08:30 – 09:45 | Opening session
Noura Al Kaabi
Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates
It is essential that we continue to uphold the principles of dialogue and mutual respect, even in the face of stark disagreements. We must work tirelessly to find diplomatic solutions. We must keep talking to each other. Without dialogue progress is impossible.
H. E. Tiémoko Meyliet Koné
Vice President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire
This challenging international environment is jeopardizing development efforts worldwide. Countries are struggling to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, the SDGs, which have been adopted as a universal roadmap.
H. H. Bartolomew Ist
Archbishop of Constantinople – New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch
Like our ancestors seventeen centuries ago, the path ahead necessitates the integration of our spiritual heritage with practical solutions. Let us seize this opportune moment to establish collaborative connections between religious wisdom and contemporary knowledge that will benefit future generations.
Thierry de Montbrial
Founder and Executive Chairman of Ifri and the WPC
The cold war that is beginning might not be a war. It is now up to all forces of goodwill, and in particular all of us gathered here, to think and act intelligently to contain and reduce the toxic impacts of this New Cold War. The main issue is definitely to ensure that the New Cold War does not degenerate into a full-scale world war.
09:45 – 11:00 | Plenary session 1
Global Economic Governance in a Fragmented World
Jean-Claude Trichet
Former Head of the European Central Bank, Honorary Governor of the Banque de France
The West is responsible for the fact that the main shareholders, Europe and the US, did not react sufficiently rapidly to the yearly growth in the importance of the other countries and economies in the developing and emerging world.
Gabriel Felbermayr
Director of the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (WIFO), former President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW)
If we follow the European debate, we sometimes get the impression that Europe has forgotten the fact that we still are a huge player. We have offered solutions in the past and we might do the same again in the future.
Vincent Koen
Deputy Director of Country Studies at the OECD
Uncertainty surrounding trade policy has soared. While it is difficult to know what to make of recent announcements, a more fragmented, protectionist trading environment would constitute an adverse supply shock, raising prices and disrupting supply chains.
John Lipsky
Senior Fellow of the Foreign Policy Institute at John Hopkins University’s Paul H Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, former First Deputy Managing Director of the IMF
We currently are at the fourth systemic inflection point of the 21st century in terms of our system of global governance.
Jean-Marie Paugam
Deputy Director General of the WTO
We have debated deglobalization for years, but trade continues to grow. Trade in services demonstrates this even more clearly because it is growing very fast. So we are not in an era of deglobalization.
Qiao Yide
Vice Chairman and Secretary General of Shanghai Development Research Foundation
Now is a critical time for global economic governance because it seems that the idea of “might is right” has started to prevail in many places […].
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
11:00 – 12:00 | Plenary session 2
Multi-vector Foreign Policies?
Thierry de Montbrial
Founder and Executive Chairman of Ifri and the WPC
Multi-alignment or multi-vector foreign policies are the children of the new approach to the old Bandung concept of non-alignment during the first Cold War.
Ana Brnabić
Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia
We will continue to work towards the EU accession, but at the same time, we will try to serve as a bridge rather than as a battleground for different competing interests in the world.
Lasha Darsalia
Premier ministre adjoint des Affaires étrangère de Géorgie
Now, when you are in the Russian neighborhood, […] your choice is either you become part of some collective security solution, like NATO, or even the European Union, though it is not security, or, if you fail, then war is imposed on you, like Ukraine now or Georgia before.
Roman Vassilenko
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan
The only side we should all be taking is the side of cooperation, not confrontation; the side of the international law, not lawlessness; the side of mutual benefit and win win, not mutual exclusion and zero sum games.
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
13:15 – 14:30 | Plenary session 3
De-globalization or Re-globalization?
Bertrand Badré
Managing Partner and Founder of Blue like an Orange Sustainable Capital, former Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer of the World Bank Group
Globalization as we knew it is over. The big challenge is probably not so much to find a new word to describe or define globalization but to find a way to describe something I would describe as planetarization because we need our planet […].
Sébastien Jean
Professor of Economics at CNAM University, Associate Director of Ifri’s Geoeconomics and Geofinance initiative
The current narrative is dominated by two stories, the first of which is about geoeconomic fragmentation, a term coined by the IMF, in a context marked by trade wars and war, and the second is the build-up of competing industrial policies.
Bark Tae-Ho
President of Lee&Ko Global Commerce Institute, former Minister of Trade of South Korea
If US-China trade tensions are intensified when President Trump’s second term begins next year, we expect positive re-globalization benefits to diminish, severely damaging global trade activities.
Vladislav Inozemtsev
Director of the Centre for Post-Industrial Studies in Moscow, Special Advisor to Middle East Media Research Institute’s Russia Media Studies Project in Washington, DC.
The major problem in the world is not whether we have more or less globalization, but if we have an orderly globalization or one that is anti-systemic.
