Thailand Prepares for Full Membership of BRICS

All right, hello everybody and welcome to Geopolitical Trends, where truth matters. Today is the 30th of December, one more day and 2024 be over. So that's why I'm glad, guys, we had a, a community conversation yesterday, uh, it's before the end of the year, and I asked you, remember the question? For those who did not attend, the video is there if you want to look it up. Or look at it later on, ask that question, you know, what have you accomplished this year and what are you looking forward to next year? So those are key questions to ask, and this one has nothing to do with the channel, as you know, it has to do with life in itself. So anyway, very excited to be with you, and I will post, uh, my wishes for Happy New Year to the community later on. And at the beginning, I think the first week or second week of January, I'm gonna make a major announcements, uh, that I need the community to know about. Uh, so I just want to give you a heads up. So that's all it's going to be about that. So, so I got an interesting topic for you. I, I was gonna wait till next week, then I said no, uh, I'm gonna share it with the community to know because the development of it. And this one has to do with, uh, Thailand. Now Thailand is gearing up for a full membership, uh, within BRICS. You know, of course they got an invitation as a partner state. That's usually paving the way for a full membership. It's a major development, and this is why I'm going to be providing you my own analysis about it, geopolitically and economically, that is, but put it within the frame of what this development means for the global economy. Because to those who say, oh, this is nothing, or BRICS amounts to nothing, no, there are major changes given what's taking place within the China policy regarding the South, Global South, that is. Because there is a question there: what's in it for China? And I'm going to address all this. But first, let me say hi to our community, everybody here. Let me scroll up here, take a look. PK, good to see you. Wow, heck yeah! As a Thai, I'm gonna share it with you here, guys. As a Thai, I'm glad that Thailand will become a BRICS partner state next year. I will look forward to this. Yeah, interesting. Uh, F you, good to see you. As Haridris Taiwan still. Timeline Dunkley from New York City, as always. Willie Holman, as always. Lee Yang, good to see you. Uh, Sang Tan, good to see you as well. Truth Seeker, as always, good morning to you as well. Wong KC, good to see you. Lucio Delgado. Nope Words. Uh, oh, look at this one here, guys. Look where Nope Words is joining us from— Bangkok. Good to see you, man. So, Alice Talokin, as always. Thunderbolt, as always. Kevin James, good to see you, sir. And all right, let's get into our conversation here. Uh, I just have one housekeeping item here. Uh, be on the lookout tomorrow at 0700 hours. I decided to release the video tomorrow, uh, for— as a matter of fact, I'm gonna be talking a part of it about it, uh, here in this live, but the topic of tomorrow, I want to leave it a surprise for you. The members for the channel, they already saw that one because I, I always release the video for them first. Which you all know, guys, it's common sense thing to do for members. So anyway, be on the lookout for that on the, uh, at 0700 hours, uh, my time here. And again, I will do the announcement, major announcements, either first or second week of January. So all right, let me start with the questions, and the questions are as follows. Let me, right here, let me share it with you. All right, how good is Thailand? How, how would this be good for Thailand to join BRICS? What's in it for Thailand? Okay, second, how about ASEAN, or ASEAN as some pronounce it? So there is a major— because the, the, the common question you guys going to need to ask is, will this interfere with ASEAN agenda economically speaking? Politically might be, might be not, when you consider that Philippines is being now the odd within ASEAN, economically speaking. Geopolitically, we all know what's going on with the Philippines. As a matter of fact, I just reached out to someone inside the Philippines. I am waiting to hear from her. She is well-versed. I'm aware of her background. Uh, she used to be even a president of a university., uh, in Manila. So I'm waiting to hear from her. But just my point is, the Philippines being the odd there, how now by having Thailand joining BRICS it's going to shape up that? Third question is, what about the global economy? To those who say, well, this may be just about regional economy, Southeast Asia, Asia in general— no, it will have an impact on a global level. So, and the last question is, what's in it for China? When you consider the, uh, for example, the high-speed train project and what China is aiming at regarding, uh, not only the development of Global South economically speaking, and that in itself will translate into geopolitics. Usually tell you there are two ways you go about it. Either economically or militarily. We won about it after World War II. We won about it militarily more so than we did economically. Of course, with the economics, we put in the, the dollar into the financial, uh, global market, but usually it was the military dimensions. My belief is that— and please correct me if I'm wrong— my belief is that China is going to approach it from