Michael Hollister

Michael Hollister

German Chips in Russian Drones

Infineon transistors. Bosch fuel pumps. Rheinmetall subsidiary Pierburg. Every Russian Geran-2 drone striking Ukrainian power plants carries 112 EU-made components. The supply chain is documented. The gaps in the sanctions regime are deliberate. And Germany simultaneously wires billions to rebuild the infrastructure that German chips destroy, night after night.

Greenland – The Arctic Deal – Part 1

No contract. No purchase price. No signing ceremony. And yet in twenty minutes in Davos, Donald Trump achieved what other presidents would have needed decades to accomplish: strategic control over the most resource-rich and militarily significant island in the Northern Hemisphere. The Greenland framework is not a real estate deal. It is a masterclass in geopolitical method — and Europe is picking up the tab without having had a seat at the table.

China – The Silent Maneuver

Since February 28, 2026 - the day the first U.S.-Israeli bombs fell on Iran - China has not sent a single military aircraft into Taiwan's air defense zone. Six days of silence in a strait where escalation had become the baseline. This is not de-escalation. It is calculation: while the United States burns through munitions in the Persian Gulf, delays arms deliveries to Taiwan, and China quietly builds the options it needs for 2027, Beijing is holding the quiet - because right now, it doesn't need anything else.

Mexico – Operation Controlled Chaos

The killing of cartel leader El Mencho has been celebrated as a major victory for Mexico. Yet behind the dramatic operation may lie something else entirely: the first public test of a new U.S. doctrine for Latin America. Intelligence from Washington, a newly created anti-cartel task force, and the legal reclassification of cartels as terrorist organizations could signal the beginning of a new era of American intervention. Was El Mencho’s death truly a victory against organized crime – or the opening move in a strategy of controlled chaos in Mexico?

Steve Witkoff: The Dealmaker

Steve Witkoff is not a career diplomat - and that is precisely why he has become central to Donald Trump’s foreign policy. From Bronx real estate developer to special envoy handling Gaza, Moscow, Tehran, and Geneva, his rise reflects a new model of transactional diplomacy built on loyalty, personal relationships, and deal-making instincts. This analysis explores the strengths, vulnerabilities, and global implications of that approach.

Geneva 2026: The Deal Without Europe

Four rounds of negotiations over the largest war on European soil since 1945 — and not a single EU representative at the table. While Washington, Moscow, and Kyiv hash out front lines, security guarantees, and Ukraine's reconstruction in Geneva, Europe writes the checks, delivers the weapons, and waits outside. What has barely registered in European newsrooms: Russia has conceded more in these talks than at any point since the war began. The framework for Europe's security architecture for the coming decades is being set right now. Europe did not help write it.

Iran/USA: The Calculus of Attack

Twelve F-22 Raptors land on an Israeli air base without a press release. Fifteen tanker aircraft park at Ben Gurion Airport. Two carrier strike groups close in on the Persian Gulf – the first dual-carrier configuration in the region since the 2003 Iraq War. Meanwhile, negotiators in Geneva describe the talks as "constructive." This is not a contradiction. It is method. A deep-dive analysis of the attack architecture currently being assembled against Iran – and why Tehran is structurally incapable of meeting Washington's demands without signing its own death warrant.

NGOs: The 30 Names Brussels Is Hiding

The 30 names Brussels refused to disclose:
An audit by the European Court of Auditors reveals systemic flaws in EU NGO funding — but the largest recipients remained hidden. By analysing EU financial databases, this investigation uncovers how billions flowed to organisations that are partially state-funded, multiply financed across programmes, or deeply embedded in political structures.
A primary-source-driven investigation into transparency, governance, and the real architecture behind EU NGO funding.

BOARD OF PEACE – Part 3

Part 3 explores the consequences of a new geopolitical framework where destruction, reconstruction, and profit merge into a strategic model. From Iraq and Afghanistan to Gaza, military intervention intertwines with economic restructuring and narrative control. A deep analysis of how “stabilization” evolves into a global governance tool — and why Europe’s response remains largely symbolic.

IRAN – Look East – Part 5

Looking East – Iran’s strategic balancing act in a shifting multipolar world.
Through BRICS expansion, SCO membership, and closer ties with China and Russia, Tehran seeks to overcome Western isolation. Yet behind the rhetoric of a new world order lies a fragile equilibrium shaped by sanctions, competing interests, and limited economic integration. A geopolitical deep dive into Iran’s “Look East” doctrine and the realities behind multipolar ambition.