Sanctions and tariffs have not only united China and Russia, but also the world against dollar dominance.
Our Biggest Miscalculation
Eurointelligence has an interesting article on Our Biggest Miscalculation. Let’s tune in.
The biggest geopolitical error of our decade has been the west’s attempt to isolate Russia and China at the same time, or to rephrase an old joke about Europe – to keep Russia out, and China down. The result of this error is that the China-Russia relationship is on course to become globally the most consequential alliance between any two powers – at a time when the western alliance is weakening.
The deepening China-Russia relationship does not show up with a bang, but it came in small steps: China delivering dual-use goods to Russia; China allowing grey market transactions in critical raw materials; the Brics payments system; last week’s summit at the Shanghai Cooperation Council, in which President Xi Jinping went out of his way to demonstrate China’s strategic alliance with Russia and North Korea. Joe Biden’s high-performance semiconductor ban has led to a burgeoning chip industry in China. China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System is nowadays used by 54% by Chinese companies, now outnumbering those that use the dollar-based Swift system, which is based on telegram communication, which is slower and carries much higher transaction charges.
The FT has a story that China is now opening its bond market to Russian energy companies that will now have access to so-called panda-bonds. US and European sanctions closed off Russia’s access to global capital markets in 2022. Initially, Chinese banks pulled rank, fearing secondary sanctions. But this has changed now, as China is well on the way to extricate itself from its dependency on US-dollar markets.
We have been warning about the side-effects of an overuse of financial sanctions, a mechanism we don’t think is fully understood by those who use them. US foreign policy makers discovered the use of dollar-based sanctions mechanisms, and turned them into a primary foreign policy tool. But they underestimated other country’s ability to create alternative infrastructures over time. We read a lot of comments from foreign policy experts, trying to belittle those efforts.
The dollar-based global infrastructure has allowed the US to wield exorbitant degrees of power, but this was critically dependent on these instruments staying in the background, rather than being actively deployed. There are some parallels with nuclear weapons – they are also not meant to be used as a primary defense instrument.
China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System
The Canadian government website notes Beijing creates its own global financial architecture as a tool for strategic rivalry
Note: This was published in May of 2018, updated in July of 2025.
China has created the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) to facilitate the use of the renminbi as an international trading currency. China thus makes its own trading and financial relationships more streamlined, reduces illicit transfers, and provides a level of protection from sanctions. The number of direct and indirect clearing banks enrolled in CIPS has climbed substantially within a short time. China hopes that as the system develops and increases the volume of renminbi transactions, the global dominance of the US dollar will decrease.
A financial backbone emerges
On 8 October 2015, China launched a new payments system—the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS)—that uses China’s currency, the renminbi (RMB), for international transactions. Beijing also announced the creation of the China International Payment Service Corporation (CIPS Corp.) Limited to operate CIPS, CIPS Corp. is under the supervision of the central bank.
Statecraft and strategy
By facilitating and encouraging the increased international use of RMB, Beijing also lessens the supremacy of the US dollar, seeking de facto de-dollarization. In 2014 and 2015, the PRC also successfully lobbied International Monetary Fund (IMF) members to add the RMB to the basket of currencies that make up the IMF’s reserve management tool, the Special Drawing Rights (SDR). In October 2016, the RMB joined the SDR reserve basket along with the US dollar, the euro, the Japanese yen and the British pound. CIPS is Beijing’s effort to create new technologies and systems that support greater international use of RMB as well as the global rise and acceptance of the RMB through an improved international payments system.
Beijing is also concerned by the rising tide of US international financial sanctions. The PRC has observed how Russia, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and other states have been affected by these sanctions. It also remembers the US imposing trade embargos and financial sanctions on China during the Cold War. It is aware that certain governments pressure SWIFT to cooperate on the application of sanctions, and call upon it to block certain states from being able to use SWIFT to make payments. China is aware that Moscow, Tehran and other governments are keenly interested in creating or strengthening alternative international payment systems that can lessen the threat of US sanctions.
A fully operational CIPS, which reduces the PRC’s reliance on SWIFT, has a number of other advantages. Beijing is mindful of the fact that US and European banks dominate SWIFT’s governance and that their systems and networks are geared towards handling US dollars (SWIFT is perceived as playing an important role in maintaining the global dominance of the dollar). It is also concerned by the fact that US security and intelligence agencies looking to track international payments are allegedly able to access the system.
Let’s now discuss CIPS. Here are some AI generated snips.
China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) is a financial infrastructure launched in 2015 to clear and settle cross-border renminbi (RMB) transactions, facilitating the internationalization of the yuan. It connects banks worldwide for efficient, real-time yuan payments, offering an alternative to SWIFT for RMB transactions and aiming to reduce reliance on the US dollar. While CIPS is growing with more international participants, a significant portion of its transactions still rely on the SWIFT messaging system.
- Complementary to SWIFT:While CIPS is designed to be a direct competitor in the long term, it currently utilizes the SWIFT network for messaging and some settlement processes, particularly for indirect participants.
- Geopolitical Significance:CIPS is seen as part of China’s strategy to build its own global financial architecture, reduce its vulnerability to US financial sanctions, and lessen the dollar’s global dominance.
- Growing Adoption in Asia and Africa:The system is seeing increased use in Asia and is expanding to other regions, such as Africa, as trade between China and these areas grows.
I have pooh-poohed a BRICS currency for decades. And I still do.
At the same time, however, I cautioned the key idea behind BRICS is not a trading currency, but a way to avoid sanctions.
That has come to fruition, not through BRICS, but rather through CIPS. It’s not yet complete because it still uses SWIFT for some functions.
Importantly, CIPS is used by 54 percent by Chinese companies, now outnumbering those that use the dollar-based Swift system.
Trump Punishes India with 50 Percent Tariffs for Buying Russian Oil
On August 27, I noted Trump Punishes India with 50 Percent Tariffs for Buying Russian Oil
Trump’s 50 percent tariffs on India start today.
On August 28, 2015, I commented Hoot of the Day: Trump Administration Accuses India of Arrogance
The most arrogant administration in history accuses India of arrogance over Russian oil imports.
Bullies Pick on the Weak
“It’s real easy, that India can get 25% off tomorrow if it stops buying Russian oil and helping to feed (Russia’s) war machine,” Navarro told Bloomberg Television.
What’s troubling to me is assh*les telling other nations who they can or cannot conduct business with, then accuse them of arrogance when they don’t obey arrogant commands.