an economic Like I said, like I'm gonna be disclosing in this coming video tomorrow, China aims at lifting all boats, not just its own. And this Thailand aspect of it makes a perfect sense. So, so now the Foreign Ministry in Thailand reaffirmed now recently that this sort of partnership with BRICS will certainly benefit the Thai economy. It just makes sense. So the ministry spokesperson— thank you— her name is, pardon me if I mispronounced it here, Nikojay Balankura, stated, and I quote, that Thailand has received an invitation from Russia this year. As me, it was in December 24th. This year's BRICS chairman on October 31st, but on 24th, which is 3 days ago or 4, whatever that was, made the decision on it. So the invitation was October 31st to become a BRICS partner country, end of quote. Usually when you are a partner country, that's usually you start to gear up for the full membership. So, so, and this is why Thailand responded by submitting a letter to its Russian counterpart on December 24th of this year. Following— this happened right after the cabinet meeting in Bangkok regarding these issues, and they all agreed, let's move forward with this. So to me, it just makes perfect sense for Thailand to move forward economically speaking, because it just makes more sense that is. Now before I do this, I'm gonna address a little bit of geography today, a little bit of, uh, history, then we'll get in into the analysis about it. So, so let's start with the— I'm gonna share a map with you. I give a credit as always to World Atlas because that's where I get the map from. All right, let me share screen. And of course, the geography of Thailand, it's very, very, very, very crucial. Let me make this bigger for you guys to see. There we go. Now, the idea of, uh, of, uh, geographically speaking, Thailand is a country located at the center of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula, which is, you all know, in Southeast Asia. So it is located in the northern eastern hemispheres of the Earth. Thailand is bordered by 5 countries: Myanmar, or Burma— it's depending, again, some maps you see Burma, some maps you see Myanmar— Myanmar, or Burma, to the north, Laos to the north and east, Cambodia to the east, and Malaysia to the south. Now there is one crucial, crucial Gulf there. It's called the Gulf of Thailand, and Andaman Sea lie to the south and west of Thailand, respectively. Thailand shares its maritime borders with Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand in the southeast, and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea in southeast— I'm sorry, southwest. So this is what's very, very interesting. Now, the other aspects that you need to know is that even with all this, have you ever heard any tensions between China and Thailand when it comes down to South China Sea? Don't. Unlike what's going on with Philippines, even for China and Vietnam, they are working out their differences behind closed doors. A lot of people here do not know that there are talks, or there were talks, behind closed doors between the two to resolve the maritime issues. The same arguments can be made about Indonesia. But for the Philippines, once again, because it proved to be the weak link, it was used through the US to maintain those kind of tensions. The same arguments can be made about the Taiwan Strait. Straightforward. There is no— because it's clear, as clear as daylight. You all know where this is aiming at as far as the, uh, the, the tensions in that part of the world. Now regarding the history, and again, I'm gonna just do a brief one here, guys, for you. So for Thailand, which is about, uh, I think was 70, 75 million people, uh, the last time I was there in Bangkok, to my knowledge at that time, was about 69 million people or even 70. So, but things change anyway. Uh, uh, now for the history of Taiwan— I'm sorry, the history of, uh, Thailand, uh, I'm gonna go just back about 40 years or so because I'm not gonna dig deeper into this one here. So if you look at the last 40 years, you will notice that Thailand had made some significant progress, literally, when it comes down to both social and economic development. You know, I was there even though for a short period. When you go to visit for 3 weeks, 4 weeks, it's not long enough, you know. But you can also see the social setting, the economic setting, and that's exactly what I saw in China. I can say the same thing about Thailand, except I was limited in one location in Bangkok at that time. So, and here is the key for the history of Thailand, because it moved from low-income society to an upper and middle class income country. So now, don't get me wrong, do you still have the disparity economically? Because the disparity in wealth, it's sort of visible. So remain. And this one mainly, it will be between the urban and the rural populations. So half of the population remains in precarious employment, that is. Now, politically speaking, and this is the key that I need you to understand part of this history, Thailand sort of experienced a lot of political turmoil in the last century. So we're talking about almost 10 successful and attempted coups between 1945 and 2014. Yeah, that's why the, uh, politically speaking, you always have to consider and think about where Thailand is. So as far as political, that is. So now when you think about also its, its, uh, its constitution and