Director GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies, professor at University of Hamburghttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mkoqudxlgk24https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/bb0b97d7-ecb3-4226-a274-dd18aff9a5ee30 Apr 2026 04:14 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkoqudxlgk24https://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mkg5tn4v7c24Xy "described eurodollars as a “remarkable conspiracy of silence”. ... America extends a financial security umbrella to dollars created abroad. Should the Fed ...not extend the diplomatic generosity of its swap lines — that’s when it would be time to worry." https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/f7076697-b177-4531-8e1f-48172eb5deaf26 Apr 2026 18:13 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkg5tn4v7c24https://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjtczjppdk2z"The FT reviewed more than 300 articles published over the past five years in a dozen Iranian defence publications. They provide a unique window into the secretive Iranian establishment" (e.g. tactics and what technologies are being prioritised). https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/5d3460ea-1648-4826-b196-eb0c065acb5819 Apr 2026 06:25 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjtczjppdk2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjtbinwb622zhttps://www.cfr.org/articles/petrodollars-myths-and-reality "There is too much talk about Kissinger’s 1974 deal with the Saudis... That deal wasn’t for all time. The Saudi surplus from ‘73 and ‘79 had disappeared by the late 80s and early 90s, but at the time, few talked about the end of the petrodollar system."19 Apr 2026 05:57 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjtbinwb622zhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjrexvaj2c2f"A substantial share of Egypt’s export-oriented nitrogen capacity is controlled by Fertiglobe, a company in which the UAE’s Adnoc now holds a controlling stake and that claims to be the world’s largest seaborne exporter of urea and ammonia" https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/b13db8c2-05ae-44d0-a4a6-a54e5eb63eea18 Apr 2026 11:54 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjrexvaj2c2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjpgteesec2uhttps://www.stimson.org/2026/beneath-the-strait-iran-could-threaten-gulf-data-centers-undersea-cables/ Over 90% of Europe's internet traffic to Asia goes through Egypt and the Red Sea. International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC): 200 instances of cable damage each year, only about one percent was intentional, 3/4 of cable cuts:fishing equipment and ship anchors.17 Apr 2026 17:22 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjpgteesec2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjp5b6macc2chttps://www.bakerinstitute.org/sites/default/files/2026-04/20260410-Collins-Wars%20and%20Pipelines-Working%20Paper.pdf Scenario of a possible Iraq-GCC-Oman pipeline: ca $55 billion and 5-7 years construction.17 Apr 2026 14:31 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjp5b6macc2chttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjf45ars4c2fhttps://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/fea00236-da8d-45bb-9025-c954fc951d7d13 Apr 2026 14:44 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjf45ars4c2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mjboewws7k2z"Formalising the Strait of Hormuz into a fee-paying corridor could deliver $5bn-$8bn annually to Iran and Oman, whose territorial waters cover the southern half of the strait" (Illegal for territorial waters in international law, Suez Canal 2023: €10.3bn) https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/5b9f0fb6-eee2-40b6-b22f-e27b3f696d5412 Apr 2026 06:00 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjboewws7k2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mirga5vxhk2eIt would behoove Big Tech to spread the potential benefits of AI to the public. In the short term, this might include investments in grid upgrades, workforce retraining and community benefit agreements in places where data centres are built. https://www.ft.com/content/525cc89e-1ee9-4039-a588-5039565053f9?syn-25a6b1a6=105 Apr 2026 18:52 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mirga5vxhk2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mirfge34bs2e1973-74, Ölembargos iJom-Kippur-Kriegs, Versorgungslücke rund acht Prozent. 1979 bis 1980, während der Iran-Revolution und des Ausbruchs des Irak-Iran-Kriegs, waren es rund sieben Prozent. In der aktuellen Krise wird der Ausfall auf zehn bis elf Prozent geschätzt. https://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/oel-und-gas-erneuerbare-energien-sind-schon-jetzt-ein-kleines-schutzschild-a-4feb190b-44d3-4255-9d00-42244ddfd9e905 Apr 2026 18:37 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mirfge34bs2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3miojwt7vu22whttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dome.70019 Unlikely Companions of Energy Transitions? Opportunities and Challenges of Triangular Cooperation Between the EU, the GCC, and Hydrocarbon-Poor Countries From the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)04 Apr 2026 15:20 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3miojwt7vu22whttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mibbveuy4k2r"Analysts contend that it is possible to run a cost-effective electricity grid where the vast majority of power comes from renewables in concert with batteries."30 Mar 2026 08:51 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mibbveuy4k2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mibbookpbk2rhttps://www.economist.com/leaders/2026/03/19/gas-will-not-be-killed-off-by-renewables-any-time-soon30 Mar 2026 08:48 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mibbookpbk2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mibbiygo7c2r"Spain has managed quite a feat. ... The country’s electricity prices only reached or exceeded the average cost of gas-fired electricity 15 per cent of the time, according to analysis by Ember. In Italy, gas set the price of electricity 89 per cent of the time." https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/bc4d1ed0-89f6-483e-8b13-7bd2dff72b8830 Mar 2026 08:45 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mibbiygo7c2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhzuehnqlc2l"Storage is patchy: the UAE aims to have reserves equivalent to just two days of normal consumption by 2036, which could be stretched to around a month by strict rationing." https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2026/03/26/in-the-current-gulf-war-water-may-prove-as-decisive-as-oil27 Mar 2026 10:01 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhzuehnqlc2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhznkcoznk2l27 Mar 2026 07:59 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhznkcoznk2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhzneugigk2lhttps://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/533518fe-5513-4f24-a28b-4a6f871439e627 Mar 2026 07:56 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhzneugigk2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhzhuz3ync2lhttps://www.spiegel.de/kultur/tirailleurs-im-haus-der-kulturen-der-welt-bahnbrechende-ausstellung-in-berlin-a-d9051588-c2c6-4bf2-ad4f-684f9211791627 Mar 2026 06:17 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhzhuz3ync2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhxkpgyi522g"Meloni said after meeting Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune that they agreed their state-controlled energy companies should develop new joint projects, including shale and offshore gas exploration." 44% of electricity from gas vs. 17% in EU https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/5667db63-969f-4520-b23b-b454283f912126 Mar 2026 12:03 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhxkpgyi522ghttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhry7hw7us2m"Gulf states account for 49 per cent of globally traded urea and 30 per cent of ammonia. When that supply chain stops, the effects accumulate quietly in soil chemistry and planting decisions over the months that follow." https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/730add3b-1d9d-4a16-a3df-b218bbb4649e24 Mar 2026 06:48 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhry7hw7us2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhrxjdpqns2mInsider trading at work. https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/abd66c9a-e0ad-4e04-b522-bb490e744627 "The well-timed trades echoed the flurry of large highly profitable bets made on prediction market Polymarket on the timing of the US’s attacks in recent months on Iran and Venezuela."24 Mar 2026 06:36 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhrxjdpqns2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/eckartwoertz.bsky.social/post/3mhpelyibt22h"The Dead Sea is also the world’s largest source of bromine, a chemical that helps score patterns on to silicon wafers. South Korea imports virtually all of its supply from Israel." [contains quote post or other embedded content]23 Mar 2026 05:52 +0000at://did:plc:plfsf6ftfhfk65jqoylluwra/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhpelyibt22h