May 15 / Curated by Juan Ortiz-Freuler
🇺🇸🌍[NEWS: Trump Tech deals in the middle east: U$2T in deals (ref: US government yearly budget is around U$ 6T)]
“Trump had set clear expectations, telling reporters in March that his hosts needed to “pay $1 trillion to American companies” over four years to secure his visit. “Last time I went to Saudi Arabia, they put up $450 billion,” he said about his 2017 trip. “This time they have gotten richer.
High-profile tech and investment executives, including Elon Musk, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, and others, joined Trump on the trip. More than diplomatic theater, the trip represented a strategic technology transfer that could create new AI superpowers while channeling Gulf Oil wealth into U.S. companies.”
Source: https://restofworld.org/2025/trump-middle-east-trip-ai-chip-tech-deals/
🇺🇸🇦🇪 [NEWS: UAE to import millions of advanced Nvidia AI chips?]
“The draft deal called for 20% of the chips, or 100,000 of them per year, to go to UAE’s tech firm G42, while the rest would be split among U.S. companies with massive AI operations like Microsoft, opens new tab and Oracle, opens new tab that might also seek to build data centers in the UAE, the sources said. They said the agreement is still being negotiated and could change before being finalized. One source said the deal, elements of which were first reported by the New York Times, faced growing opposition in the U.S. government over the past day. The Biden administration issued restrictions on AI chip exports to control the flow of the sophisticated processors worldwide, in part to keep the prized semiconductors from being diverted to China. At present, the vast majority of AI computing power is deployed in the United States and China. If all the proposed deals in Gulf states, and the UAE in particular, come together, the region would become a third power center in global AI competition. The U.S. Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, did not have a comment”
🇺🇸🇸🇦[News: Saudi Sovereign Fund launches Ai-startup Humain which will import billions of USD in high performance chips]
“Donald Trump secured $600 billion in commitments from Saudi Arabia to U.S. companies during a tour of Gulf states.Among the biggest deals, Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab said it will sell hundreds of thousands of AI chips in Saudi Arabia, with a first tranche of 18,000 of its newest “Blackwell” chips going to Humain, an AI startup just launched by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Chip designer Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O), opens new tab also announced a deal with Humain, saying it has formed a $10 billion collaboration. Saudi Arabian firm DataVolt will invest $20 billion in AI data centres and energy infrastructure in the United States. Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), opens new tab Google, DataVolt, Oracle Corp (ORCL.N), opens new tab, Salesforce Inc (CRM.N), opens new tab, Advanced Micro Devices and Uber (UBER.N), opens new tab will invest $80 billion in cutting-edge transformative technologies in both countries, the White House said, without giving details.”
Source:https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-partners-with-nvidia-spur-ai-goals-trump-visits-2025-05-13/
🇺🇸🇮🇷[News: US-Iran deal?]
“Donald Trump says Iran has “sort of” agreed to the terms of a deal on the future terms of its nuclear programme. Trump’s remarks add credence to reports that Steve Witkoff, his special envoy to the Middle East, gave the Iranian negotiating team in Oman at the weekend the outlines of a proposal that Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, took back to Tehran. Araghchi has been urged by mediators to accept zero uranium enrichment for up to three years to build trust. This period would end with Iran reverting to enriching at 3.75% purity, the level set out in the 2015 nuclear agreement that Trump quit in 2018. In the meantime, Russia could provide Iran with uranium for its civil nuclear programme”
Source:https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/15/us-has-sort-of-agreed-a-nuclear-deal-with-iran-says-donald-trump
🇮🇳🇨🇳🇵🇰[OPINION: India-Pakistan conflict and China]
“The ceasefire does not address a quieter, brewing crisis: India’s April 23 suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, which relies on the Indus river system for about 80 per cent of its agriculture. While India cannot actually cut off the flow of waters from the Western rivers, the Chenab, the Jhelum and the Indus main stem, it can stop sharing hydrological data and flood warnings. Such “hydrological warfare” transcends traditional conflict, in that it potentially puts a civilian population at risk, and risks destabilising the region.
China’s balancing act is further complicated by its multifaceted relationship with India. Despite historical tensions, New Delhi and Beijing share pragmatic common ground. Both are Brics members, while India’s alignment with China on Russia’s war with Ukraine and the recent Sino-Indian border de-escalation highlight a partnership forged despite the US’ efforts to drive a wedge between the world’s two most populous nations.”
