Christoph Germann

Christoph and I are back!  After a long hiatus we have returned with a jam packed episode.  In the first segment we discuss the bizarre “bomb plot” to attack the recent MEK Summit in Paris.  Then we explore the allegations that this was orchestrated by the Iranian government and the bogus claims by the West and Israel about a network of sleeper cells across Europe.  We then turn to a discussion about those swept up in the investigation–including an Iranian diplomat from Austria.

The wait is over! Christoph and I are back for another jam packed episode of Porkins Great Game. We begin by discussing the new direction that we will be taking the show in. Christoph and I explain why we will be focusing less on Central Asia and the Caucuses, and more on the the “global rimland.” We then move onto a discussion of the influential book The Unquiet Frontier by A Wess Mitchell and Jakub Grygiel. We talk about who Mitchell and Gryiel are, their careers at the Center for European Policy Analysis, and their current positions with in the State Department.

Since his appointment as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Aaron Wess Mitchell has mostly stayed out of the spotlight but his geopolitical views are already having a profound impact on U.S. foreign policy, as illustrated by the Trump administration’s newly released National Security Strategy and the decision to provide lethal weapons to Ukraine.

Berlin Foreign Policy Forum 2017 – A Turning Point in US-German Relations?
Upon taking office, German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) decided to make “a pact with America the cornerstone of her foreign policy,” reorienting Germany away from Russia and back towards the United States.[1]
This pact has become increasingly tenuous after the election of Donald Trump as this year’s Berlin Foreign Policy Forum demonstrated.

BND Warns Turkey Not to Challenge NATO Line
German-Turkish relations keep plummeting as Berlin and Ankara argue over the threat posed by U.S.-based Turkish preacher Fethullah Gülen and his movement, but there is more to the latest dispute than meets the eye.
In recent weeks, tensions have been running high between Germany and Turkey due to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s referendum campaign. Disagreements over the Gülen movement are now adding fuel to the fire.

CDU Promises Vast Expansion of Military Spending, Putting Election at Risk
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen used the 53rd Munich Security Conference to send a message to the new U.S. administration: NATO is not “obsolete” – and neither is the Russian boogeyman!
“There can be no policy of equidistance between allies on one side and those who on the other question our borders, our values and the principles of international law,” Defense Minister von der Leyen said to applause at the Munich Security Conference.

The Great Game Round-Up by Newsbud’s Christoph Germann brings you the latest newsworthy developments regarding Central Asia and the Caucasus region. We document the struggle for influence, power, hegemony and profits between a U.S.-dominated NATO, its GCC proxies, Russia, China and other regional players.
Georgia's Main Opposition Party Splits but the Drama Ain't Over

Berlin Christmas Market Attack Raises Questions About Security Failures 
As more details emerge about last month’s Berlin Christmas market attack, German authorities are struggling to explain why they failed to prevent the attack despite knowing full well that Anis Amri was a ticking time bomb.
“The attack was carried out by a man whom security officials across Germany were very well aware of,” North Rhine-Westphalia’s Interior Minister Ralf Jäger acknowledged at a January 5 meeting of the state’s parliamentary interior committee in Düsseldorf.[1]

For the first PGG bonus podcast Christoph and I start off by discussing Russia-US relations in the age of Trump. We talk about the warming relations between the two nations and if this will evolve into a meaningful relationship. We explore some of the recent cabinet appointments by Trump and what this might mean for the US and geopolitics in general. Christoph and I talk about how the enemy has shifted away from Russia and to Iran, China, and global jihadist’s.

East Aleppo Civilians Describe How ‘Rebels’ Prevented Them from Leaving
As Syrian government forces recapture more parts of eastern Aleppo, many civilians are risking their lives to flee the besieged opposition-controlled areas, telling the world that the so-called “rebels” stop at nothing to prevent people from leaving.