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The World Order After the Ukraine War by Javier Solana & Nina L. Khrushcheva

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The World Order After the Ukraine War by Javier Solana & Nina L. Khrushcheva

Nina L. Khrushcheva: First, there was the world-changing COVID-19 pandemic. Then, on February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his “special military operation” in Ukraine, and the world changed even more. This new reality demands a new set of rules that not only reflects the current state of affairs, but also recognizes how we got here.

I’m Nina Khrushcheva, Professor of International Affairs at the New School in New York. Today, I’m honored to discuss this topic with Javier Solana, President of EsadeGeo – Center for Global Economy and Geopolitics. Solana was NATO’s secretary-general in the 1990s, a time when the Alliance was undergoing major changes following the Soviet Union’s collapse and the Cold War’s end. He subsequently served as Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union and EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy.

Javier, you helped to write the rulebook for the post-Cold War world, including both the military and foreign-policy chapters. Has Russia’s war on Ukraine changed that rulebook forever, or can some elements of it still be salvaged?

Javier Solana: When I was NATO Secretary-General, I – like many others – believed that we in the West needed to devise a solid, coherent policy toward Russia, which was then led by its first president, Boris Yeltsin. So, in January 1997, we launched negotiations aimed at securing Russia’s agreement on the opening of NATO to more countries.

In those negotiations, Russia was represented by then-Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov, for whom I had great respect. It was a tough negotiation, as you can imagine. But it was also successful: we agreed on the Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation, and Security between NATO and the Russian Federation, and we created a NATO-Russia council. At the same time, Russia accepted the initial opening of NATO, a process that began at the NATO summit in Madrid less than two months later, with three countries – Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic – starting their journeys toward NATO accession.

I would like to note that the Founding Act was signed by Yeltsin and me. It was an agreement between Russia and NATO. I viewed it as a major success.

NK: So, you are saying that in the late 1990s, Russians agreed to NATO expansion. But a narrative has gained traction in recent years – especially in the last year – that Yeltsin was duped, that he didn’t quite understand the agreement’s implications. According to some sources, US President Bill Clinton told Yeltsin, “Well, the expansion is not going to be in your lifetime, so you shouldn’t really worry.” So, Yeltsin kind of agreed, but he didn’t mean to agree. And, of course, there was the promise made after German reunification in 1990 that NATO would not expand – a promise that Russians talk about incessantly today.

I was the last research assistant of the great American diplomat George F. Kennan, who wrote the 1947 “X” article, “The Sources of Soviet Conduct,” which defined US policy toward the Soviet Union. In 1997 and 1998, Kennan was writing letters to then-US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott saying, “Do not expand NATO. Even if Russians swallow it now, because they have no choice, it will ultimately influence Russia’s politics and behavior.” Some would say that Kennan’s predictions have come true. In your understanding, is there some selective memory at play with regard to the first post-Cold War cycle of NATO expansion?

JS: Nina, what I can tell you is what I lived. I cannot lie about that. That agreement was signed. I did not get any sense that the Russians did not want to make it. I do think that the subsequent rounds of NATO enlargement were not carried out with the same care, the same person-to-person negotiation, as the first.

I also think that Putin’s perspective changed considerably after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which transformed US foreign policy. Suddenly, the fight against Osama bin Laden was all that mattered to the United States. As a result, America’s relationship with Russia suffered, and Putin probably got the sense that he was not that important to the US anymore. China’s accession to the World Trade Organization – also in 2001 – probably did not help matters, as it gave China a tremendous economic push at precisely the moment when Putin felt that his position on the world stage was somehow diminished.

NK: I agree with you that Putin did not feel he was important enough to the US. But I slightly disagree about what drove that feeling. Remember when Putin called US President George W. Bush to express his sympathy over 9/11? And it was in that same year that Bush declared that he had looked Putin in the eye and gotten “a sense of his soul.”

Putin may have believed that the understanding and sympathy he had shown – highlighting, for example, Russia’s struggles with Islamic fundamentalism in Chechnya – merited more appreciation or attention from the US. Despite this soulful connection he had supposedly had with Bush, Putin was not, in his view, being treated as equal partner. And I think that began to change his perspective.

JS: Nina, I agree with you. At the end of the day, Putin expected to be a global leader, and around the turn of the century, he was probably unhappy with his sense that Russia was not considered a major power.

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NK: Absolutely. Remember Putin’s speech at the 2007 Munich Security Conference, in which he called for a new security architecture in which Russia would be a major player. In fact, he made clear in that speech his view that NATO expansion represents a “serious provocation” that reduces “mutual trust.” And when he felt that his words were being misconstrued or disregarded, he resorted to threats.