🇨🇳🌎[News: China meets with Latin American & Caribbean leaders in CELAC forum]
“President Xi Jinping vowed on Tuesday to boost China’s footprint in Latin America and the Caribbean with a new $9 billion credit line and fresh infrastructure investment, although Brazil warned the region not to become overly reliant on foreign funding. The world’s second-largest economy will disburse 66 billion yuan ($9.18 billion) in credit to the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States’ (CELAC) members, Xi told delegates from around 30 nations gathered in Beijing for the three-yearly China-CELAC Forum Ministerial Meeting. Xi reiterated China’s opposition to the levies, while the Brazilian President urged the region not to become overly reliant on the world’s top economies.”It’s important to understand, (the fate of Latin America) doesn’t depend on anyone else. It does not depend on President Xi Jinping, it does not depend on the United States, it does not depend on the European Union, it depends solely and simply on whether we want to be great or continue to be small,” Lula said.But Brazil, for one, has been aligning more closely with China, sensing an opportunity to sell more agricultural goods to the world’s top food importer as it winds down purchases from the U.S.Xi and Lula held talks later on Tuesday and signed a series of cooperation documents covering agriculture, nuclear energy and broader technical cooperation, Brazilian state TV reported.Of the $240 billion worth of goods China bought from the CELAC countries last year, just under half came from Brazil, the region’s largest economy”
Source:https://www.reuters.com/world/china-latin-america-trade-exceeded-500-billion-2024-2025-05-13/
Chinese Gov Source: https://news.cgtn.com/news/2025-05-13/China-and-CELAC-usher-in-new-chapter-of-South-South-cooperation-1Dl5vaucHW8/p.html
More info: http://www.chinacelacforum.org/eng/ltjj_1/
🇨🇴 🏗️ 🇨🇳Colombia joins Belt & Road]
“Petro wrote on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, that “the history of our foreign relations is changing.” “From now on, Colombia will interact with the entire world on a footing of equality and freedom,” wrote Petro”In a seeming swipe at the US under Trump, Xi told the forum that “bullying and hegemony will only lead to self-isolation.” “There are no winners in tariff wars or trade wars,” he said. “Only through unity and cooperation can countries safeguard global peace and stability and promote worldwide development and prosperity,” he said”
Source:https://www.dw.com/en/colombia-signs-up-to-chinas-belt-and-road-initiative/a-72534659
🇨🇳☀️🔦Chinese solar energy tech with rogue comm devices?
“Communications devices in these pieces of technology are not uncommon—typically, they are included so that software updates and maintenance can be performed remotely as needed. The issue with these particular comms devices, though, is that they do not appear in the documentation for the products, meaning they appear to have been intentionally hidden. Per Reuters, companies would normally install a firewall to prevent potentially malicious actions being carried out on the known comms tools. But since these are hidden, that production wouldn’t be applied.Just how widespread the issue is remains unknown. Reuters reported that communications tools were found in parts from multiple different Chinese manufacturers, but couldn’t nail down how many of them applied to nor how many parts were found to contain these hidden devices. China, for its part, has rebuked the accusations. “We oppose the generalisation of the concept of national security, distorting and smearing China’s infrastructure achievements,” a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington told Reuters”
Original reporting: Reuters (Paywalled): https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/ghost-machine-rogue-communication-devices-found-chinese-inverters-2025-05-14/
Non-Paywalled reference: https://gizmodo.com/u-s-allegedly-finds-rogue-communication-devices-in-chinese-made-solar-tech-2000602873
🎊 Bandung’s 70th Anniversary
PERSPECTIVE FROM INDIA“The 1955 Bandung Conference announced the arrival on the world stage of peoples from the Global South, and it marked the birth of what would later become the Non-Aligned Movement at the height of the Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union. Key nations participating included China, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Burma and Vietnam. The conference was hosted by Indonesian President Sukarno, a major anti-imperialist figure who would later be overthrown in a U.S.-backed coup.“ They all gathered together because they understood their unity was very important, not only to create a new trade and development order — that was not the only part — but also to fight for peace,” says author and journalist Vijay Prashad, director of the Tricontinental think tank. “Bandung represented hope for hundreds of millions of people around the planet in 1955.”
[…]
“the debt crisis of the 1980s really collapsed the political unities, the hope from the Third World. But something new has emerged, particularly since the world financial crisis of 2007, 2008. The large countries of the South, particularly in Asia, led by China, have developed their manufacturing. They’ve developed their technological capacity. In terms of the objective changes taking place, we can see that before our eyes. The center of gravity of the world economy is no longer the Atlantic Ocean. It’s definitely now in Asia, somewhere between China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia. These countries are growing at a very fast clip.