the charters that have been implemented since 1923. So, but overall, despite this attempt, coups and so forth, Thailand was somehow stable. So in comparison, if you compare it to other Southeast Asian nations, not all of them of course, some neighbors, Thailand is somehow stable. That is so. And this why Thailand has always hosted a lot of refugees. So you think about the refugees between, between 1970 and 1980. From which country were the refugees coming over to Vietnam? There were only two— two, I'm sorry, to Thailand. There are only two main countries at the time. Think about the time frame, 1970 to 1980. There are only two countries that sent a lot of refugees to Thailand. What are they? Can you type it in? Can you type in, in the chat box, what are those two countries? Once again, between 1970, 1980. Just think about history. Let me see what you guys type in here. And again, just to get you involved in the conversation, as always I say so. Adele Malcolm, good to see you. Adele, uh, Laos and Cambodia. No, you got the, the second part right, uh, Sanktan. You got Vietnam and Cambodia. That is correct, because you all know what happened at that time, uh, between 1970 and 1980 with Vietnam War and so forth. But you're looking at both Cambodia and Vietnam. So, and the reason why they, uh, those two refugees from those two countries found sanctuary in Thailand. So, and since 1984, tens of thousands of refugees from which country? Once again, think about what happened in the early '80s. Let me see once again, can you type in the country from which another wave of refugees went to Thailand? Or found sanctuary in Thailand? 1984. Let me— I'm waiting to see on the chat box here because sometimes it takes, uh, it takes a while for it to show up. Uh, uh, Burma or Myanmar. You're absolutely correct, uh, Emil Titan, you got it. It was Burma or Myanmar. Sanktan, Myanmar, that's correct. That was the, uh, the, uh, Thailand sort of opened its door for refugees from, uh, so now here's the key that I just need you to understand, uh, the rising tensions and instability in Myanmar or Burma, whatever term you want to use, since February 2021. The coup now have pushed thousands to cross into Thailand. So this is what I will need you to just understand briefly here about, uh, uh, the history of, of, uh, uh, Thailand. Now let's get into our, uh, analysis about what does it mean for Thailand to join BRICS. So I had a chance to read an article by Sarang Chidor. Uh, he was the— he's the director at the Quincy Institute of Global South program. Uh, if you know anything about the Quincy Institute, it's in Washington, DC. And I remember I invited one time, uh, uh, Dr. Trita Parsi. I might reach out to him depending again if he's in the country or not. Uh, he's a specialist regarding Middle East or West Asia and mainly Iran. That's his specialty. Now, now this article by Sarang, and I read it, it's really spot on. It hits the idea And why is this important? And I will provide you the link, guys, later on. Why is this important? Is because when you think about Global South, when we say Global South, we also talk about Southeast Asia, because that was this part of the world that many other analysts— I'm one of those included— that I've always said, when it comes down to BRICS The mark that BRICS is gonna make on the global stage, it's not gonna be in Latin America, it's not gonna be in Africa, it's not gonna be in Europe or whatever. It's gonna be in Southeast Asia, the Asia region. That does not mean the participation of Latin America, the participation of Africa will not play a role into this. That's not what I'm saying. All I'm saying is the main sort of the punch, if I may use the term, It's going to be in Southeast Asia. So of course, when you consider the expansion of countries in West Asia, the likes of United Arab Emirates, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and so forth, yeah, it will be then. I'm not, I'm not denying this. But when you think about when BRICS decided in 2023 to expand by adding more members that included, which they decided on in 2010 in South Africa back then. So when the decision was made to, to invite Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, we all know what happened with Argentina, you know. And I was one of those that saying it might be good, but also on the other hand, you have to be careful with whomever you invite. Why is this? Because Argentina is going to come in with a lot of baggage, financial one that is. Why? Because Argentina owes a lot to IMF. Once you get loans from IMF, it's a— it's truly a debt trap because IMF comes with conditions. So that's why Argentina— I remember when they got the loan from IMF back in the '80s. If I'm not mistaken, it was '86, if I'm not mistaken. That loan has not been paid till today. It's not paid still. So we all know what that, what that means. So, and, uh, because Argentina later on declined to join BRICS, not because he want to, because pressure from the United States. We don't know that one. Now the key to all this, based on the article by Sharon, and spot on, is that Thailand and Malaysia. Yeah, they both expressed and announced that they will be, uh, applying for BRICS membership. This is why Thailand now is gearing up for this. Now Thailand government has already instructed its own institutions to start working with BRICS. That means what? They are looking