JS: Let us bring Ukraine into the discussion. In 2004, the country held a presidential election. There were two candidates: the Putin-backed prime minister, Viktor Yanukovych, and opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko. Yanukovych won in a run-off, but the vote was widely believed to have been rigged. This triggered the so-called Orange Revolution, with protesters calling for a new election.

Along with then-Polish President Aleksander Kwaśniewski, I engaged in talks with Russia’s ambassador to Ukraine, Viktor Chernomyrdin, and even with the president of the Russian Duma, to convince them to agree to the protesters’ demand. A new election was ultimately held – and Yushchenko won. It was the first time Putin’s candidate in Ukraine lost, and I believe this upset him considerably. How do you see it?

NK: I agree. I think that was the first time Putin got the sense that Ukraine was slipping from his grasp. This may have been one of the many steps that led us to the invasion.

Javier, you mentioned earlier the 1997 NATO Summit in Madrid. NATO recently held another summit in the same city, but in a very different world. In a Project Syndicate commentary, you laid out the decisions that needed to be made at the summit, and highlighted the fact that, somewhat ironically, the war in Ukraine has spurred a new NATO expansion, with Finland and Sweden applying to join. How do you assess the outcomes of the summit?

JS: As an observer, I think that the Madrid summit was a great success, not least because NATO officially invited Finland and Sweden to join. Indeed, this represents a major mistake on Putin’s part: with his war on Ukraine, he convinced two European countries, which are geographically just as close to Russia as Ukraine, to abandon neutrality and join NATO.

NK: The Chinese and Russian press reject the notion that NATO is a defensive alliance, arguing that it is obviously an offensive vehicle whose purpose is to support American hegemony. And a growing NATO footprint, such as in the Asia-Pacific, could advance the division of the world into adversarial blocs, especially considering the strategic challenge China poses. What do you think of such claims?

JS: With regard to China, the West must be clear in offering to continue talking and cooperating, in order to prevent precisely the outcome you mention. In fact, avoiding such a global decoupling is the single greatest challenge the world faces today. A shift to “two globalizations” – one organized around the US, and the other around China – would have dire consequences, because neither side could address global challenges such as climate change without the other.

NK: You haven’t been in European politics for over ten years, but you are remembered as a great diplomat. I recently met with somebody close to the Kremlin, who brought you up. As they put it, there is a crisis of human resources in European diplomacy today. We need “more Dr. Solanas,” capable of the kind of diplomacy you exercised with Chernomyrdin and Primakov, to tackle the challenges we face, including the prospect of a global decoupling. In any case, your perspective on global affairs is extremely valuable.

I would like to return to Putin. When he says that, by disregarding Russia’s security concerns, the West left him with little choice but to act, does he have a point?

JS: Nina, when Putin first became president in 2000, he appeared to be somebody with whom one could deal. But by 2004, his situation had become more complicated, not least because of his concern that Ukraine was slipping away.

In 2013-14, the European Union and Ukraine negotiated an Association Agreement. Yes, it was an important step for Ukraine. But it was nothing monumental; it certainly was not going to solve all of the country’s problems. Nonetheless, it infuriated Putin. That is where the war started.

Yanukovych, by then the president, refused to sign, owing to pressure from Russia. Ukrainians mounted the largest protests since the Orange Revolution. Yanukovych fled the country. And Putin annexed Crimea – a move to which the West may not have responded sufficiently clearly and rapidly.

NK: Yes, I think this was a mistake. The West should have imposed total sanctions – like those in place today – in 2014, because the Russian security state – the KGB state – was much weaker at the time.

When it comes to Putin’s actions, there is an interesting distinction between tactics and strategy. Putin fears the loss of his sphere of influence, whether through the EU’s 2014 Association Agreement with Ukraine or the expansion of NATO. And his reactions to those fears have brought some tactical victories: beyond annexing Crimea, he has managed to secure control of parts of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. But strategically, his actions are – and will be – an absolute disaster for Russia.

What are the roles of other organizations – especially the United Nations – in providing guidance and leadership in global affairs?

JS: Sadly, I think the UN has not played a role in the Ukraine conflict at all. To be sure, given that multiple permanent members of the UN Security Council have a stake in the conflict, it would be very difficult for the UN to do much. But it should be doing something nonetheless, even if it does not ultimately make much difference. At the very least, the UN should show the world that it tries.

NK: Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there has been much speculation about China’s plans for Taiwan, with some suggesting that the resolute Western response to Russia’s war could deter Chinese President Xi Jinping from invading the island. Is Xi set to invade Taiwan?

JS: I think that we have enough problems to deal with. We should concentrate on resolving the conflict in Ukraine and addressing its spillover effects, including food shortages in Africa and elsewhere. For now, there is no conflict in Taiwan, so the question can wait.