China and the EU keep buying Russian oil, especially the former.
And Trump promised on numerous occasions that Russia would have “severe consequences” if it did not agree to a deal.
Instead, this is now “Modi’s war” in the administration’s biggest shift of irresponsible denial and lies regarding Russia.
Trump Admits Rift With India
Please note Trump Admits 50% Tariff on India Over Russian Oil “Caused a Rift” Between Nations
US President Donald Trump admitted that imposing a 50 per cent tariff on India for purchasing Russian oil has “caused a rift” between the two countries, acknowledging that such a decision was “not an easy thing to do.” Trump justified the measure as necessary to curb Russia’s finances, while Indian officials reiterated that their energy procurement follows national interests and market dynamics.
Tariffs, Tensions, and Official Statements
During an interview with Fox and Friends on Friday, Trump explained, “India was their biggest customer. I put a 50 per cent tariff on India because they’re buying oil from Russia. That’s not an easy thing to do. That’s a big deal, and it causes a rift with India.” He further noted that the issue impacts global relations, stating, “This is a Europe problem much more than our problem.”
Strategic Interests and Diplomatic Moves
India has roundly rejected claims that the tariffs are justified, labelling them “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable.” Indian officials have underscored that decisions about energy imports are guided by sovereignty and the imperative to maintain affordable supplies for its population.
The tariff standoff comes as part of a broader set of US measures urging allies to restrict Russian oil trade, while India continues to prioritize its economic and energy security.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
This latest round of tariffs highlights how trade policies and foreign relations intersect, often putting immediate political objectives ahead of long-term cooperation. Confrontation over energy choices risks undermining collaboration, prosperity, and mutual trust, especially when global stability is at stake.
The Logical Indian calls for leaders to prioritise respectful negotiations, inclusive dialogue, and solutions that safeguard the interests of all stakeholders.
India’s Agriculture
About 46 percent of India’s workforce works in agriculture.
This figure comes from the Economic Survey 2024-25 and reflects a slight increase from previous years, indicating a continued dependence on agriculture for employment.
Trump wants India to remove its agriculture tariffs. On this score, Trump is correct.
India’s average Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff on agricultural goods was 39% as of March 2025, one of the highest among WTO members.
High duties protect the livelihoods of millions of small-scale Indian farmers from competition from cheaper, heavily subsidized foreign imports.
Two Political Realities of India Policy
- Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, would not stay in office if he upset half the nation.
- This is unfortunate because it is in India’s best interest to have more competition and lower the price of goods.
India Ironies
Trump is correct that India would be better off with no tariffs. But note the irony of “Tariff Man” putting tariffs on the whole world.
Trump has driven India closer to Russia and China, another huge miscalculation by Trump.
Trump’s tariffs and sanctions are systemically driving countries towards the two nations he wants to isolate.
Finally, Trump is shooting American taxpayers in the foot.
India’s tariffs raise costs on India’s consumers. Trump’s economically illiterate response to strike back with tariffs that will raise costs for US consumers and businesses.
Weaponization of Swift
Please consider the March 2022 post Richmond Fed article What Is SWIFT, and Could Sanctions Impact the U.S. Dollar’s Dominance?
The recent removal of Russian banks from the SWIFT messaging system has highlighted the importance of payments in supporting economies. But the weaponization of SWIFT has also left some commentators worrying about the loss of the U.S. dollar’s dominance, as it might drive banks and firms to other substitutes. This Economic Brief discusses the economics of SWIFT and explains why emigrating from the U.S. dollar may be more difficult than we thought.
The Richmond’s Fed’s assessment is self-serving. Yet, it appears accurate. Importantly the Fed even admits weaponization, the emphasis was mine.
Lessons of the Day
- The more you depend on sanctions, the less they work.
- That’s the real risk to the dollar.
I have discussed those lessons many times previously.
September 26, 2024: To Those Hard of Learning, Here’s a Repeat Lesson on Why Sanctions Fail
Let’s discuss a claim that sanction failures are due to a lack of political will.
September 19, 2023: Lesson of the Day: Sanctions Don’t Work Because They Create New Markets
A person who touted a buyer’s cartel sanction success, now complains the buyers cartel leaks like a sieve.
February 18, 2024: How China Gets Around US Sanctions on Semiconductors
US sanctions backfire again. China is stronger as a result.
Flashback Hoot
On April 13, 2022 I commented Janet Yellen Warns China on Russia and Creating a Bipolar Global Financial System
In a question and answer session, Yellen said that the United States needed to work hard with China to avoid a bipolar global financial system that pits democracies against autocratic countries.
What Does China Do With a Dollar That’s No Longer Risk Free?
In light of Fed actions against Russia, I pinged Michael Pettis at China Financial Markets some questions on China’s reserves on March 18, 2022.
Please consider my Pettis Q&A post What Does China Do With a Dollar That’s No Longer Risk Free? Buy Gold?
Q&A With Michael Pettis
Mish: Will China now hold more commodities and fewer dollars despite the pro-cyclical nature of it? More Euros or Yen over dollars? More gold?
Michael Pettis (emphasis mine):
1: “Given that so much of China’s “reserves” are now indirect and held by state-owned banks (all the increase since 2017) it’s hard to say what the currency composition of China’s reserves are.
2: “Officially the US dollar is still by far the biggest component, but it is slowly declining.
3: “I expect that this will continue as far as the official reserves go but, as you know, the hard part of reducing the US dollar component of your reserves is figuring out what the alternative should be, and with such high and growing reserves (once you include the indirect reserves at the state-owned banks) that is a very difficult question to resolve.”
Not Now Does Not Mean Never
The demise of the current US-dollar financial system with SWIFT at the heart of it is underway. I just cannot tell you when the system crumbles, nor can anyone else.
Although the dollar avoidance the BRICs seek is much easier said than done, not now doesn’t mean never. The recognition phase has started.
Most do not realize the EU is involved even though it wants no part of the BRIC structure. Importantly, the EU’s annoyance at SWIFT is far more significant than any yapping by Brazil.
So, don’t be surprised if something truly significant starts with the EU, not the BRICs. That’s an idea I have not seen anyone else suggest.
Trump has threatened BRICS nations with 100 percent tariffs if they create a competing currency.
A true BRICS currency still seems unlikely to me for reasons discussed many times.
For example, please consider More Gold Backed BRIC Currency Silliness on Dethroning the Dollar
However, SWIFT-avoidance is well underway and that will soon enough be a major success.
