russian forces expanded their control of the Crimea region Monday and reportedly gave the Ukrainian military an ultimatum, as the Ukrainian prime minister called for Western political and economic support and the Russian and Ukrainian currencies fell in tandem.

Kremlin Clears Way for Force in Ukraine; Separatist Split Feared

By ALISON SMALE and DAVID M. HERSZENHORNMARCH 1, 2014

New York Times

SIMFEROPOL, Ukraine — As Russian armed forces effectively seized control of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula on Saturday, the Russian Parliament granted President Vladimir V. Putin the authority he sought to use military force in response to the deepening instability in Ukraine.

The authorization cited a threat to the lives of Russian citizens and soldiers stationed in Crimea and other parts of Ukraine, and provided a blunt answer to President Obama, who on Friday pointedly warned Russia to respect Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty.

How to Read President Obama's New Budget

BROOKINGS

By: David Wessel

The first trick: Skip the rhetoric. ("This budget takes critical steps to grow our economy, create jobs and strength the middle class....") Do what the pros do: Go directly to the tables.

Next week President Obama is expected to send Congress his new budget. It's a huge, sprawling document; last year's was 2,476 pages in four volumes. Because no one can absorb all that instantly, here's an insider's guide to the budget for fiscal year 2015, which begins Oct. 1, 2014.

The Wisdom of Crowd-Funders: What Motivates Cross-Border Private Development Aid?

Report | December 2013

 By: Raj M. Desai and Homi Kharas

BROOKINGS

(Introduction and conclusions, for full report follow the link at the end of the text)

INTRODUCTION

In 2010, foundations, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), religious groups and other charitable organizations in the United States contributed $39 billion to international development causes (Hudson Institute 2012). By comparison, $30 billion in US official development assistance (ODA) was disbursed during the same year. For US-based organizations, this represented a doubling of international private, voluntary development assistance over the past decade.

Crowdfunding In Europe: The Top 10 'Peer-to-Peer' Lenders

Forbes

The following guest post is by David Drake, founder and chairman of LDJ Capital, a New York City private equity firm, and of The Soho Loft, a global financial media company with divisions in Conferences and Publishing.

Crowdfunders generally fall into different categories: equity, donation, reward, and debt. The last is also known as microfinancing — and commonly referred to in Europe as “peer-to-peer lending.” Here are the top 10 up-and-coming peer-to-peer lenders e making financial waves in Europe:

Greece’s troubles

The troika is back

The Economist

The stand-off between the government and international lenders continues

Mar 1st 2014 | ATHENS

THE scene is familiar: burly Greek bodyguards hustle a trio of foreign bureaucrats into the finance ministry through a side entrance to avoid a cluster of anti-austerity protesters shouting “troika go home”. Hours later tight-lipped representatives of the troika—the European Commission, IMF and European Central Bank (ECB)—head back to their hotel while ministry officials spin their version of the talks: heroic Greek resistance to “excessive” demands made by the country’s international creditors.

In Ukraine, Naming of Interim Government Gets Mixed Response

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORNFEB. 26, 2014

The New York Times

KIEV, Ukraine — Standing before a crowd of tens of thousands in Independence Square, the center of the three-month civic uprising that ousted President Viktor F. Yanukovych, the lawmakers temporarily controlling Ukraine announced an interim government on Wednesday night to be led by Arseniy P. Yatsenyuk, a veteran public official.

Hagel Warns Russia Not to Intervene in Ukraine

By HELENE COOPERFEB. 27, 2014

The New York Times

BRUSSELS — Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel warned Russia on Thursday to stay out of the turmoil in Ukraine, while NATO defense ministers issued repeated statements meant to show support for the new leadership in Kiev.

“We expect other nations to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and avoid provocative action,” Mr. Hagel said after the ministers met at NATO headquarters here. “That’s why I’m closely watching Russia’s military exercises along the Ukrainian border, which they just announced yesterday.”