NK: This is an excellent answer. I always shudder when people start lumping the Ukraine war in with other current and future global problems, as if we are looking for another war while we are still dealing with this one. And I agree that the solution to the current crisis will ultimately lie in negotiations.

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Tulip Protocol Officially Integrates Chainlink on Solana Mainnet

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Tulip Protocol Officially Integrates Chainlink on Solana Mainnet

Today, Tulip Protocol made the announcement that they have integrated Chainlink Price Feeds in order to better secure their yield aggregating platform that is running on the Solana mainnet. The team had previously stated their intention to integrate Chainlink Price Feeds, and at this point, the connection has been completely put into action. Chainlink is the premier decentralized oracle network in the world, safeguarding tens of billions of dollars in smart contracts. It has diversified its offerings across other blockchains, notably Solana, Fantom, Polygon, BNB Chain, and others.

In a recent blog post, the team behind the Tulip Protocol explained that they had integrated Chainlink to provide users with more confidence that leveraged positions will be liquidated equitably using extremely accurate price data and that the protocol will continue to be completely collateralized at all times.

According to Tomasz Wojewoda, Head of Global Sales at Chainlink Labs:

“We’re pleased that Tulip Protocol has integrated Chainlink Price Feeds on Solana, helping secure its yield aggregation protocol with highly robust, decentralized market data. With the high-throughput performance of Solana and the strong security guarantees of the Chainlink Network, Tulip Protocol is able to empower users with a performant and secure platform.”

Tulip Protocol Seeks To Take Advantage Of Solana

Tulip Protocol brings together lenders who receive a return on their deposits and borrowers who are interested in gaining access to leverage. Users who initiate leverage positions are responsible for maintaining a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio that has been previously established. The Tulip Protocol then uses the asset price data that is provided by Chainlink Price Feeds to verify that this ratio is accurate. If the value of the collateral falls below the threshold that was established by the protocol, then their position will be immediately liquidated to assist in guaranteeing that the lenders will be repaid.

Tulip Protocol intends to capitalize on Solana by giving users the ability to more regularly reinvest their income and grow their assets without having to pay exorbitant amounts of gas expenses. Chainlink oracles can now be natively integrated on Solana, making it possible for Solana-based applications to benefit from enhanced levels of security and transparency. Yesterday, OpenOcean made the announcement that they would be integrating Chainlink Price Feeds in order to help secure the limited order functionality on many chains. These chains include Avalanche, Ethereum, Polygon, Fantom, and BNB Chain.

According to Senx, Co-Founder of Tulip Protocol:

 “We’re excited to be using Chainlink Price Feeds on Solana to help secure our yield aggregation platform. By leveraging the most secure and reliable on-chain data available, we’re able to provide our lenders and borrowers with greater assurances that liquidations are based on accurate price data, and the protocol will maintain a healthy loan-to-value ratio through all market conditions.” 

Allowing Stakers To Benefit From Higher APYs

Natives of the blockchain as well as newcomers to the technology are beginning to understand that decentralization does not necessarily equate to a secure platform. Given that Web3 services are currently disclosing their susceptibilities to attacks from both within and outside the network, further initiatives should be undertaken to improve the safety of user assets. Fortunately, a growing number of blockchain businesses are beginning to add various levels of security to their services in order to solidify the trust of their existing customers and attract additional investors in the near and distant future.

Tulip Protocol is the very first yield aggregation platform to be built on Solana, and it features auto-compounding vault techniques. The dApp was developed to make use of Solana’s blockchain, which has a low cost and high efficiency, hence enabling the vault techniques to compound frequently. Stakeholders are able to reap the benefits of greater APYs as a result, without the need for active management.

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Is your SOL safe? What we know about the Solana hack

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On this week’s episode of “The Market Report,” Cointelegraph’s resident experts discuss the latest updates concerning the recent Solana (SOL) hack.

To kick things off, we broke down the latest news in the markets this week:

Bitcoin realized price bands form key resistance as bulls lose $24K, significant whale activity between $22,000 and $24,800 adds to the complexity of the current spot market setup. Bitcoin (BTC) consolidated lower on Aug. 9 after familiar resistance preserved a multi-month trading range. When will we finally break out of this price range and make the move towards $30K?

Institutions flocking to Ethereum for 7 straight weeks as Merge nears: Report, “Greater clarity” around the Merge has driven institutional inflows into Ethereum products, according to a CoinShares report. Is the ETH merge finally around the corner and will it bring new all time highs to ETH or has the price already been factored into the current price?