Even the EU is sick of US sanctions and may develop its own system.
Gold Has a Message
Meanwhile, gold has a strong message about sanctions, the dollar, tariffs, and other misguided policies of Trump.
For discussion, please see my September 2, 2025 post Gold Surges Above $3,600 to New Record High Despite a Rising Dollar
Gold does not believe the Fed is under control, Congress is under control, budget deficits are under control, and Trump is under control.
And neither do I.
“Why is everyone here on Mishtalk so damn upset with Trump taking steps to decouple from China?”
Doug78 and BenW have what’s known as “stupid-colored-glasses”
Both have TWS – Trump Worship Syndrome
Neither can distinguish between the desire and need to decouple from China from the idiotic way Trump is going about things.
Easy, big boy, I’m often critical of Trump’s process.
Don’t spread your BS too deep. Just a little goes a long way.
Desire is something you want or crave but won’t harm you if you go without. Some people desire alcohol but going cold turkey won’t kill them.
Need is something that represents a threat to stability or life itself. Food, water, shelter, security. These are needs.
There! I know the difference. Nice try, Mish. I’m not the rose-colored-glasses dolt you seem to think I am.
Don’t forget to post your plan on how to get Russia out of Ukraine or to stop the growing dominance of China.
Here you are, making excuses for all trump’s broken promises again, and getting spanked for it. We don’t tolerate stupidity around here. You might have more luck in one of the many trumpservative safe spaces, with trump’s other stupid people.
I enjoyed the spanking. It made my day. Thanks for asking.
“Importantly, the EU’s annoyance at SWIFT is far more significant than any yapping by Brazil”.
EU is not a state. Combination of states Everybody has to agree to make a decision.
EU is irrelevant to modern world. It is a museum.
De-industrilized itself for many years.
Economy stagnated for many years.
3 major countries, UK, Germany, France are in deep trouble.
Politically many EU countries are unstable.
Militarily NATO is impotent.
5% war budget will sap its real economy.
Sanction against Russia backfired itself. Rising energy cost.
Etc. etc.
EU and NATO are just vassal.
They can’t stand on their feet.
EURO will sink over time.
I don’t see how EU will annoy SWIFT.
I look it at this way. There is a free world, and there is an neo-autocratic-fascist system that is there to put the boot on humanities’ neck if could 1984 style, and suppress human advancement and civilization to varying degrees to protect the state and its leadership. China and Russia would not be where they are without the engine of much freer markets and the exchange ideas in the West. Our system, especially the US system, is what allows a SpaceX to even exist. Say Russian and Chinese folks are smarter than Americans….yet… they are not free to oust their leaders and they know it. That endless suppression is in the end, abhorrent. The true nature of its evil will come out again, we will see.
Disaster incoming:
https://x.com/i/trending/1967977219965534513
Mortgage Help Searches Top 2008 Crisis Peaks in U.S.Last updated 1 hour ago
U.S. Google searches for “help with mortgage” have surpassed levels from the 2008 housing crisis, as confirmed by Google Trends data amid mortgage rates exceeding 6.5% and delinquency rates rising to 3.9% in Q2 2025. Household debt service ratios have hit 10.2%, the highest since 2008, though experts highlight differences like stricter lending rules, average homeowner equity of $300,000, and a stronger banking system. On X, users discuss potential Federal Reserve rate cuts at the September 18, 2025, meeting, with reactions mixing concerns over economic strain and skepticism about data comparability due to increased internet access.
They can pay it out of their ever growing equity… oh, wait…
Interesting. Thanks
Interview with Canadian mining Billionaire Frank Giustra.
Most likely currencies will be switching from fiat to gold backed.
Bad news for bond holders.
One of the best interviews I’ve seen in ages.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBRnFpr0DOA
It is a little unfair to say Trump made a mistake. Clearly is has little education or knowledge regarding the big bad world, economics or foreign policy. He has impulses and the people that surround him are too weak to try and control him, or are just as ignorant. So it’s really a team effort of the ‘Trump Administration’ to be so confident in their incompetence.
Great Expose . . . and GOLD is telling us not to believe all he Hot Air !
BRICS can create a framework for trade in local currencies while opening access to each other’s local gold markets, in effect making gold the reserve currency
What % of your portfolio is in gold?
Excellent article Mish…
Trumps massive TACO on the sanctions works in Russias favor. Exactly what one would expect from a president that is compromised.
The Ruble has rallied 20% since January first, the dollar has wobbled and gold rallied to lofty new highs.
Clearly, gold mining companies have been huge benefactors in this and are experiencing massive windfall profits (economically relative).
The west is fragmenting under Trumps radical agenda of attacks on ur allies. China is withholding the sale of strategic rare earths and no one is taking this potential diminishment of our military and chip manufacturing seriously.
I love our nation and its historical leadership position in the world. We have been a beacon of freedom and technological leadership. Watching trump systematically attack our leadership position is painful as our allies fall away and the BRICS strengthen.
> have been a beacon of freedom …
That was a long time ago…
You’re referring to a country that’s been holding uncharged inmates (hostages) in Gitmo for nearly a quarter century and made “unprovoked attacks” against a slew of nations and destabilised many others, enough for many politicians from both fake parties to come and go. Now it and all of NATO are active in genocide.
This USA government behaviour since USSR dissolution — you’re obviously not ready to go further back in time — proves the government has become a beacon of oppression and violence. With nothing to hold it back, it immediately set out to conquer the world and through its abuse of its unipolar opportunity generated a backlash and an awakening outside nato.
What about strictly domestic issues? With the 1996 telecom act and 2000’s anti-patriot act, it began consolidating the platforms for speech domestically and attacking the bill of rights (my favorite single legal document of all time). With the 2000’s “preventing student loan discharge in bankruptcy” bill, it started tricking teens into indentured servitude and, since you lose your job if you stand up individually, a population even less likely to stand up for itself collectively. In 2020, in a seemingly prepared “response” to a virus about as bad as a bad year of the flu, it destroyed millions of small businesses and, via economic coercion of threatening to fire people, overrode the “my body, my choice”and Nuremberg principles against forced medical testing. They removed from sale WHO-listed essential human (not “horse”) medicine and prevented DNA vaccine development so it could field-test mRNA they’d been working on for decades.
These problems did not start with the current shithead. (But they are accelerating.). And it’s not the elite’s fault exclusively either. People apathetic or ignorant to these issues and who refuse to read non-nato news are instrumental to the problem, because they allowed the expansion and oppression. Watching people blame either fake party and tells me we’re not going to recoup our losses.