But the sense of political unity is still not fully visible, despite the BRICS. The BRICS is a trade body. It’s not really a political body. It shouldn’t be exaggerated. So, that sense of Bandung, which was there in 1955, is not there now.” [incl. video]
Source:https://www.democracynow.org/2025/4/22/1955_bandung_conference
A PERSPECTIVE FROM AFRICA: “The Bandung principles offer not nostalgia but an essential blueprint for a more just, inclusive, equal, dignified and peaceful future. The spirit of Bandung, solidarity among the oppressed, South-South cooperation, and an equitable, inclusive, just, peaceful, stable and sovereign global order—remains urgently relevant. It emphasises that genuine peace, security and development cannot be imposed externally but must emerge from within.Firstly, active non-alignment must be revived, not passive neutrality, but principled independence from imperialist pressures”
Source:https://theafrican.co.za/tvbox/2025-05-04-a-pivotal-moment-for-the-global-south-to-recalibrate/
A PERSPECTIVE ON INDONESIA: “Now, with multipolarity re-emerging as a driving geopolitical force, the principles of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) are being tested in ways its architects could not have foreseen.Indonesia’s founding president Sukarno described the Asia-Africa Conference at Bandung as “the first intercontinental conference of coloured peoples in the history of mankind”. It promoted a platform of 10 principles including peaceful coexistence, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, equality among nations, non-aggression, and non-interference in domestic affairs.This year marks the 70th anniversary of that summit, but commemorations are expected to be subdued. While Indonesia celebrated the 50th and 60th anniversaries with grand gatherings under former presidents Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Joko Widodo, the country’s foreign ministry has announced there will be no “major” event to mark the occasion this time”
Source: https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3307099/bandung-brics-indonesias-evolving-quest-global-south-autonomy
A PERSPECTIVE FROM INDIA: “India’s historic foreign policy was fundamentally pragmatic. Even if aspects of it may seem idealistic today, the policy recognised that for a developing nation with limited material capabilities, principled and reliable consistency offered strategic advantages. Non-alignment was never about disengagement but about preserving decision-making autonomy in a polarised world.I am not advocating for an uncritical embrace of historical positions. The world has, of course, changed dramatically since Bandung. India’s approach must, as a consequence, evolve accordingly. Our country’s regional and global aspirations remain substantial and legitimate. However, realising these ambitions requires a rejuvenation of the diplomatic strengths that once defined its international identity.The lack of enthusiasm for Bandung’s anniversary is not just a failure to observe an important historical moment. It represents a missed opportunity that might have been used to express a new vision for India’s engagement in the international arena, building upon the principles of that era. India can and must reclaim the distinctive voice that once commanded attention in global forums, not through volume or verbosity, but through the moral clarity and consistency of its positions.
A PERSPECTIVE FROM CHINA: “This year marks the 70th anniversary of the historic Bandung Conference, where 29 newly independent Asian and African countries met in Indonesia to call for unity and cooperation in the developing world. Zhou Enlai’s unscripted speech at the 1955 gathering played a key role in easing tensions and laying the groundwork for the Non-Aligned Movement. In today’s shifting global landscape, the spirit of Bandung – solidarity over division – continues to resonate” [incl. video]
Long reads
“Not Picking Sides and the “New Neutrals”: Active Nonalignment, Great Power Competition, and the Global South” – Jorge Heine
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/29769442251324710
🇩🇪 Residency: Maintaining Public Interest Tech – Deadline May 23
“Join us in (re-)imagining how technology gets funded. In partnership with the TUM Think Tank, the SOAM Residency invites residents to design speculative institutional prototypes that rethink how we fund, scale, and maintain technology in the public interest. From June until September 2025, our hybrid program brings together 5-10 interdisciplinary residents through offline and online experiences. More info: https://soam.earth/residency/
// Submit your application: https://lnkd.in/d8mPmeAb
📣[ANNOUNCEMENTS]📚Reading group: Guilherme Cavalcante Silva and Juan Ortiz Freuler are coordinating a reading group to explore the value of dependency theory for analyzing north-south tech dynamics. If you’re interested, send an email to juanof@protonmail.com , gcsilva@yorku.ca . Next meeting May 21st, 1.30 PM Mexico City / 2pm Bogotá / 10 PM Cairo (see more timeones)
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