Episode 354: Mar-A-Lago Routh & The $2 Trillion Russian Deal

KEY Addendum: The Wall Street Journal had information worth including.Three powerful businessmen—two Americans and a Russian—hunched over a laptop in Miami Beach last month, ostensibly to draw up a plan to end Russia’s long and deadly war with Ukraine.But the full scope of their project went much further, according to people familiar with the talks. They were privately charting a path to bring Russia’s $2 trillion economy in from the cold [PPP GDP measures make it much larger]—with American businesses first in line to beat European competitors to the dividends.At his waterfront estate, billionaire developer-turned-special envoy Steve Witkoff was hosting Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign-wealth fund and Vladimir Putin’s handpicked negotiator, who had largely shaped the document they were revising on the screen. Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, had arrived from his nearby home on an island known as the “Billionaire Bunker.”“Russia has so many vast resources, vast expanses of land,” Witkoff told The Wall Street Journal, describing at length his hopes that Russia, Ukraine and America would all become business partners. “If we do all that, and everybody’s prospering and they’re all a part of it, and there’s upside for everybody, that’s going to naturally be a bulwark against future conflicts there. Because everybody’s thriving.”When a version of the 28-point plan leaked earlier this month, it drew immediate protests. Leaders in Europe and Ukraine complained it reflected mostly Russian talking points and bulldozed through nearly all of Kyiv’s red lines….Ches McDowellKyiv Post: Elliot Management* Exxon and billionaire Todd Boehly reportedly looked at buying Lukoil assets.* Trump donor Stephen [Patrick] Lynch asked Washington for permission to bid on Nord Stream 2. [Did this in February 2024, wasn’t reported until November 2024. See posts below for more details.]* Elliott Investment Management considered purchasing a stake in the TurkStream pipeline. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Policy_Initiative]* Roscosmos chief Dmitry Bakanov visited NASA, Boeing and SpaceX.Note: Steven Witkoff was as well cited in the Biden negotiations with CEFC. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasonpowers.substack.com/subscribe