But, to end on a positive note, I guess one can get used to anything.
The contemporary US has more in common with the USSR than the contemporary Russia does.
Koreans are pissed way pissed
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9j585g23go
Shackle their people and make them negotiate for them… yeah, that’ll do it.
Larry Johnson’s article from today relates to the issues in Mish’s piece today.
https://sonar21.com/the-turning-economic-and-political-tide-favors-china-and-russia-while-spelling-disaster-for-the-west-and-ukraine/
The USD is the reserve currencies because other parties keep their “reserves” there, as the name suggests.
Discussion of this topic mixes up two things:
Avoiding the USD for trade is an inconvenience, but the dynamics are completely different than the reserve function. Mixing them up is not analytically helpful, e.g., the fact that some countries are trading without dollars or that the amount traded in dollars has diminished does not translate directly into undermining the use of USD for reserves.
$$$ are not reserves if you can be cut off of them at any moment like Russia or Iran.
How many reserves did Russia park at the Fed or in US assets?
Nothing worth even mentioning.
How would these people be better of starving without income?
They’re already committing suicide by the thousands because of bankruptcy, generally caused by loans for fertilizer, seeds, and insecticides; often the result of being lured into deals with products from Western corporations of which they couldn’t gauge the long-term ramifications and dependencies.
Aak Brian Kilmeade? I grew up in farm country in a family business related to livestock, and American farmers have also been committing suicide/losing their farms to bankruptcy for a long time. There is a rumor they’re now on the verge of another wave of that.
This is something I can comment on directly. Trumps tariffs have damaged our farmers ability to export their products competitively.
Input costs like fertilizer, seed, herbicides and labor have soared while prices have fallen. Multiple nations are refusing our cargoes of soy and corn while Russia has taken over eh wheat market as more of their land is becoming tillable with climate change.
I refused to plant corn or soy this year on my farm and have no intention of shooting myself in the foot by doing it again. I also expect to be able to purchase more acreage around me due to farmers being tariffed and priced out of business.
Only massive bail-outs can save farmers now that their crops are worth less than the input costs.
What is the purpose of a tarriff? To level the playing field. It’s not to make Trump king and richer long explinations misses the simple point because it helps level the playing field it doesn’t solve it because it can’t be solved. It protects a countries industry from unfair trade.
In 2024, the US had a goods trade surplus with 111 countries. Yet Trump put tariffs on them all anyway.
Care to explain that?
In order to increase government revenues.
Duh!
Gold and silver are continuing their rally with gold decisively closing above $3.700 and silver above $41. In the aftermarket, gold sits at $3,720.00.
The loss of faith in the dollar is gaining momentum?
Clearly the dollar is loosing more credibility and with the Fed losing its autonomy, all hell can break through in the financial markets as fiscal discipline goes out the window.
Got gold mining stocks?
It should be remembered that India was leaning toward Russia during the Cold War, while America was aligned with Pakistan. India’s business interactions with the new Russia are a historic continuation of cultural dealings. I think India respects America, but doesn’t fear it. That is a recipe for independent dealings on the part of New Delhi.
Meanwhile, the Chinese currency mechanism will only gain real strength when other countries start using it in large numbers. But most nations are more leery of latent Chinese imperialism than they are of Washington’s abuse of its status as the global reserve currency. The Philippines, South Korea and Japan all have issues with Beijing, and would not like to see China’s financial power increased further.
Moreover, the convenience and speed of using the U.S. dollar insure its continued use across the world. When you consider that America is liked and China is not, America is largely trusted and there is zero trust for China, and Washington has history on its side, it’s easy to see that the dollar will continue its status for some time to come.
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dark . sport . blog Is my website — drop by for more articles like this one
I think your view of who the world trusts or likes is a wee bit USA centric.
No big power can be trusted.
But China hasn’t bombed anyone recently, isn’t supporting a genocide and isn’t constantly engaged in regime change.
Though Trump did have a moment where he seemed like he genuinely wanted to reduce warfare, in the end he has pursued the same Imperial policy as the Dems and every previous President. He is just too lazy to cover it up with a smiley face.
I read the Euro Intelligence article.
It’s easy to point out what China is doing and would be doing anyway if Trump wasn’t the president to decouple from the dollar.
What this guru Wolfgang should be doing is pointing out how to handle Russia & China in this post Ukraine invasion / COVID world we live in.
WOLFGANG, ET AL, WHAT’S THE ALTERNATIVE THAT WILL TURN CHINA & RUSSIA INTO OUR BEST FRIENDS?
I mean China did unleash COVID on the world, right? And Russia has been at war with Ukraine for more than 10 years.
Given that CIPS started in 2015, prior to Trump, it’s quite obvious that China is easily 11 years into its decoupling. Remember, at least to the west, Russia is a bad actor / state while China is a friend enemy, NO?
So if China is headlong into decoupling from the dollar which is going to weaken it, why is everyone here on Mishtalk so damn upset with Trump taking steps to decouple from China?
I mean seriously, people, did China slow down its decoupling during the Biden fiasco? I don’t remember reading anything supporting this.
China is a belligerent nation in its own right that has been working for 30 years to weaken the USA. From economic warfare, to political warfare, to drug warfare, China is doing everything they can to weaken the USA. Those are incontrovertible facts.
So are we supposed to sit back & do nothing, kowtow to them, & kiss Xi’s ass?
Again, Mish, where’s the guaranteed to work plan to end the Ukraine war & to deal with China such that they completely stop trying to undermine the USA? And to be clear, I’m not acting like everything Trump is doing makes perfect sense and is a sound plan of attack.
> Again, Mish, where’s the guaranteed to work plan to end the Ukraine war & to deal with China such that they completely stop trying to undermine the USA?
Why don’t you ask the guy who said he could end the conflict in “24 hours”?
I don’t give a flying flip what he thinks, Creamer.
The point is for YOU and every other Trump hater to come up with a REAL plan that’s guaranteed to succeed. Not maybe. Not 50/50. Come up with the freaking plan that gets Russia out of Ukraine completely and gets a thumbs up from Z, the Ukrainians, Putin, Russians, Europe, & the US?
What’s your plan to ensure the USA stays ahead of China economically & militarily?
State your plan, dude! Again, it’s EASY to be an armchair QB, a backseat driver, or to throw it back in Trump’s lap.