Circle freezes blacklisted Tornado Cash smart contract addresses, Crypto data aggregator Dune Analytics said that, on Monday, Circle, the issuer of the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin, froze over 75,000 USDC worth of funds linked to the 44 Tornado Cash addresses sanctioned by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) list. Could this mark the end for Tornado Cash or is there a way they can redeem themselves?

Next up is a new segment called “Quick Crypto Tips,” which aims to give newcomers to the crypto industry quick and easy tips to get the most out of their experience. This week’s tip: Have some funds ready to buy further downturns.

Market expert Marcel Pechman then carefully examines the Bitcoin and Ether (ETH) markets. Are the current market conditions bullish or bearish? What is the outlook for the next few months? Pechman is here to break it down. The experts also go over some markets news to bring you up to date on the latest regarding the top two cryptocurrencies.

After Marcel’s market analysis, our resident experts discuss whether your SOL is safe and the latest updates on the Solana hack. We also discuss why the network has been victim to so many hacks and downtimes. What exactly do these exploits mean for the Solana platform and if you should be worried.

Lastly, we’ve got insights from Cointelegraph Markets Pro, a platform for crypto traders who want to stay one step ahead of the market. The analysts use Cointelegraph Markets Pro to identify two altcoins that stood out this week: Radicle’s RAD and DigiByte’s DGB.

Do you have a question about a coin or topic not covered here? Don’t worry. Join the YouTube chat room, and write your questions there. The person with the most interesting comment or question will be given a 1 month free subscription to markets Pro worth $100!

The Market Report streams live every Tuesday at 12:00 pm ET (4:00 pm UTC), so be sure to head on over to Cointelegraph’s YouTube page and smash those like and subscribe buttons for all our future videos and updates.

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Web3-Based ZepetoX to Build on Solana

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Web3-Based ZepetoX to Build on Solana

Singapore, Singapore , Aug. 09, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, the ZepetoX team (ZTX, ZepetoX.io) announced its foray into the web3 space, sharing its vision to build an open world that empowers creators and communities to build, play and earn.

ZepetoX is the crypto metaverse initiative jointly incubated by ZEPETO – Asia’s largest metaverse platform with over 320 million registered users – alongside leading global blockchain organizations including Jump Crypto.

As the sole blockchain project comprehensively backed by ZEPETO, ZepetoX will have exclusive ties to ZEPETO in terms of IP including technological, design, and content assets as well as bridges to facilitate user onboarding between the two platforms. ZepetoX’s blockchain development efforts will be advised by Jump.

“ZepetoX is our official venture into the blockchain industry. We feel that web3 opportunities should be advanced through a crypto-native approach, which is why we are excited to have Jump as a contributor to developing a new platform that would have exclusive connections to ZEPETO. Overall, we believe that ZepetoX can build the ideal web3 platform to not only bring blockchain to our existing users but also to expand our footprint in the blockchain space through various disruptive initiatives,” said Daewook Kim, CEO of Naver Z – the operating entity of ZEPETO.

“We are excited to support ZepetoX’s efforts aimed at onboarding new audiences into the rapidly growing crypto space. ZEPETO’s expertise and technological know-hows accumulated over the past years from building an immersive social platform will serve as a springboard for ZepetoX,” said Saurabh Sharma, Partner at Jump Crypto.

Building on the Solana network, ZepetoX will offer a web-based 3D open world with varying levels of gamification integrated as well as opportunities for users to monetize via ownership of digital assets and social interaction. Ultimately, ZepetoX aims to empower self-expression through customizable avatars and lands that can be equipped with NFTs from a rich collection of assets created by diverse creators, DAOs, or communities.

“I am thrilled to see IP powerhouses like ZepetoX choosing to build their metaverse on Solana,” said Anatoly Yakovenko, Co-Founder of Solana. “Projects like ZepetoX create new pathways for onboarding millions of users to web3.”

“Our global team brings a depth of crypto native experiences and our goal is to build on the foundation of ZEPETO to spearhead the adoption of blockchain among metaverse users, developers, and creators,” said co-CEO of ZepetoX, Chris Chang.

In the coming months, ZepetoX will launch its first land sale. The lands will be tradable on the ZepetoX marketplace, which will feature a variety of different NFTs as the open world project evolves. Further details on the sale will be available on the ZepetoX website in the coming weeks.

# # #

About ZepetoX: ZepetoX (ZTX) is a web3 company building an immersive content-driven platform for users to create, trade digital assets and enjoy social interaction. Founded in 2022, ZepetoX is the blockchain initiative of ZEPETO, widely regarded as the largest Asia-based metaverse platform boasting over 320 million lifetime users with over 2.5 billion virtual fashion items sold.

Contacts:

Vera: vera@ztx.foundation

News Via KISS PR Crypto Press Release Distribution Media Contact az@kisspr.com

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