for full membership, and that's what's going to be happening. So, and this is why the likelihood that Thailand— it was preconceived notion that Thailand will accept the invitation, and they did. So, because common sense, pragmatically, it makes sense for BRICS to join, for Thailand to join BRICS, given the infrastructure and the developments that is taking place in that part of the world. So you look at both the Russians and the Chinese influence in that part of the world, but at the same time, is the economic one that is— because you, you as a head of state, you're going to be thinking about the progress of your country not through the military but rather economic. And you all know, guys, you, yeah, by now you know this reality. You've been long enough with me to know that it is— and I've said this so many times— that it is in economic progress that a country evolves, not in a military conflict. This is the problem for the Philippines as I see it unfolding. Philippines could have been smart to embark on economic ventures whether with China or someone else, doesn't matter. Thailand did it, Laos did it, Cambodia did it, Vietnam did it, Indonesia, Malaysia, you know the rest. And this is where that the difference is regarding those, uh, uh, uh, uh, those countries vis-à-vis or in comparison to Philippines. Now this is why the government, the Thai government sort of, uh, stressed the point that this partnership, uh, sort of marks an important, very, very important milestone for Thailand, economically speaking. Yeah, because why? Thailand has already committed. That's the key word— commitment. This is what Argentina couldn't do. I had my doubts, and I'll say it straightforward, I had my doubt about two countries. United Arab Emirates and Egypt, put question mark. I have my doubt about Turkey now. Turkey is considering. I don't have doubts about Algeria because Algeria is interested in joining BRICS. Indonesia is already a foregone conclusion that it will be part down the road. So the keyword is that the commitment. So Thailand is committed to enhance now its collaboration with BRICS. Which means what? It's moving forward. So the article that I read stated the following, and I'm going to read it to you word for word. Quote: BRICS comprises countries with high economic potential on trade, investments, and tourism. BRICS also plays an important role in promoting collaboration among developing countries for maximum economic benefits. Not a military, not a political— economics. Now, of course, within BRICS, I'm going to have to put question mark about India. We don't know this one. And by the way, the, uh, what's his name, the former Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, just passed away. Did you guys know that Manmohan Singh, uh, he is the one credited for saving India from bankruptcy single-handedly? Because he was a finance minister at that time. 2004, if I'm not mistaken. So anyway, India is always— to me, I put India and Philippines now on the same boat with question marks about their reliability. I'm not pointing fingers, I am stating the facts. So, uh, now this is why Thailand, the government now is instructing other agencies within the country Why? Instructing them to be ready for partnership with BRICS because of the investments, uh, uh, uh, projects that's going to be coming on, uh, soon to the country. Now the idea— I'm going to share some pictures with you to highlight to you where Thailand— why it makes more sense to, uh, have Thailand join, uh, Check out this picture here, guys. This one is the Laos speed train that China got involved between China and Laos. So, and this is very, very interesting in a sense of, uh, where this is going. So when the Thai Prime Minister sort of moves forward with this, it makes perfect economic sense. Yeah, we know the Prime Minister does not have a lot of experience. You know, she's the daughter of the former, I think, former prime minister. So I'm sure her dad will sort of guide her, and rightly so. But nonetheless, beside all the point, the idea that even her recent meeting with President Xi in Brazil made more sense. It's gonna move forward. There is a picture of the, uh, a speed train in Thailand that's been built by the Chinese, or with the Chinese, that is. So it's very, very important to understand those dynamics, to why it is important, uh, uh, that this development is going to move into a different direction. And that different direction will suggest that the developments of Southeast Asia will be economically based. So is the one for BRICS. That is where the key. And when you have, uh, and, and again, I'm thinking in terms of, uh, uh, and I, I'll provide you the link for the, the high-speed, uh, railway project in Thailand, which by the way, uh, that received the approval back in, if I'm not mistaken, uh, either September or October, somewhere around that time. I remember because I was reading on it. So, and the project was updated and cleared by the government. So it makes perfect sense as to what lies ahead moving forward. Where the key question now that I am going to have to be thinking as an analyst— the key question I'm going to be thinking is, will this expansion of BRICS in that part of the world impact ASEAN? What do you guys think? Will it have a positive or negative impact on ASEAN? Just be— please put either positive or negative based on your understanding. Well, the