Month: March 2017

After a famine was recently declared in South Sudan, the United Nations warned that the world is at risk of the largest humanitarian crisis since 1945. Stephen O’Brien, UN humanitarian chief, shared with the Security Council last week that “we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the United Nations.” He also stressed that $4.4 billion is needed by mid-year in order to avert the crisis and help 20 million people on the brink of starvation in Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan, and Nigeria. Collective global action is desperately needed, but continued challenges in the affected countries are hindering efforts to provide humanitarian aid.

This is a specific example of the failure of the global community to guarantee fair conditions for workers in developing countries. It relates to global trade because multinational corporations often take advantage of the already poor conditions in developing countries and then exacerbate the problem. I wrote my paper about this topic and this article was very informative and contains powerful images.

The Cobalt Pipeline – The Washington Post

 

Introducting the concept of the Internet of Agreements: “Machine-readable laws and machine-readable contracts enable machine-managed supply chains.” Theorectically, using computers to manage the supply chain process, conduct due diligence, and ensure parties in a trade agreement are holding up to their agreements, would make the who process smoother and enable transparency between nations. As of now, verification of agreed upon processes along the global supply chain is a patchwork of paper forms such as payslips, bills of lading, safety certificates. Makes a lot of sense to fully digitize this.

The article was concluded with “without the WTO it would be the law of the jungle.” It is also addressed in the article that “the mention of section 301 implies the Trump administration might start going outside the global rules of the WTO system.”

If more and more main powers(like US, UK, France) withdraw their “transferred power” back from international organizations they’ve authorized before, it is a horrible trend. It shows distrust to current machinery of global cooperation.

http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21717998-it-will-be-hard-deal-china-today-if-it-were-japan-1980s-trum

A recent study by the UNHCR found that a large proportion of the 3.2 million people displaced in the first half of 2016 have settled in some of the world’s poorest countries. Over half of those refugees fled the Syrian conflict and relocated to neighboring countries. As of 2016, Syrians accounted for 32 percent of the world’s refugee population. The refugee crisis in South Sudan is also of particular concern. Nearly 1 million refugees from South Sudan are putting pressure on some of the least developed countries in the world who host them, including Sudan, Kenya, and Ethiopia.

Actions by powerful and developed countries, such as Trump’s refugee ban, will only further burden poor countries who cannot properly provide the economic support and help that refugees so desperately need.

The Volkswagon emissions scandal has wide-ranging implications not only on the environment and carbon emissions, but on health care in Europe. According to the New York Times, the 2.6 million cars in Germany that do not have emission controls alone can lead to 1,200 premature deaths and billions of Euros in healthcare costs in Europe. Neighboring countries to Germany like Poland, France, and the Czech Republic will be particularly effected. The Volkswagon emissions cheat brings larger issues about climate change into play, such enforcing emission standards and holding countries/companies responsible for environmental and humanitarian harm caused to citizens across borders.

Under this circumstance, I think it’s unwise for Beijing to put pressure on South Korea government by using “economic tool”. The deciding factor made South Korea agree to deploy THAAD is endless provocations from North Korea. While in the eye of Chinese decision-maker, whether Kim dynasty is a evil regime may not be so important. Beijing decides to remain Kim dynasty because it could pose threats to “West bloc” led by the US.

https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2017-03-05/south-korea-vows-to-protect-firms-amid-china-pressure-over-thaad

In this case, the destiny of an international organization–the EU may rely on the election outcome of France. Either Emmanuel Macron who embraces globalization revitalize the EU, or Marine Le Pen who blasts globalization wreck it.

The root cause is international organizations get power from sovereign nations’ authorization. This limit determines why sometimes international organizations may become powerless or ineffective

http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21717814-why-french-presidential-election-will-have-consequences-far-beyond-its-borders-vote

It appears that the UN sanctions and the reprimand of the UN Security Council had proven fruitless in their efforts to stop North Korea. This latest missile launching coincides with US- South Korea joint military exercises and the opening of the National People’s Congress in China. Initially it was thought that one of the missiles was an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting the U.S. Three of the missiles has landed in Japanese territory.

The new Trump administration and the US-South Korean military exercise have provoked North Korea. “North Korea “will never remain a passive onlooker to the new U.S. administration overtly revealing its intention to put military pressure on [North Korea] and invade it while crying out for ‘peace by dint of strength,’ ” the state-run Korean Central News Agency reported in a statement it attributed to the Foreign Ministry.”

It seems there is no good way to stop North Korea. The Security Council’s warnings and sanctions is ineffective as North Korea is just escalating their testing and at a higher frequency. China, the only country with any pull with North Korea, with their coal import ban only instigated this action.