Kazuto Suzuki
Director of the Institute of Geoeconomics at International House of Japan, Professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Tokyo
Globalization is not over, the movement of trade and capital is still going on but there are a number of countries that are taking certain measures driven by domestic concerns that globalization or free trade is actually harming their economy and society.
Pierre Jacquet
Professor of Economics at the École nationale des ponts et chaussées (ENPC), member of the Cercle des Économistes
As economists, we have tended to forget that reality, we were living in a world in which geopolitics was reasonably understandable and stable, and we could ignore it. This is over, at least for some time.
Debate
14:30 – 15:00 | Plenary session 4
Conversation with Kevin McCarthy
Kevin McCarthy
55th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
It is not therefore creating a trade war. It is opening up a negotiation, and everything that [Donald Trump] does is to get a negotiation, but also set the negotiation to some type of advantage that he wants.
Debate
15:00 – 15:45 | Plenary session 5
The Role of G7 in a Changing Landscape
Thierry de Montbrial
Founder and Executive Chairman of Ifri and the WPC
Philippe Etienne
Ambassadeur de France, Professor of Public and International Affairs at Columbia University, former Diplomatic Advisor to President Macron, also acting as G7 and G20 Sherpa
The G7 needs to keep this informality […] but also to be able, through working with other countries, […] to have the capacity to contribute to and bring their own solutions to the global discussion.
Lee Hye-Min
Former G20 Sherpa of Korea, Senior Advisor of KIM & CHANG
The America First policy does not appreciate the value of alliance and partners, so I expect the vitality of the G7 and the G20 would be significantly reduced.
Gary Litman
Senior Vice President of Global Initiatives at the US Chamber of Commerce
In terms of expansion, [the business community] will leave that to politicians, but when it comes to governments that set the rules for large markets, we want to interact with them individually and we want to be part of any of their collective endeavors.
Speakers’ Debate
15:45 – 16:45 | Plenary Session 6
Geopolitics of Climate Change
Marc-Antoine Eyl-Mazzega
Director of the Center for Energy & Climate of Ifri
In this fragmented world, it is still very profitable to invest in fossil fuels and much less so in clean techs, although that is improving.
Nawal Al-Hosany
Permanent Representative of the UAE to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
When people were not even looking at renewables, we created Masdar Initiative back in 2006. Today, we have three of the largest and lowest cost solar plants in the world.
Stéphane Michel
President Gas, Renewables & Power and Executive Committee member of TotalEnergies
We need to acknowledge the role of gas in that transition, because today, we continue to increase the consumption of coal, and we continue to invest in coal fire plants, which is total absurdity when you know the difference.
Frank Wouters
Chairman of the MENA Hydrogen Alliance
[In Europe] There is no situation where I foresee a future where you are replacing fossil fuels with cleaner molecules and you do not have strategic reserves for those.
Mikaa Blugeon-Mered
Special Advisor at Hy24, Adjunct Lecturer on Hydrogen Geopolitics at Sciences Po and Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P)
That is how you effectively unlock hydrogen, and that is a real geopolitical change, because if you are focusing on the demand, if you are focusing on the green shoring aspect of things, then we are essentially building local value chains rather than international trade based, large-scale value chains.
Debate
16:45 – 17:30 | Plenary session 7
The IMEC Economic Corridor: A New Era of Global Cooperation and Growth
Gérard Mestrallet
Special Envoy of the French President for IMEC
IMEC will create prosperity and growth around the track. We will create special economic zones, industrial zones, logistics zones, in order to have jobs, growth and prosperity, mainly in the hinterland of the ports.
Anurag Varma
Senior Vice President of the Adani Group
When you have a global initiative starting in India, going through Haifa and beyond, we are well positioned and very excited at the opportunity to participate, and hopefully, in some ways, lead in this initiative.
Gidon Bromberg
Cofounder of EcoPeace Middle East
The project becomes catalytic because it does not just meet the Palestinian dignity needs of prosperity in their own state, but it also helps meet Israel’s security needs of living in its Jewish state.
Speakers’ Debate
17:30 – 18:45 | Plenary session 8
Economic Growth and Geopolitical Challenges in Asia
John Andrews
Author, Journalist and Contributing Editor to The Economist
For decades we have assumed that Asia’s economies were always bound to not just outperform, but actually race ahead of the rest of the world.
Douglas Paal
Distinguished Fellow at the Asia Program Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Our Navy, Air Force and Marine capabilities in the region have not kept pace with the capacity of China to intimidate Taiwan, and therefore Taiwan is in a more vulnerable place today than it was 20 years, 30 years ago, and it is continuing in that direction.
Jean-Pierre Cabestan
Senior Researcher Emeritus at the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), Professor Emeritus at Hong Kong Baptist University
I think that China’s interest is to try to take advantage of the return of Trump Administration to drive a wedge between the US and its allies, both in Europe and in Asia.
