Producers: Michelin Is Officially Leaving Russia
As of reporting on 26 May 2023 the world renowned French tire-maker Michelin is leaving Russia.
According to the reports, Michelin has reached a deal with local Russian companies — Russia Tyre Manufacturing Company (MRTMC) and Camso CIS — to act as intermediaries in a sale of the company’s Russia tire business to Power International Tires. Reuters
Michelin’s tire plant in Russia is located in Davydovo with a history dating back to 1997. But with heavy sanctions on Russia by the United States and European Union for its “special military operation” in Ukraine the company is leaving behind the legacy it has built there.
At a political level, Russia intends to transform its industrial policies in a way that favors the “anti-West” rhetoric; from a geographical point of view, raw materials are located in vulnerable areas where supply chains are being disrupted by sanctions. This is why Russia must expand its “sovereignty” over global commodities.
This is Russia’s geopolitical objective within the context of global commodities, hence the critical nature of the China-Russia relationship. China basically has the same geopolitical objective within the context of global commodities, which is why the two countries could seek to dominate raw materials in some of the world’s most vulnerable areas.
If you ask me, though, it seems like the world is still desperate for the commodities that have been lambasted as a tool of influence for adversarial governments, bringing in some key concepts about the effect of foreign policy aims: For which commodities? Against Whom?
In this scenario of the world, it’s a pretty scary place to live in, since the demand for raw materials, commodities and energy are producing effects in the foreign policy area of many countries today, including in both developing and developed areas — I’ve already written extensively about the illustrations of this theory from the perspective of how countries and corporations are formulating industrial policies around oil and gas while preparing for the Energy Transition in the future.
If you haven’t been following the energy markets this year, then you have missed out on a lot of content about market volatility and geopolitical trends. For more stories specifically looking at how sanctions on Russia are bringing global commodities to the forefront of geopolitics, read about the countries affected by the Russia-Ukraine conflict in the publication Areas & Producers:
- Russia Sanctions Dovetail With Industrial Policies & Energy Cooperation
- From Russia Sanctions to the Downfall of SFB — FTX Case Exposes Future of Digital Assets & Global Commodities
- Binance Exchange Under Investigation for Violating Sanctions on Russia
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