Israel-Palestine and Pain Catastrophizing

August 8 AD 2025, US Politics, World Politics and Israel and Gaza

Photo by Louis Galvez on Unsplash

U.S. Politics

Alaska Summit Planned: President Donald John Trump confirmed he will meet Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15 to discuss a possible Ukraine ceasefire. European allies expressed concern the talks could sideline Kyiv in determining peace terms

Sanctions Pressure: The Trump administration is keeping existing sanctions on Russia in place and signaling more economic measures if Moscow does not move toward de-escalation. This undercuts the idea that Trump is working for Putin, which has been a Democrat-aligned conspiracy theory since 2016. At a time when Trump has defied American conventions and restraints to behave as he chooses, one would think he would go easier on Russia. That has not happened and the US is now intensifying its pressure on India, a major Russian customer.

Targeting Russian Oil Buyers: Trump has imposed or threatened steep secondary tariffs—up to 50%—on countries importing Russian crude, with India a key target. The strategy aims to choke Russia’s war financing but could unsettle global energy markets.

Moscow’s Economic Strain: Russian oil and gas revenues fell 27% year-on-year in July, amplifying financial pressures on the Kremlin’s war budget. America’s economic war is working.

World Politics - Tariffs and Gaza and Palestine

India Defies Tariff Pressure: Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi pledged to “deepen partnership” with Russia despite U.S. tariff threats, reaffirming energy and strategic cooperation. India is a nationalist country that views the period of colonial rule as a passive time of shame. It will be hard for the Modi government to cave to American bullying and maintain the loyalty of Hindu nationalists who up until now have liked Donald Trump and thought he would treat India with respect as a fellow country governed by nationalists. One wonders how their analysis could have been so obviously wrong. This makes it more likely that India will seek to make a deal with Russia and dangerously - for America - perhaps even China.

Putin to Visit India: The Kremlin confirmed Putin will visit India in late 2025, underscoring the durability of Moscow–New Delhi ties. But a lot can happen between now and then.

India and EU ties at risk: Observers are afraid that the Russia-Ukraine War will harm EU India ties. When the war first broke out in 2022 India was swift to condemn Ukrainian arrogance in asking the world to prioritize its fight with Russia. Like Africa, India wondered why this was a concern of theirs. The Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar was blunt in the summer of 2022 when he said “Europe has to grow out of mindset that its problems are world's problems.”

Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a peace accord: In a sign of weakening Russian authority, the agreement was signed with the oversight of US President Trump not Putin. If the agreement holds it will end the ethnic cleansing of Christians in Azerbaijan and hopefully put an end to nearly forty years of conflict.

The EU Seeks to Steal Top Global Student Talent From USA: South East Asian students are being recruited by Europe as America is now deemed a racially hostile destination. Europe is eager to exploit this perception of the US because its companies want access to the best minds in the world and want to position the European Union as the new global leader in innovation. Given that homegrown talent in Europe has not been able to keep up with the USA or China, the idea is that smart foreign students will be the boost Europe needs to finally punch at its weight class.

The Germans Partially Suspend Military Aid to Israel: Israel’s behavior in Gaza has tested Germans to the breaking point. The German people have long been taught that they have a duty to defend Israel because their grand parents committed genocide against the Jews of Europe during the Second World War. This is the Staatsräson of Germany. However, three factors have come together to erode this sense of obligation. First, democratic West Germany embraced that idea, and linked it to a sense of Christian Democracy as the antidote for faithless Nazism, however West Germany is now united with the East which was ruled by aggressive atheistic communists who embraced no such logic or guilt about the Nazi era. Second, the Eastern Germans are the base the radical reactionary anti-Muslim and anti-empathy Alternative for Germany(AfD) party backed by US Vice President James David Vance, born James Donald Bowman and formerly known as James David Hamel. The AfD does not believe Germany has any unique obligation to Israel and has flirted with neo-Nazi dog whistles and even appropriates Nazi chants. This has opened the doors to more criticism of the Jewish state in German politics. And finally because of Germany’s historic sensitivity about human rights abuses due to their behavior during the Second World War, some Germans now feel that the human cost of Israel’s military operations in Gaza have made Germany complicit in new historic abuses. If the AfD were to come to power in Germany due to the Christian Democratic Union, the traditional conservative party in Germany, being too close to the Jewish state, it would be the beginning a new era in German history. One that would be potentially dangerous for not only Israel but Europe. While Europe focuses on Ukraine, the Gaza War may actually transform the Old Continent.

(L’esprit de l’escalier, my reviewer caught a few typos after the fact. My fault)

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