question is this: will the expansion of BRICS, including now Thailand, which Thailand part of ASEAN, will it make a positive impact, positive or negative impact on ASEAN? I want to see your answer on this, just positive or negative. Let me just, uh, share your— Multitome, you say don't know. Truth Seeker, you say positive. Masian Dorsey, you say positive. Taiwan Still, positive. Alan, Alan, positive for sure. Army with Harmony, positive. You know, I do see it that way as well, except that I have a concern, and the concern has to do with the Philippines. If, for example, because here is the reality of it, you always think outside the box. The reality of it is this: what would happen if we are to play a scenario that BRICS and ASEAN decide to collaborate on a project? You know, of course, that project will have to be approved on the part of ASEAN by all members. What if Philippines refrain from, or sort of object to this project? Because as I always say, the trends— look at the trends, it gives you an idea. The same thing happened with BRICS regarding the currency. What did India do? Objected. So things didn't move forward. The same arguments I'm making. So you have to think in terms of— that's why I wanted to solicit your input, whether it's going to be a positive or negative. As far as the impact of BRICS on Asia. I agree with you, it will be positive, but I also remain cautious regarding what one single country can derail that particular path, because if the vote is— has to be unanimous, if one country veto that, same thing what happened in BRICS with India regarding the currency. But overall, overall It won't matter because Philippines, at some point, they're gonna see some major political changes coming up. I'll be shocked and surprised if Marcos Jr. is reelected. I'll be shocked. Again, in politics, everything is possible. So, but if there is a new leadership in, in Philippines one that is— wants to move into the direction of economic expansion within Asia, it makes perfect sense. Now, the, the coordination between BRICS and, and, uh, and, and ASEAN— as a matter of fact, when you consider Malaysia and Indonesia already wanted to, they're gonna go to BRICS, it's just a matter of time. When you look at the projects like I mentioned regarding the Laos uh, Philippines— uh, I'm sorry, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. All this makes perfect sense for them to go that direction. The question also becomes is how the US is going to react to that expansion, because we are having a hard time establishing partnership with countries economically speaking, because with the expansion of BRICS in coordination with ASEAN. The EU sort of still matters today, I'm not denying that, but over time those two blocks, uh, BRICS and ASEAN, will dwarf EU moving forward. G20, it's going to become more of just like a follow-up because some of the countries in G20 are the same ones in BRICS. It's going to become just a matter of, okay, well, where do I put my focus on? G20 or on BRICS or ASEAN? So, but the key to all this has to do with China because you— big elephant in a room. No matter how you slice it, you can ignore the sheer size of the Chinese economy. And by the way, that is one of the major announcements I'm gonna make for you guys in the first or second week of January. So Uh, before I forget, if this is your first time watching, uh, me here on this channel, please remember to subscribe. I would greatly appreciate it. We are only 9,000 short of 100, so make sure to hit the like button and subscribe, please. Thank you. Uh, what was I gonna say? The idea of China— you can't ignore China, the sheer size of the market. You look at it right now, I looked at a chart I wish I would have kept it, but I didn't think about it at the time because I wasn't thinking of doing the video. Looked at the charts about the, the EVs development. China is way up there and the rest is down. Second is the US, but China is down. That's why be on the lookout for that analysis that I did for tomorrow. It is worth your time, 12-13 minutes, that's it, but but it's worth your time. It's the content of it. So I'm— trust me, trust me on this, it's worth listening to. So, so for China, in terms of, uh, because China has the money, there's no other, other way of saying it. They have the money, they can invest. Of course they are not going to just— there is something, it has to be something for them. And to China is the idea of connecting When you look at, uh, I wish I would have put the map for, uh, yeah, I don't have, I don't have the full map here. Uh, yes, no, I don't. I was thinking about just to see, for example, linking, uh, all the way from Thailand down to Singapore and so forth. It's just, just geographically you think about it, but you think about it from in terms of economics. And how that's going to impact geopolitics. That is the aim of China. It's not fighting, it's economic expansion. It's because countries will be, uh, will be, uh, confronted with the reality. The like of Philippines, the likes of India, or like of Thailand, even they are confronted with the reality of economics versus military tensions. Not even military, whatever, military tensions, you know. The economic prosperity, it's what's gonna prevail. This is what Philippines is not able to see. This is what Australia is not able to see. Or Australia knows it, but they choose to