Geopolitical Economy Report

The United States is waging medieval economic war. Donald Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran is "designed to collapse its already buckling economy", boasted Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Ben Norton explains how the US is trying to suffocate Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba by collapsing their currencies and causing extreme inflation, using illegal sanctions and blockades.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AQWr6Rtybg

Topics
0:00 Economic war
1:02 USA has sanctioned 1/3rd of countries
1:40 Sanctions kill 560,000 people per year
2:46 US sanctions on Iran
3:54 Trump threatens to bomb Iran (again)
5:20 Map of US troops in Middle East
6:58 Economic war against Iran
8:21 (CLIP) Scott Bessent: "Collapse" Iran
10:17 (CLIP) Bessent: Crash Iran currency
11:13 (CLIP) Bessent: Stop Iran oil exports
11:34 Dollar hegemony & financial system
12:33 "Making Iran broke again"
13:09 Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman
14:20 Inflation & US sanctions on Iran
20:40 Goal: "hunger, desperation and overthrow"
22:25 "Make the economy scream"
23:15 More US sanctions
23:50 UN experts: US sanctions are illegal
25:25 How to help the Iranian people
26:29 Outro

Donald Trump's attacks on longtime US "allies" have forced Western leaders to admit their warmongering foreign policy was hypocritical. Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney said the truth in his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos: the "rules-based order" was "false". Ben Norton explains how the global balance of power is shifting.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTH_rx1mpfE

Check out our related video on Europe improving its relations with China: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpngJ3tC7Xw

Topics
0:00 Hypocrisy of Western foreign policy
1:05 "Rules-based international order"
1:27 Donald Trump, arch-imperialist
3:00 Canada PM Mark Carney Davos speech
3:42 "Middle powers" fear US attacks
5:42 (CLIP) Multilateralism is under threat
6:04 Double standards on international law
6:35 (CLIP) "Rules-based order" was false
6:58 US unipolar domination
7:28 (CLIP) Defending "American hegemony"
7:41 Financial system & US dollar
8:34 (CLIP) Rupture, not transition
9:13 West's exploitation of Global South
9:36 Canada's complicity in imperialism
9:56 Gaza, Palestine, Israel
10:31 Canada sells weapons to Israel
11:54 Canada's whitewashed reputation
12:22 Canada's hypocritical UN votes
13:47 West votes against rest of world
14:21 Canadian conservatives
15:03 Imperial hypocrisy
15:36 USA supports Canadian separatists
16:33 (CLIP) If not at table, on the menu
16:48 Partners in crime
17:34 Macron's message to Trump
18:38 New phase of imperialism
19:38 Sovereignty: Westphalian system
20:40 Decolonization
21:11 Neocolonialism
22:08 Mark Carney's trip to China
23:09 Trump threatens Canada over China
23:51 Canada's trade dependence on USA
24:26 Oil exports
24:59 Canada's oil pipelines
25:49 Chinese car industry investments
27:41 Reducing dependency
28:06 European leaders visit China
28:30 "Human rights" hypocrisy
29:07 EU relations with China
29:32 Outro

As Donald Trump hits the EU with tariffs and threatens to colonize Greenland (an autonomous territory of NATO member Denmark), European leaders are improving relations with China and seeking new trade partners. Is this the end of the political West and the transatlantic alliance? Ben Norton explains.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpngJ3tC7Xw

Topics
0:00 Western alliance & US empire
0:59 NATO
2:04 Cold War One
2:42 Rise of China
4:20 Cold War Two
5:11 Europe's trade with China
5:33 Trump strategy: exploit Europe
6:55 Why Trump wants Greenland
8:18 Critical minerals & rare earths
9:37 End of NATO?
10:28 UK PM Keir Starmer visits China
11:07 Europe improves China relations
11:39 Trump threatens Europe over China
12:26 Splits with European Union
13:10 German industry
14:44 Would a Democrat repair EU ties?
15:46 EU trade deal with India
16:25 EU agreement with Mercosur
17:06 EU trade dependence on USA
17:50 UK trade dependence on USA
18:13 Canada trade dependence on USA
19:04 Canada PM Mark Carney visits China
19:33 US military presence in Europe
21:02 EU energy dependency
21:38 US oil exports to EU
22:06 US LNG exports to EU
23:41 EU dependence on US technology
25:52 Artificial intelligence (AI)
26:35 US Big Tech companies
27:05 EU card: ASML machines
28:09 Will EU dump US financial assets?
28:54 European holdings of US assets
29:56 US bond market vulnerability
30:58 Trump threatens "big retaliation"
32:30 INSTEX & US sanctions
34:12 Merkel & Macron promised EU army
35:02 Strategic autonomy?
35:37 Vassals of US empire
36:40 Change will be slow
37:33 Independence would be good
38:26 Outro

The Donald Trump administration is waging a war against all multilateral institutions and international law itself. He withdrew the US from most global organizations and created a "Board of Peace" as an alternative to the UN that is entirely controlled by the USA. Ben Norton explains the imperialist strategy to impose unipolar hegemony on the world.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3nGsmSI3EQ

Topics
0:00 New phase of imperialism
1:17 US war on international law
2:03 US colonial expansionism
3:05 USA withdraws from international orgs
4:30 Board of Peace: Trump's UN alternative
6:27 Board of Peace isn't about Gaza
7:39 Board members: US officials & oligarchs
9:10 Most countries reject invitation
10:04 Trump didn't invite Africa
11:10 China opposes US-led world order
12:08 Trump's US unipolar pay-to-play plan
13:25 USA attacks Canada over China deal
15:19 Importance of international law
17:20 UN Charter upholds sovereignty
18:27 Goal of US imperialism
19:34 Outro

So-called "peace president" Donald Trump has bombed 10 countries, more than any other US leader. He attacked 7 countries in 2025 alone. Now he wants to raise the USA's military budget to $1.5 trillion. Ben Norton explains how the self-declared "peacemaker" is waging war around the world.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Div95RNXX0M

Topics
0:00 Donald Trump's promises
0:13 (CLIP) Trump: I'm a "peacemaker"
0:50 Trump promises no new wars
1:14 (CLIP) "I'm going to stop wars"
1:27 Trump bombed 7 countries in 2025
1:50 Map of 10 countries Trump bombed
2:49 US presidents are war criminals
4:06 Post-9/11 US wars: 4.5 million deaths
5:01 Trump the "peace president"
5:51 Joe Biden, war criminal
6:09 Trump, war criminal
6:50 Victims of US attack on Venezuela
8:26 US Department of War
9:06 Pete Hegseth threatens China, Russia
9:36 Trump's $1.5 trillion military budget
10:25 Military spending by top countries
11:09 Share of world defense spending
12:13 US national debt
14:26 Cut taxes on rich, raise on poor
15:41 Elon Musk's DOGE
16:28 Food stamp cuts
16:58 Class war
17:21 Money buys US elections
17:54 (CLIP) Trump praises Big Tech oligarchs
18:17 Imperialism
18:48 Outro