Energy Transition, AI, and Geopolitics

Beyond the Wire: Why I Wrote “When the World Stops Counting on the US”

By Ken Silverstein • May 12, 2026 • Filed in: Energy, Media

Presidents Trump and Xi shake hands, preparing to meet the May 2026 summit. While my latest column is appearing in nearly 30 newspapers this week—including the Miami Herald and the Kansas City Star—there is a deeper technical story behind the headlines that I want to share with my readers here: the global energy transition.

The Insight: In my decades of covering this energy transformation, I’ve noticed a subtle but profound shift in how international officials discuss the United States. It is no longer about active opposition; it is about passive diversification.

Whether I am talking to energy ministers in Central Asia or utility leaders in India, the question is the same: How do we build a system that doesn’t break when the U.S. pivots?

Key Takeaways for My Readers:

  • The Geopolitical Tax: This isn’t just a political theory; it’s an economic reality. When the world loses trust in U.S. stability, it shows up in our supply chains and our borrowing costs.

  • Energy as Sovereignty: Global powers are now treating grid reliability and resource chains as their primary tools of independence.

  • The Permanent Shift: We need to stop asking if this is a temporary trend. The move toward a multi-polar system is a fundamental restructuring of the global order.

  • The US-China rivalry isn’t just about who sells more goods; it’s about who controls the Clean Energy Supply Chain. From India’s massive solar installations to the AI-driven power demands you’ve covered, the summit is essentially a negotiation over the 21st-century’s “fuel.”

Why it Matters: As a Geopolitical Analyst, my goal is to provide the primary-source intelligence that informs these shifts. You can follow the full national conversation and see the 25+ pickups and counting on my Muck Rack profile.

Comments are closed.

 

« | Home | »

  • Recipient of the ASBPE Gold Award for Outstanding Web Commentary and the MIN Online “Most Intriguing People in Media” honor. Senior Contributor at Forbes with nearly 30 years of energy and climate reporting experience.