go the other way, and they're gonna pay. They're already paying a heavy price. As a matter of fact, the same thing for Philippines. I found out that now China— please correct me, guys, if I'm wrong. If anybody knows about this, please share it with us in the, on the chat box. Philip, uh, China stopped importing bananas from Philippines, which is a major export from, from Philippines, but China stopped. So, so, and this is where I see those changes moving forward. And that's why I think for me, my next, uh, trip to that part of the world It's, it's going to include Indonesia because I see where Indonesia is headed and I see where Malaysia are headed. Both of them are heading into the direction of BRICS because in an anticipation of the expansion of the economic base in that part of the world. When you see the moment— and you guys know this by now— when you start seeing infrastructure like the one, the one we are witnessing in Thailand right now with this type of transportation. Okay, when you are seeing, uh, the, that people can move from locations in no time, that create opportunities for employment, that create for the economic machine to be sort of well-oiled. And this is what China's aim at, like I say, to lift all boats, not just its own. So Thailand was strategic. To me personally, Thailand decision is a strategic move. They are aware and anticipate the changes that's coming up within next 5, 10 years. As a matter of fact, we don't even have to go that far. Mike, my word, within the first 6 months of President Trump's presidency, we're gonna see where things are headed. And I want to even go that far, I will go for the first 3 months. If there is one thing I can tell you is that the US policy towards that part of the world, it's gonna be very aggressive. On all fronts because we are losing, we are losing grip of the reality of, of the hegemony that once we enjoyed for the last 40, 50 years. We're losing that slowly, gradually. The way we're losing that is you have countries that they are moving into economic projects not with the US but other countries. So, and that is where I anticipate Washington policies. As soon as Trump signs, uh, uh, swears in, swears in on January 20th, we're going to be— I'm going to be— I'm going to keep my eyes open. I, I will be able to tell what is the aim of the policies that he is going to embark on, because you got already problems in Washington right now within the Trump's camp. Of course, it doesn't come out to the surface. I'll share one with you, uh, based on some information that I got. Uh, there's already tensions exist between, between, uh, uh, Elon Musk and some of Trump's cabinet nominees. They butt in head. Why is this? Because Elon Musk is very concerned about the, this, this tariffs that Trump is talking about regarding China. Why? Because Elon Musk has one of the major plants in Shanghai. Okay, but not only because of that, it's because also the reception that the Chinese EV and the battery industry is receiving in other parts of the world, including Europe, including our neighbors to the south. Mexico, our neighbor to the north, is, is, uh, is, uh, that those will have to bow to Washington. Uh, whatever direction we tell Canada to do, that's what they're going to do. Despite what you hear, uh, Trudeau saying, that's nothing but just for domestic consumption. Oh, I am tough, I'm going to stand up to the administration in Washington. It's nonsense. We press on him, he will bow. So same thing in Europe. You are noticing in Europe now, because in Europe, for the case of Germany, uh, there's a foregone conclusion. Olaf Scholz ain't gonna be back because the guy is so weak. And I did a video for you guys about that one. Now even Elon Musk now is supporting the AfD party, which is the far right. But in Europe, you look at the reception that they are now having towards the Chinese EV investments from Italy to Germany to France. They don't win it quietly because also they, those countries, saw what China just did with Hungary and Serbia by establishing the manufacturing there. They're going to build those up. Poland, I believe, is next. Poland is, uh, depending on where the wind blows, that's how they're gonna go with it. And this is my point, guys, just to, uh, uh, uh, emphasize this: the idea of Thailand decision regarding BRICS is a strategic one, and countries going to take notice. But to some, the likes of Philippines, is too late. Dick still can reverse course, but I believe it's too late. Marcos, uh, uh, uh, is, is too weak. He doesn't have the strength to say no. So that's, that's to me how I read the decision by Thailand to accept the invitation of BRICS as a partner state for now. But paving the way for the full membership moving forward. So, uh, I am hoping to visit once again Thailand just to see what it— it's been a while since I've been in Bangkok, uh, but again, it was business, it was work, wasn't tourism for me. And, uh, all the countries that I've been in, I would say half of them was work-related back in the day. So, but the upcoming, uh, trip that's gonna be for us, like what I did in China, it's fact-finding. So, and as I said, I will announce, uh, I will have a major announcement later on as we move forward. So, so this is where I, uh, I wanted to share with you. Oh, thank you, Marco. Thank you, Marco. I, I didn't address this much, the Panama Canal. You know, this is the