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US President Joe Biden will decide whether to apply or waive sanctions on India, one of America’s key partners, under the CAATSA law for its purchase of the S-400 missile defence system from Russia, a senior administration official has told lawmakers.

India is discussing how to set up a rupee-ruble payment mechanism to enable it to trade with Russia, to circumvent the U.S. sanctions regime.India abstained from voting on the March United Nations (UN) General Assembly Resolution demanding an end to Russian offensive in Ukraine (General Assembly resolution demands end to Russian offensive in Ukraine).Since its Independence, India has tried to steer a neutral course between the U.S. and Russia (and previously, the USSR). During the 1950s, India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was a prime architect behind the Non-Aligned Movement, under which developing countries tried to pursue their national interests...

India is exploring ways to set up a rupee payment mechanism for trade with Russia to soften the blow on New Delhi of Western sanctions imposed on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, government and banking sources said. Indian officials are concerned that vital supplies of fertilizer from Russia could be disrupted as sanctions intensify, threatening India's vast farm sector.

India is stepping closer to setting up an alternative payments system to maintain its trade with Russia, identifying a potential bank, as a top panel examining the issue recommended prioritising edible oil and fertiliser imports as well as payments owed to India, an official aware of the development has said…. The top interministerial panel has been tasked with scrutinizing the impact of a barrage of economic sanctions imposed by the West on Russia on India’s economy. It is led by economic affairs secretary Ajay Seth and includes the ministries of food and consumer affairs, fertilizers, commerce, external affairs and petroleum....

India and sanctions-hit Russia are exploring the possibility of using China’s yuan as a reference currency to value the rupee-ruble trade mechanism, two Indian government officials aware of the development said. The two countries may also look at a floating rate arrangement as India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, considers buying oil from Russia at a discounted rate to cool inflationary pressures. To boost oil purchase from Russia, India is working to resolve key issues, including the availability of ships, insurance cover for imports and the oil blends, given the configuration of Indian refineries. This assumes importance given the Western...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks at the Kuala Lumpur Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Muslim nations looking to fight back against future sanctions are exploring an age-old approach — using gold dinar and bartering. Leaders from Qatar, Iran, Malaysia and Turkey met during the Islamic summit in Kuala Lumpur to discuss the matter this week. “With the world witnessing nations making unilateral decisions to impose such punitive measures, Malaysia and other nations must always bear in mind that it can be imposed on any of us,” Malaysia’s 94-year-old Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad told Reuters. “I have suggested that...

Why is Communism relevant today? Ignorance! Just ask around. You may be shocked to find that nearly no one under twenty-five has ever heard of Stalin, whose genocide exceeded Hitler's by a factor of five. Communism is being repackaged in this atmosphere of ignorance. Films like “Motorcycle Diaries” and “Young Marx” portray Che and Marx as wise, prophetic figures fighting for mankind's betterment. Idealistic youth is responding enthusiastically in their need for heroes. If you travel abroad, say to India or South America, you can see full-scale marches complete with red banners and portraits of Stalin. How do you get...

Jennifer Zeng grew up admiring the Communist Party of China and adhering to its stringent rules. But her life changed forever when she embraced religion and was swept up in a government crackdown on Falun Gong. Arrested four times as a young adult and held in as a prisoner in a labor camp, she quickly woke up to the horrors of living in a socialist state. After being subject to brutal torture, Zeng managed to escape China and now tells about the evils of socialism and communism. At a time when more Americans are embracing Karl Marx’s teachings, Chris Wright...

Millions of American teenagers are at risk of running out of food or don't have access to affordable, healthy food. Some of them are so desperate, they're selling their bodies and committing crimes to go to jail to ensure regular meals, according to an Urban Institute study. Breaking down the numbers The study found at least 6.8 million people were "food insecure," meaning they didn't have reliable access to affordable, healthy food. Another 4 million were in "marginally food secure" households, where the "threat of running out of food is real." All of the 10 communities surveyed in focus groups...

In Greece, the age-old practice of bartering for goods and services is experiencing a renaissance as the nation endures the sixth year of its debt-driven economic meltdown. And as bartering has come to mean the difference between starvation and survival for some Greeks, Americans ought to take note. The New York Times on Monday explained how virtual barter networks are popping up in Greece to help individuals and small businesses in the nation survive harsh capital controls put in place to combat a long-standing liquidity crisis. Earlier this year, many Greeks found themselves unable to withdraw money from banks for...