And don’t be surprised if your plan, if you respond, gets shot full of holes.
So we make a plan. Then what happens? Nothing.
You voted for a clown that can’t do his job, and are trying to shift the blame everywhere else.
We get to shoot holes in it just like you do Trump’s.
Yet again, I’m proven right.
The only thing you’ve got is hate & Trump is a pedo.
No meaningful thoughts. No policies. No solutions. No I’ll take that Challenge. No sticking your neck out.
Butkus! Nada. Less than a nothingburger.
https://thedailyadda.com/2025/09/16/gop-senators-concede-trump-is-doomed-as-congress-forces-release-of-epstein-files/
Your mancrush is greasy toast. You and the other simps can’t make this go away.
Still not a plan, dude! Keep posting your misdirection’s!
First of all there is no such plan and your stable genius is also not able to get such plan, he is just reading the room and see what sticks.
Globalization was ongoing for last 40 years, now you believe Trump will magically turn it around in 2-3 years, get real and stop dreaming.
To be able to compete with China or anybody else this country needs a long term plus with bipartisan support. Trump is absolutely not doing us any favor with this flood of executive orders (some absolutely illegal btw) which will be reversed by judges, congress or next president when Dems win. All the time he is berating Dems left and right making sure there is NOT a single common ground we could build any agreement.
Real plan is to stop polarizing country, stop those executive orders and start working via congress and trying to unite country. Only united country could make a plan lasting long enough to survive president change.
Unfortunately your idol is doing completely opposite. Once Dem president will be in change 1st thing he/she will do will void all those EO form Trump and do complete reverse also via EO . No how is that going to get us compete with China, you tell me.
Nope! Not a plan. None of those ideas are going to get Russia out of Ukraine or stop China from being out master.
Keep trying, but I do appreciate the attempt.
Certainly, I agree with your one excellent point:
Get Congress to together to attack the problem. But the problem is that’s a goal, not a plan.
ok, so what is Trump plan then.
Here are things I see Trump did which actually made China stronger
We all know Trump is master manipulator. He can tell you that he personally likes and you are great guy and in same sentence tell you suck and you should be fired. He is doing it all the time.
So problem with Trump is not to listen to what he says because you can find in his speeches always something that resonates with you. You look what he is doing and unfortunately if you are interested into containing China as a main goal then Trump is total failure here. If Biden was doing all those things one would say he is China asset..
So Trump is not going to lead USA to counter china (unless you want war which nobody sane really want) but actually speeding China rise.
If you look into that grand plan what we had was much better than what Trump is doing now.
Not so sure about this list…
– bring India closer to China > India like China has a population issue to deal with. They need food, energy etc. all the time as a result. India would love to get some very cheap deals for these issues with China of course. These two really can’t help one another too much, because they have the very same issues and needs as one another in many cases.
– ended Putin isolation with this red carpet meeting in Alaska and definitely strengthen China-Russia relations > See above, as they both have needs the other one possesses, so if they can capitalize on those needs they will do so.
– bring Canada closer to China > Canada brought themselves closer to China by being inept.
– alienated long time allies in Europe, Japan, South Korea > Europe has nothing to offer anyone right now, as they are in shambles in all sorts of areas. Japan we are working very close with right now, and they want to every bit as much as we do. Not sure what’s happening in S. Korea of late, but they are definitely our friends.
– strengthen BRICS (like Brasil now sending lots of food to China etc) > It’s called trade, and when one party has more of something, that another party wants, they typically trade when one another to get it.
– absolutely entangled USA in Israel war which weakens USA as everybody just plain hate Jews nowadays > The Middle East has always hated Israel, and hate that we are friends of theirs. They would have probably banned together and taken over Israel by now otherwise.
– made China look much more stable and predictable which improve China image worldwide > China has a much worse image than any other Country, and for many, many reasons. They do have the Most & Cheapest Labor in the World, so that helps them out a lot.
FAIL, MASSIVELY!
What part of your plan, not Trump’s do you not get, Igor?
Stop spouting all the things Trump is doing wrong. We can both agree that he’s doing somethings that we both don’t like.
IGOR, HOW DO WE GET RUSSIA OUT OF UKRAINE?
HOW DO WE MAKE SURE WE STAY AHEAD OF CHINA?
Stop being a Trump hater for 5 minutes and show us the plan.
It’s easy to poke holes in someone else’s plan.
Read my post below.
USA can only stop China if we have open conflict and history lesson will tell you that raising empire will eventually win as it is more energetic, more willing and more dedicated.
This is biggest problem with USA as we cling to past grandeur but nation is long past its peak.
Plan is simple.
Try to fit into world where you have multiple superpowers and stop being world policemen. Cut pentagon 1T budget in half we will have enough money to reinvirogate any industry we want. Stop making enemies and you will find lots of countries willing to cooperate with you. Trump says MAGA but so far this is not really what he is doing.
Why is it USA top priority interest to get Russia out of Ukraine. Europe was in a state of constant war long before America was even discovered and most likely all those local conflicts will continue. Let Europeans figure it out, get some balance, some nations might cease to exists and maybe come back at later time.
Again this is loosing battle to stop China rise.
Even if you look into what Trump is doing is showing we bark old, dying tree.
China is leading in new technologies, solar power, electrification, automation etc. This is future and Trump want to drill baby drill, this is past.
Just this tells you USA is not really ever trying to lead world in 21st century.
Your desperation is amusing.
ROTFLMAO!
@ YOU!
What are you, 12? Does your mama know you’re on the internet?
The level of delusion you’re resorting to to avoid admitting your stupidity is quite impressive… verging on psychosis. Should we have someone check on you?
Also one point I would like to add here.You are saying that we need someone to get us a plan to counter China.
Well this is not really possible due to fact that china currently is :
China now is like America 100 years ago. And you are like 1900 Brit discussing how to stop USA from becoming global superpower while British empire was slowly folding down.
Now answer me if you seek in American youth any desire to really shine, to shape world, to prove they are best and brightest. Nope, America is spoiled by our life comfort and prefer to take easy path. China is a young lion trying to prove himself.
So whole idea to counter China is just not going to happen. Just accept that China will continue rising same way like Brits needed to accept that USA was raising globally those 100 years ago.
If we don’t accept it then we will have military conflict which again China as raising empire will win. So we need cool heads here and common sense.
I advice you to listen to some of Richard Wolff videos about USA as a declining empire. Those from before Trump inauguration are actually really good.