idea of what also the Chinese are thinking about building the equivalency. I know it's not the same, but they give it the, the, the, the, the equivalency of Panama Canal and how Panama Canal played a major role. Of course, we had to get involved in influencing the direction of what that part of the world has to operate. This is why the, uh The Egyptians went ahead and nationalized the Suez Canal way back. So, and also this one has to do with the idea that certain parts of the world, like for example France— did you guys know that the longest border in the world, in the world, belongs to France? And this has nothing to do with France's neighbors as Luxembourg, for example, Belgium, Switzerland, Monaco, little state Monaco, Italy, Andorra, and Spain. No, the longest border with Spain, with the longest border in the world, the answer is in Latin America. You have to travel all the way across the Atlantic Ocean to South America where France has a territory called— do you guys know what's called? What is the territory that France own in Latin America? Let me see if you guys can type in that in the chat box. Uh, that is true, Matt Becky, they have something in Indian Ocean. This one is in Latin America. Oh, Guiana, mi titán, you got it. It's called the French Guiana. That's what it is. Why is this? Is because it is a full sovereign French territory. Hold on a second, what the heck is France owning a land in Latin America? Because that's the era of colonialism like what it was in Africa before. But now France is kicked out of Africa. I believe is the same needs to be done here. That territory has to go back to whomever it belongs to, even if you have to go back in, in history to find out who the original, uh, uh, inhabitants of that particular land, and give them back their lands. But, but just FYI, to let you know, guys, that that is one of the longest territory, which is really disconnected from France. So yeah, it just— I know it crossed my mind and I wanted to share it with you. That one on Brazil, uh, sort of, uh, uh, it's about 730 kilometers long. So it's very, very interesting just how this development— so the idea of even when I was in in, in, in, uh, Cambodia, because that was the same trip that I made to Thailand and flew to Phnom Penh. And I went out to eat something, I remember, and I went to this restaurant, grabbed a bite to eat, and I noticed the person looked more European. And I asked politely, excuse me, where are you from? And, uh, said, yeah, I'm from France. So I start speaking French. Of course you're shocked. That I was speaking French. And I said, how come you all the way from France here? She said, yeah, I've been here. And of course, if you know the history of what took place in Cambodia, it will make more sense to you. I mean, she was nice, polite, and all that stuff. I have nothing, no judgments whatsoever. But just to highlight to you that even in certain parts of the world, you still have the presence of the colonials, the British. You look at the islands in Central America, the Bahamas, and all that stuff. Not all of them, but of course when they said the Commonwealth about Britain, which common— whose Commonwealth is that? Same in Australia, which they still, they still till today bow to the king or queen, whatever, of England. What the heck? Same with Canada in the Canadian dollar bill, you know. And again, it's their country, their country, they can do whatever they want. All I'm saying is providing the facts. Oh yes, Matt Becky, that is correct, the Falklands. Yeah, you're right. And you all know what happened between Argentina and England regarding this. Uh, Al-Mseen, you wrote, uh, La Martinique, you know, that's Saint Martin, La Martinique. Yeah, uh, so all, all this makes more sense to understand just to tie it to this economic expansion. Of the likes of a country like Thailand making a decision regarding joining BRICS. So, and this is why, uh, uh, uh, it's very, very important to understand the long-term strategic interest for when countries make a decision. Those decisions are for long-term impact. This is one thing we didn't think about When I speak about my country here, we didn't think about when we started to weaponize the dollar, meaning sanctions. We didn't think about the day after, and that day after is here. Yeah, the dollar still around the world, still used, still whatever, whatever, but that time is coming one way or another. To those in Washington who live in denial about this reality, they're just trying to pretend otherwise. But the end of it's gonna be so. Why? Because we didn't think back then when that decision was made the next day. We just didn't think, and that is where part of where the problem— that is where the problem is. So in the case of Thailand with BRICS, is a strategic long term because they, government in Bangkok, or the government that is, understands the shift in the global economy that has already happened, that the wealth has shifted from the West to the East. And it is just a matter of time by the time China overtakes the economy of the US. Simple as that. There's no denial about it. Uh, oh, let me— oh, Parda, thank you so much for your super sticker. Truly appreciate you. You wrote, Dr. O, there was no single currency in Asia 600 years ago. We traded in local currencies, products, metals. India saved countries from being new. Well, thank you for sharing this. I