OpEd on Nationalism and the New Mining Order

Viktoriya Zakrevskaya examines how resource nationalism is transforming the mining sector across Africa and Eastern Europe.

Photo credit: Food and Energy Trends

In her recent story for Food and Energy Trends Viktoriya Zakrevskaya explores how resource nationalism is redrawing the global mining map: from the goldfields of Mali to the potash basins of Belarus. The piece examines how countries with strategic minerals throughout the world have engaged different tactics to assert sovereignty in mines of all sorts.

Across West Africa, governments are arresting executives, imposing steep fines, and demanding new terms from Western firms — in Belarus and Russia, tensions in the potash sector echo similar dynamics, with arrests and state pressure signaling deeper struggles for political and economic autonomy within the post-Soviet space.

Viktoriya argues that these cases reveal a broader trend: mining is no longer just a business — it’s a bargaining chip in global politics. 

Read the full article here

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