Gunmen’s seizure of parliament building stokes tensions in Ukraine’s Crimea

By William Booth and Will Englund, Published: February 26 | Updated: Thursday, February 27, 9:06

Washington Post

SEVASTOPOL, Ukraine — With unrest growing in the Crimea over Ukraine’s political transformation, a group of armed men seized the local parliament and the regional government headquarters in Simferopol early Thursday morning, barricaded themselves inside both buildings and raised Russian flags, news services reported.

They were reported to be wearing plain uniforms without designating marks. The Interfax news agency quoted a local authority as saying the men were from a Crimean self-defense group.

The takeover, in the regional capital of Simferopol, brings tensions in the Crimea to a new high, just hours after thousands of ethnic Russians there had protested against the new government in Kiev, while Crimean Tatars rallied in its support. It also came after Moscow ordered surprise military exercises in a district bordering Ukraine and put troops in the region on high alert.

Hunting credit, firms look beyond wary EU banks

BY STEVE SLATER

LONDON Wed Feb 26, 2014 3:17am EST

(Reuters) - When David Armitt needed to refinance loans last year for his 153-year-old manufacturing company in Yorkshire, he found British banks reluctant to lend. So he took the nuclear option.

The finance director in Huddersfield turned instead to San Francisco-based Wells Fargo, borrowing $28 million after putting up as collateral the gearboxes that his firm, David Brown Gear Systems, makes to propel nuclear submarines.

Year of the PIIGS? Greece leads 2014 stock market league table

Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain have been the best performers in Europe so far in 2014

By Kyle Caldwell4:15PM GMT 25 Feb 2014

The Telegraph

Backers of the UK stock market are celebrating a steady start for the FTSE 100 in 2014 and a challenge of its 1999 all-time high of 6930. But its marginal gain of 1.3pc since the start of year is dwarfed by gains from some of the eurozone's most troubled economies.

Data from Russell Investments, an asset management firm, show Portugal, Italy, Ireland and Greece have been the best performers in Europe so far in 2014.

Natural Big Lies

FEBRUARY 24, 2014, 1:27 PM  46 Comments

Paul Krugman

The New York Times

I’ve been doing some more Fed transcript readings, and noticing how implausible everyone found it that what did happen, could happen. And I have a small insight as I remember the days of bubble denial. It involves a violation of Godwin’s Law, but in a good cause.

Stakes High as E.C.B. Tests Banks

FEB. 23, 2014

The New York Times

A lot is riding on the cleanup of euro zone banks that is being overseen by the European Central Bank. The progress so far is encouraging. But clarity is needed on a few points to ensure that lenders really do get a good scrubbing and so are able to support the zone’s fragile economic recovery.

The E.C.B. is in the midst of a so-called comprehensive assessment of euro zone banks. This has two elements: an “asset quality review,” or A.Q.R., to determine whether the loans and other assets held on their balance sheets are valued properly, and a “stress test” to check whether they could withstand a severe economic downturn.

Greece resumes bailout talks with lenders, no hard figures discussed

BY HARRY PAPACHRISTOU AND LEFTERIS PAPADIMAS

(Reuters) - Greece resumed bailout talks with its international lenders on Monday, hoping to end six months of wrangling over the release of new rescue loans it needs to avoid default.

At stake is the disbursement of funds to repay 9.3 billion of bonds maturing in May, the biggest single debt redemption Greece faces in the next three decades, according to Thomson Reuters Eikon data.

They held a first round of talks but no hard numbers were discussed. "Talks are tough, a lot of issues are open," a senior Finance Ministry official said, declining to be named.

Piraeus Port Becomes Hub in Greek Logistics-Industry Push

By Jonathan Stearns  Feb 25, 2014 2:01 AM GMT+0200

Bloomberg

The Greek port of Piraeus could become one of Europe’s top five container-shipping hubs as the government spurs logistics activities in a bid to kick-start economic growth, said Development Minister Kostis Hatzidakis.

Piraeus, now the 11th-largest container-shipping port in the European Union, is expanding as China-based Cosco Pacific Ltd. (1199) operates one of two piers, builds a third and prepares to offer cargo-train shipping to multinational companies including Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) and Huawei Technologies Co.