was aware of the, the trade that was done in commodities, you know. And this is why I'm saying, for example, when you think about, uh, and I don't know why, I don't have an answer for that, uh, for example, when I take the example of Russia and India, when Russia was selling oil to India, they could have asked for, for gold instead of rupees. Why Russia didn't do that, I don't know. I don't have an answer. I don't know. So, so thank you so much for your super sticker, truly appreciate you and your statements, very, very interesting. Yeah, back then it was no, yeah, no, no single currency. But the problem we made is we weaponized the dollar. That is the error we made. You can, you can do it, you can control countries, but only to a degree. It's going to reach a point where those countries is going to say enough is enough. And that's exactly where we are. And that in itself spells the, the beginning of the end for the US global dominance. And, and when you look at BRICS and ASEAN, and, uh, so it's gonna become— it, it to me is clear, as clear as daylight, that, that is how it's going to be. Uh, Liu Su, you wrote, Dr. O, Marcus Jr. is too weak to say no. The Philippines are run by hyper thieves from top to bottom. It's a slave country. That's why it's called the Philippines. It's a fact. Well, thank you for sharing this. Uh, it's sad, you know. I know Filipino people, you know. I have a, a, a good friend of mine that's like a brother to me, originally from Philippines, ancestors from the Philippines and so forth. Wonderful human being. We'll take the shirt out of his back and give it to you. And he's a, he's a, he's a dentist, highly skilled guy. So, uh, John. So, uh, yeah, it's sad to see where— because Filipino people, like every other people around the world, they deserve better. So, well, here you are in a location or in a region that is emerging economically, and you don't want to be part of that. You don't want to You don't want to sort of benefit your people from it because you, the leader of that, of that country, worrying about your asset being frozen in, in the US? Well, if, if that was your intent, why don't you just go, uh, and deal with the American government separately from being a president and let someone else who can serve the country better? That's to me what a leader does. A leader doesn't think about him or herself. A leader thinks about his or her people first. Yeah, there's still good people out there. I have not lost faith in people. I have not lost faith in people. So it's, uh, there are still some good people, and I hope it works out. Uh, that's just, uh, uh, oh, Hangin' G, good to see you as always. You wrote Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Gibraltar. King Charles III is the king of these countries. Yeah, that's true. So they just, uh, I don't know why they will not do that, but that's just, just their, uh, I don't know why. I don't know why. So, uh, Matt Becky, Dr. O, keeping in mind last time Trump received the royal a royalty reception from Modi in his visit to India. Would India try backstabbing BRICS again in Trump era? Very interesting. Well, yeah, because the reason why Trump did that and also why he was— why he received that reception is because they want the support of the Indian community in, in the US for votes and all that stuff. Uh, there are some very influential, uh, well-to-do financially Indian individuals. They are Americans, you know, off back of ancestors, ancestry from India. They live in the US. Yeah, they do have an influence, especially in my state, in Houston. Just go to Houston, there's a lot of Indian community there. So, but, but yeah, India is, you know, uh, I am hoping one day to figure out if I can make it to the border with China. Yeah, don't be surprised, guys. We, we see if, uh, foreigners are allowed to get into that area to see and, uh, figure out exactly what's going on on the ground, to see with my own eyes, because I don't like to depend on others to tell me. So we shall see. That's what I'm saying. It would be interesting to see once Trump inaugurates on January 20th, what is the first month or two. I will be able, at least for me, to get a feel of what kind of policies he's going to embark on regarding— for this one, regarding Asia, Southeast Asia, and so forth. So anyway, guys, I am going to sign off here. I am glad you were able to join me here. As always, it is nice to have you here. We share knowledge. To those who missed my conversation yesterday with Dr. Stewart, you can go and check it out. This is his link if you are interested in learning more about, uh, uh, some, some, uh, uh, uh, like Parkinson's. If you want to learn about it, there's a lot to learn. So, but, uh, Dr. Stewart was kind enough to really allocate time, and, and then he told me after we left and all that, he said that he'd be happy to do it again if you guys are interested. So if you are interested, just check out the video I did yesterday. So anyway, uh, I will, uh, be on the lookout tomorrow for the video I'm gonna release. Uh, I am gonna post a Happy New Year for the whole community later on, so I'm not gonna say it. And, uh, what else? And that's it. Just be safe whatever you are doing if you are traveling, and I look forward to seeing you next year. As they say, as always, remember your politics impact your daily life in more ways than one. Till next time, guys. Bye-bye.