Man don’t blame this on young people, seriously. Blame it on the generations that brought us here. Blaming it on young folks is super lame and just passing the buck. It’s hardly fair to blame a generation that you can’t even provide opportunity to. Who knows what they are capable of?
Still not a plan, Igor!
I’m not fine with throwing in the white towel & letting China become the pre-eminent superpower.
Maybe you are which is what it sounds like. For all I know, you’re not American which is fine.
Trump’s plan is whatever the last person who talked to him said, and the fact that Ben here can’t see that is just evidence that he’s the perfect Trump voter.
I’m not talking about Trump, Phil.
Where’s your plan?
I do agree that blaming young people is a scapegoat, but I do think generation Z is very different from my generation X. They probably have improved in some ways, but there are downsides that can’t be ignored. One of the biggest problems with Gen Z is that they are more isolated, less likely to get married, not as willing to have kids, & less religious. These by no means are not requirements for better social cohesion, but I do think they help.
For example, younger adults tend to get more conservative when they have kids. Well, that’s not happening as much these days. So this means that the younger generations are staying more liberal. And that doesn’t have to be a bad thing, but with all the social media, disinformation, etc, it is having a profound effect on social cohesion. There’s a growing social divide between generations in addition to the financial divide.
This is a very complex & alarming situation. Charlie Kirk’s assassination with so many on the hard left cheering it should scare the hell out of any reasonable, open-minded person that understands violence isn’t the answer.
“ The point is for YOU and every other Trump hater to come up with a REAL plan that’s guaranteed to succeed. Not maybe. Not 50/50. Come up with the freaking plan that gets Russia out of Ukraine completely and gets a thumbs up from Z, the Ukrainians, Putin, Russians, Europe, & the US?
What’s your plan to ensure the USA stays ahead of China economically & militarily?”
Lol! Nope. Just because people here criticize what Trump is doing, that does NOT mean they are supposed to come up with a plan that is “guaranteed to succeed”. And even if they did, they are in no position to implement it.
Trump is the President and he is the one in that position. The folks here are merely pointing out how he keeps f*cking it all up. Maybe he should stop playing golf, and worrying about Sydney Sweeney, and do his job better.
Incidentally, when I talk about what Trump should be doing to increase electricity supply, (yes, an actual plan) all you can ever do is defend him for how he is f*cking it up.
And when Mish presents facts and figures, all you can do is say they “might” be wrong! Stop acting like a child.
Time for you to take your head out of Trump’s ass. Try smelling the coffee instead.
“Lol! Nope. Just because people here criticize what Trump is doing, that does NOT mean they are supposed to come up with a plan that is “guaranteed to succeed”. And even if they did, they are in no position to implement it.”
That’s a freaking total, absolute, lamo, not going to cut it
DODGE!
Plan, PapaD! America wants & needs a workable PLAN! It doesn’t matter if you or anyone else is in a position to make it happen. What matters is what’s the probability of the plan working? Opinions like yours & mine are usually near zero %.
Crack the nut of what they hell Trump or any future president is supposed to do. Don’t just dodge the question with a cop-out response.
Mish didn’t present ANY FACTS HERE PAPA, D.
He presented some dude named Wolfgang’s opinions on how Trump is cocking up America’s superpower position.
Opinions aren’t plans. Plans are ideas that individuals, divided different political groups & a country can unite around & solve problems with.
My gawd, must I point this out to you of all people, Mr. Factoid.
Mish doesn’t present any facts?
Of course he does. That’s why most folks follow his blog. And in case you didn’t notice, they aren’t made up “facts” like Trumps. Just like you, Trump pulls everything out of his ass.
My recent favorites;
“I’ve lowered pharmaceuticals prices by 1500%.“
“We’ve already collected trillions and trillions in tariffs.”
Hahahaha!
I’m talking about in this article. I don’t see an abundance of FACTOIDS, especially as it relates to the EI.com article.
Yes, in general, Mish does a good job with presenting information that’s understandable & believable. Where he strays sometimes, IMHO, is in his interpretation.
I enjoy his analysis. He’s got some very good ideas & points.
No worries.
LOL!
As for our ongoing electrification disagreement, you and I both agree that solar & wind are important for the foreseeable future. Where we diverge is nuclear. I’m not defending Trump for his actions against a couple of these east coast wind projects. The one where the blade broke off is a real issue and needs to be thoroughly addressed before the project proceeds. The other three will get built. The DE project is well on its way to completion but very much over budget.
We both have stated the subsidies of solar & wind should end. If six months from now, it becomes very apparent that Trump is actually taking steps beyond funding to keep new wind & solar from being brought to market, then I will agree 100% that he’s wrong. For now, I believe all of this bellicose talk as usual is about resetting expectations going forward. New wind & solar projects don’t get any federal subsidies.
That money goes to nuclear which eventually needs to go away as do subsidies for oil & gas.
Getting SMRs off the ground is critical to America’s future. That cannot be overstated. How & when we get there is absolutely up for debate.
Lol. All you ever do is make excuses for that fat orange turd. And pretend that what he is doing will work out for the best, because you so desperately want it to.
Same goes for SMRs.
“ Getting SMRs off the ground is critical to America’s future. That cannot be overstated. How & when we get there is absolutely up for debate.”
First: smrs would be nice to have but they are not critical to our future.
Second: the fact that you believe they are critical is why you make so many stupid statements about smrs coming soon and saving us.
– It’s easy to point out what China is doing and would be doing anyway if Trump wasn’t the president to decouple from the dollar. > of course they would, and have been doing for a long time. They want no part of being the reserve currency. They do want to bring the U.S. down a peg or two, and a reserve currency disruption would be welcomed by China as any disruptions to the U.S. Financial system would be.
– I mean China did unleash COVID on the world, right? > Involved with, but the sole actor hardly. We had people and money invested in the same project along side China many have implied (Fauci needs to be investigated and will be imo).
– And Russia has been at war with Ukraine for more than 10 years. > Not exactly, as Ukraine has been told, just as has the U.S. has, that any peace deal will include No Troops on the Border, NOT up for debate. Ukraine and others helping them, have pushed and pushed this issue and Russia gets sick of it. I don’t blame them, as we would not allow China to have bases on Our Border with Mexico, now would we… (Canada is a wild card because they have been sleeping with China of late to survive, due to Leadership of Canada being completely non-existent).