In the fall of 2007, a group of about twenty New Hampshire residents got together to see what they could do to promote the use of silver as a trade medium. They set a meeting in November, expecting to come together to really ramp up the promotion of the Liberty Dollar. Unfortunately, the government decided to raid them just a few days before the meeting. The meeting tone and agenda was quickly changed to "what do we do now?" Some analysis and discussion focused on two flaws in the Liberty Dollar model that the group saw: 1.The U.S. Dollar denomination...

It's been a busy day at the market in downtown Volos. Angeliki Ioanitou has sold a decent quantity of olive oil and soap, while her friend Maria has done good business with her fresh pies. But not a single euro has changed hands – none of the customers on this drizzly Saturday morning has bothered carrying money at all. For many, browsing through the racks of second-hand clothes, electrical appliances and homemade jams, the need to survive means money has been usurped. "It's all about exchange and solidarity, helping one another out in these very hard times," enthused Ioanitou, her...

All of us rely on our skills when SHTF. So we all hope that we can cover all of major skills that can lead us trough all basic needs in order to survive. So we choose to learn lot of things, how to fight , how to can, how to grow food, how to heal people. And we are buying equipment and learn things. We choose different approaches, someone chooses to learn just basics from one skill, or someone chooses to learn one particular skill in depth. Like to be very good in growing food when SHTF. But most of...

While precious metals such as gold and silver make an excellent choice as a hedge against inflation or the devaluation of the dollar, they can be extremely hard to spend. Quite often bartering will become the alternative to cash which may have little or no value. There is where the law of supply and demand comes into effect. There may be a significant supply of cash for which there is no demand because it no longer has value. In a situation such as this, cash money will have little or no value for the purchase of goods which you may...

Using the amazing powers that I developed as The Coupon Whisperer, I am now combining those skills to become the South Florida Barter King. I am sort of inspired to do so by the new "Barter Kings" show even though that series is obviously highly scripted. However, since I had some good barter experiences in the past, I plan to hone my bartering skills hopefully up to the level of my couponing skulls. Yesterday, I performed my first coupon/barter deal. I picked up two dozen FREE bottles of body wash using coupons and traded them to my friend the...

When times get tough, the tough . . . switch currencies. A fascinating report by Eric Garland in The Atlantic tells of the upswing in “local currencies.” In the United Kingdom, the Brixton Pound is being floated, engraved on its paper notes the likes of “David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust era.” Pegged to the British pound, it serves mainly as a scheme to promote local business and trade, though maybe it’s a tad more than mere boosterism. Bavarians are also “enthusiastically using the local currency as a protest” — the local currency being the “Chiemgauer.” And “similar currencies have...

The Barter Value Of Skills Tess Pennington April 26th, 2012 This article has been generously contributed by Tess Pennington of Ready Nutrition. After joining the Dallas chapter of the American Red Cross in 1999 Tess worked as an Armed Forces Emergency Services Center specialist and is well versed in emergency and disaster management & response. You can follow her regular updates on Preparedness, Homesteading, and a host of other topics at www.readynutrition.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recently, we talked about the necessity of learning skills to aid us in a survival situation. Don’t underestimate the value of those skills for barter. If the...

Obviously if you are reading this article you already have a modicum of common sense about the impending changes to our capitalist system or the prophesy about the collapse thereof. Some people who have been out of work and have given up on ever finding another job are no longer counted in the unemployment figures since the change in how they are counted so politicians can justify their piss poor job performance…..the rate currently in reality is something akin to 20% not below 10% as touted. Almost 50 million persons receive food stamps and on the rise. Less than 50%...

In America, the federal government seems to control everything. Light bulbs, shoe leather, refrigerators, even the water strength in your shower. Your banker, your doctor, your lawyer, your computer all are regulated beyond belief. What is it in America that the feds can't control? The answer is simple: human nature. We need to eat, and we need to move about; and that means we will use the free market in order to do so, with or without the government. Every capable human engages in market exchanges, even in those countries where it's illegal. Through all of history, humans have advanced...

(Visiting DC)The Obama Administration announced its objection to including President Roosevelt’s prayer on the World War II Memorial in Washington DC. The Obama White House said the prayer would dilute the message of the memorial.Todd Starnes reported: Republican lawmakers and conservative activists are expressing outrage after the Obama administration announced its objection to adding President Franklin Roosevelt’s D-Day prayer to the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.The objection was noted during a congressional hearing on Rep. Bill Johnson’s (R-OH) bill – the “World War II Memorial Prayer Act of 2011.”“It is unconscionable that the Obama administration would stand...