– Given that CIPS started in 2015, prior to Trump, it’s quite obvious that China is easily 11 years into its decoupling.Remember, at least to the west, Russia is a bad actor / state while China is a friend enemy, NO? Not even close. As China is an Enemy 100%!! Russia has been a friend off and on, but on when we both agree to be and off when we both act stupidly, like recently.
– So upset with Trump taking steps to decouple from China? > Rare Earth amongst others.
– China is a belligerent nation in its own right that has been working for 30 years to weaken the USA. From economic warfare, to political warfare, to drug warfare, China is doing everything they can to weaken the USA. Those are incontrovertible facts. > Correct! Not Russia though.
“ why is everyone here on Mishtalk so damn upset with Trump taking steps to decouple from China?”
Because this is a Libertarian blog dominated by hard-core Libertarians plus an assortment of bots. For Libertarians anything that does not adhere to free trade and that includes an almost free border is verboden. Any hint of tariffs is especially heretical. It is normal that your views are attacked because you are very much in the minority here not because your views are wrong but because they do not match with most of the people here.
“Why is everyone here on Mishtalk so damn upset with Trump taking steps to decouple from China?”
Doug78 and BenW have what’s known as “stupid-colored-glasses”
Both have TWS – Trump Worship Syndrome
Neither can distinguish between the desire and need to decouple from China from the idiotic way Trump is going about things.
We are definitely swimming against the tide that’s for sure.
When I think of libertarian. I think of Rand Paul. These folks commenting around here don’t seem to parallel Rand Paul, who I think loves his country. Some of the folks around here, I don’t think that’s the case, Mish not included.
I would agree that he seems to be Libertarian which is fine. No worries.
It’s not about labels for me Ben. Democrat, Republican, Libertarian: l don’t care.
If you want to decouple from China then you better team up as many friends and allies as possible and work together to do that. Trump was so cocky he thought he could do by himself.
Same goes for dealing with Russia.
And even Trump seems to have figured that out now as he tells Europe “if you do it, I will too”.
Maybe a little late though. Trump has spent the first part of his term pissing off every friend, ally and trading partner we have. Moaning incessantly about how every country in the world was ripping us off and smacking tariffs on them all. Even though we have a goods trade surplus with 111 of those countries!
Trump is like a man abusing his wife. And when she finally comes to her senses and leaves him, he wonders why.
It will be hard for Trump to get others to go along with whatever he dreams up now.
“If you want to decouple from China then you better team up as many friends and allies as possible and work together to do that. Trump was so cocky he thought he could do by himself.”
I agree to a certain extent with this statement. As I’ve said many times, I believe Trump has overplayed his hand with Europe & Canada. In addition, I agree that placing tariffs on these countries was needed as part of a broad change in strategy.
However, these tariffs should have been a good bit lower than China & MX. Similarly, I think placing modest tariffs on steel was okay. 50% is WAY too much, so on a certain level we are not far apart.
In terms of his persona, thinking & mouth, I’m generally not going to defend Trump except I do like his tough guy approach. I think that’s needed, but he does trip himself up with just absolutely stupid comments & ad hominem attacks.
As for the tariffs, I think CA & MX are waiting for the SCOTUS ruling. If it goes there way, that a lot of what Trump is trying to do will get neutered. If it goes his way, then they’ll have to get serious about the USMCA negotiations. My guess is that SCOTUS finds a way to thread the needle, giving Trump more tariff power than his detractors want him to have but not as much as he’s trying wield.
Cheers!
Trumps tariffs are ultimately not revenue generators. They stifle trade and economic activity. Futile acts of an economic illiterate.
The driving of the Brics together in this manner is virtual madness by Trump.
Who does Trump work for?
Israel
i think folks have it backwards. israel is a pawn of pax dumbfuckistan. that part of globe has always been under the thumb of empires. amerikan, british, ottoman,romans, egypians……and others. israel is a useful idiot in the sea of petrodollar oil fields. it’s a twisted setup. i despise netanyahu for making the israeli people suffer for amerikan interests.
George Galloway –
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O_koGTh6T5c
Any sovereign country is free to put tariffs on any other country. Their borders, their rules.
Any country is free to deal with others. They don’t pay the tariffs levied on their goods and services; the importers and consumers do.
Tariffs do one thing only: transfer some or all of the revenue to the government imposing the tariffs.
If the Indians or the Chinese are craven and stupid enough to feed the enemy as it were — our government declared that China is our enemy just like Russia is — then that’s their problem. They’ll have to lower their prices eventually if they wanted to continue selling stuff to us.
OR
They don’t and their products become more expensive for US consumers.
But our government gets more money either way.
And who controls our government?
(Hint: it’s not us)
India needs to protect its agriculture and dairy from the American GMO, antibiotics and hormone-based agri products, which create perfect consumers for the US pharma industry.
Both India and Russia have CIPS like system already functioning with 50+ countries, UPI and SPFS>
Mish why do you rely so much on MSM here? You know that a lot of the world news is censored, distorted or a complete lie sometimes
Mish has been battling medical problems. I think that might be part of why he has evidently downshifted from doing detailed analyses of mainly economic topics, to posting mostly recycled MSM political content with a touch of commentary.
P.S. The EU also excludes a lot of US agri products for similar reasons. Some of the reasons are bogus, but it’s nevertheless clear that the U.S. needs to improve its product quality if it wants to go back to feeding the world like it used to.
Monopolistic control over key parts of the agri supply chain are a huge part of the problem. Effective antitrust enforcement would be a big part of the solution.
I never understood why Trump was going after Russia, because Z was being such an idiot. I Said on a few occasions that we should tell Ukraine to stop or we pull out everything, and Russia can do what they want with your Country.
The more Z bitched for more money and troops and Non-Peace initiative request, the more we should have said No! Getting caught up with Russia for no reason was a mistake. Maybe not long term, but that’s what’s hurting other agreements too I suspect…
Yes. The world is a complex place, filled with increasingly complex problems
Most leaders realize this. Unfortunately,
Trump thinks he can solve every problem with a few incoherent words on social media or over a phone call.
Net result; nothing gets solved; everything gets worse; and he pisses off every friend, ally, and trading partner that we have.
He is turning the US into a sh*thole country; full of division and hate.
What a show! It’s fascinating! Are you enjoying it?
I don’t like watching my own sniff film.
Too bad. We’ve got 3 more years of it.
I am enjoying it, but for entertainment purposes only. I try not to get caught up in too much of it, outside of this excellent site and another one I visit less frequently.
Discussions with Friends are much more detailed and involved, and can last for hours, but time just doesn’t allow for much of that lately, unfortunately.
I like your knowledge of energy, and although I am out now, I did alright with some investments I followed you on, so TY for that! In mostly cash now awaiting a few things to occur, and then we shall see…
Not many places to park money for guaranteed profit now days, so ladder CD’s keep the cash flow and profits coming, but not near the double digits I would prefer.
Our World is going through changes I have never seen before in my fairly longtime on this globe. A lot of things are left open with no closure and/or closed out long before expectations. A lot of guesswork is needed, and that’s not a good thing, but we have a stability issue currently.
Stay vigilant and reluctant is my take at the moment. Maybe come 2026 i will feel differently, but things have sure gone crazy of late… enjoy your day Papa!
Glad you did well. I offer a few suggestions but never a guarantee. The market is very volatile. Which is something to take advantage of if possible.
I am also heavy in cash right now. Around 40%. Which I only do when I expect a big correction. Just took a break from trading today. Best day this month! Thank you market volatility.
Think I will lock in today’s gains. Time to go for a run. Have a good day!
Mish, all you write here makes sense to me. And I think Jon is exactly right:
“The US has betrayed the trust once held in SWIFT. The US is now betraying the world’s trust in US fiscal discipline, open markets and international support for freedom and liberty.”
And yet the US $ index is right about the same presently as it was when the Ukrainian proxy war started. The numerous forces of inertia seem pretty complicated.
China is ditching the dollar, fast
China is ditching the dollar, fast (archive.ph)
hey, but at least we’ll have tik-tok
after intense hard-fought negotiations trump gets tik-tok
I betcha thought they were working on issues that mattered
I didn’t understand that…. could you please depict it in a tictok dance?
We have a framework for a deal. Trump is to meet with Xi so Xi can hammer out the next catastrophic defeat for American exceptionalism.
I finally found something to agree with trump on:
”Smart people don’t like me” – Donald Trump
Yes, he really said that. We’re agreed that trumphumpers are stupid.
The debt swap that China is doing is destroying the US dollar at it’s core. China basically deletes US dollar and buyout other nation’s US debt, replacing them with Yuan debt. So dollar is destroyed, while the whole world switches to the Yuan.
So the China-purchased US debt…just goes away? Or some other country (China) holds it? And how is this affecting the dollar?
https://russiaspivottoasia.com/100-russian-made-sukhoi-superjet-makes-maiden-flight/
The West’s main mistake is underestimating Russia. This country has two advantages: its vastness, and its considerable industrial and scientific base from the Soviet era. This allows it to live almost in self-sufficiency. If we add an alliance and close ties with China, we get a considerable power, which doesn’t care about the West’s posturing.
And what does China get out of it? Siberia.
What does China get?
All the oil and gas it could ever want as Russia is now building more pipelines directly into China.
Trump is gutless and the sanctions and tariffs did not work.
Mexico did not build the wall.
Americans pay the tariffs.
Epstein is living in one of Putins mansion’s and is supplied with all the little girls he could ever want. Trump is begging for an invitation… 😉 /S
Any questions?
Yes?
Who does Trump work for?
Everyone except you.
As I keep telling you, Israel.
Nothing matters as long as S&P500 keeps going up.
At this inflated level of the market, the hot air is sure to leave the bubble. Trump is an infantile blowhard and the world outside of Fox News knows it. Yet they are not selling as the spending continues and the dollar continues its hegemony.
Has government spending been goosing the AI bubble? Yes!
That which can not be maintained through force or fraudulent activity ~ eventually comes crashing down. Remember 1987, 2000, 2008, 2020? 2025 is on course for a serious correction.
Force becomes the governments main weapon as fraud is seen through.
Got puts?
There is a fair amount of online commentary about plans to wipe out US debt using some kind of crypto or gold pegging scheme. I really can’t claim to understand the mechanisms behind this but if you did want to do that would you want to devalue the dollar as much as possible beforehand? In other words tarrifs could be a mechanism to enable this.
Or taken the other way round – does the effect of the tarrifs push the US more towards having to do something bold like a gold peg?
Genuinely interested if anybody has any links to reasoned commentary on this.
The Ukraine war showed those two countries were hand in hand well before Trump came into office. We have been at war since 2014 and most of the world’s counties have understood this and those who would prefer to be neutral have been trying to navigate this new world. That China and Russia have been trying to settle their trade hors Dollars is not a surprise. That they have been forced to to it before their ideal conditions had been already set in place is. The object is not to prevent them from from accomplishing it but to make the process painful for them but especially painful for other countries to trade with them using the Chinese-Russian system. The Brics are important but much less important than they think and India’s prosperity depends on the West but the West’s prosperity does not depend on India. India unlike China does not produce anything that is critical to us or that could not be produced easily.
The world changed a while ago but some people are still stuck in the free trade world myth and are interpreting all current events through 1990-2008 glasses.
Correct! Russia & China have been belligerent to the US in all sorts of ways for 30 years or more. Obama & Biden didn’t slow down this belligerence. Trump might have sped it up, but Putin did say Russia wouldn’t have invaded Ukraine if Trump had won in 2020. So this whole Ukraine situation is NOT on Trump. It’s on Obama & Biden for showing weakness.
As for China, the blame squarely falls on companies choosing to chase the cheap Chinese labor. The blame is on our government & universities who have let millions of Chinese students come to the US, be educated, get US jobs, do US research & then steal IP accelerating China’s rise 10x fold. Again, that’s not on Trump.
Everybody here is constantly complaining about Trump & his policies, but I read very few alternative, well-reasoned ideas that stand a chance at combating Russia & China as the clearly belligerent to the US / West nations as they are.
Presidents have been using SWIFT based sanctions for a couple of decades now. It is egregiously dumb. American leaders forget that other people are smart too. Coming up with an alternative to SWIFT isn’t rocket science. It just requires banks and countries willing to cooperate and trust the new system. The US has betrayed the trust once held in SWIFT. The US is now betraying the world’s trust in US fiscal discipline, open markets and international support for freedom and liberty. We are witnessing the end of the era of US dominance and wealth creation.
One thing slowing this down is the extent to which countries have converted their $US to treasuries. Central banks hate making losses on their holdings by selling outright. Selling dollars and buying the home currency won’t work either, very few want their currency to increase in value. It’ll be a slow persistant trend away from dollars completely lacking drama. But it may coincide with some funding problems home, and a long slow dose of inflation.