Mayankote Kelath Narayanan
Former Senior Advisor and National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India (Manmohan Singh), former Governor of West Bengal
China is already acknowledged to have the capability to become a global manufacturing hub. However, lesser known is the fact that India, with the world’s largest and aspiring youthful labor force, is beginning to challenge China, and in the process, the rest of the world.
Hur Kyung-Wook
Chairman of Seoul Financial Forum, Chairman of the Board of the Korea Center for International Finance
The Asian economies are very closely integrated with not only the Chinese economy, but also with the US economy. There is now increasing political tension to pressure Asian countries to take sides, politically at least.
Yuichi Hosoya
Professor of International Politics at Keio University in Tokyo, Director of Research at the Asia-Pacific Initiative
Every year China is increasing its defense budget[…]. Therefore, the number one priority for Japan, South Korea and Taiwan is to increase their defense budgets. To do that, we have to seriously think about the possibility of a Taiwan contingency.
Debate
19:15 | Dinner with Kevin Rudd
Kevin Rudd
Ambassador of Australia to the United States, former Prime Minister of Australia
The historical pattern will always be for the Chinese system to spend a lot of time in the course of the first year of any new US administration, analyzing that administration for real-word change in policy actions and behavior.
08:30 – 09:45 | Plenary session 9
The Future of Europe After the Ukraine War and Trump’s Election
Terry Martin
Journalist and TV news anchor
The world is growing more polarized. Europe must find a way of navigating its internal divisions if it hopes to retain credibility as a global actor.
Yann Coatanlem
Cofounder of GlassView, the inventors of NeuroPowered MediaTM, and President of Club Praxis
We think in particular if you could adopt the Danish flexicurity but maybe limited to the top 5% or 10% of employees, the kind of area where you are going to hire your highly qualified engineers, then you are in business.
Zaki Laïdi
Former Personal Advisor to the High Representative and Vice President of the Commission EEAS
The Europeans, of course, have to avoid any kind of military confrontation with Russia […]. But we need to deter Russia, and to do so, we need to ramp up our military effort on a national basis. However, we also have to do it collectively.
Hubert Védrine
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, Founder of Hubert Védrine Conseil
There is no body composed of European allies within NATO. So we may have to invent one. Will we then face a question we have never had to deal with because it never came up, i.e., who decides?
Vuk Jeremić
President of the Center for International Relations and Sustainable Development, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia
I cannot foresee the European Union taking in any new fully-fledged member into the European Council, before changing certain decision-making rules with the European Union.
Norbert Röttgen
Member of the Deutscher Bundestag and member of the Foreign Affairs Committee
What changed last month, in November this year, is that European security, for the first time since December 1941, has become primarily a European matter.
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
09:45 – 10:15 | Plenary session 10
Conversation with Aiman Ezzat
Aiman Ezzat
CEO of Capgemini
The digital revolution is comparable to the industrial revolution. The rules of competition and consumers’ expectations are radically changing.
10:15 – 11:15 | Plenary session 11
The AI Revolution and Beyond
Daniel Andler
Professor Emeritus at Sorbonne University, Member of the Académie des sciences morales et politiques, Philosopher
What is good for AI is not necessarily good for humanity. Recommending that we reap the benefits of AI while preventing or limiting the damages it can inflict is vacuous. We must do better.
François Barrault
Founder and Chairman of FDB Partners, Chairman of IDATE DigiWorld
AI has the potential to simplify our lives by eliminating mundane tasks, thereby providing us with more opportunities to connect with each other and create a better world.
H. E. Omran Sharaf
Assistant Foreign Minister for Advanced Science and Technology of the United Arab Emirates
I think this debate needs to happen at the level of multilateral platforms and bilateral discussions, where nations have to discuss this but at the same time, not hinder or stop the progress of the developments in this important field that brings a lot of benefits to humanity.
Lee Tiedrich
Distinguished Faculty Fellow in Law & Responsible Technology at Duke University, member of the OECD and Global Partnership on AI (GPAI)
We need to have laws and policies that work, that companies and governments can operationalize, and that can work in practice. Because of the connected nature of our world, it has become a global game.
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
11:15 – 12:15 | Plenary session 12
Innovative Leaders: Transforming Business with Generative AI
Lucia Sinapi-Thomas
Executive Vice President, Capgemini Ventures Managing Director
We cannot ignore the fact that […] generative AI is also raising some fundamental concerns. This resonates with unprecedented fear of a tech singularity, an hypothetical point where computers would transcend human intelligence.
Lucia Russo
Artificial Intelligence Policy Analyst at the OECD
When it comes to intellectual property rights, we know that these models are trained on large bodies of text and other material that is often copyrighted, and this raises the question of fair remuneration for authors.
Eiso Kant
CTO & Cofounder of Poolside
Our view is that the road to AGI is going to go through building the world’s most capable capabilities in software development and coding first, and secondly only in other areas.
Rotem Alaluf
CEO of Wand.ai
We want [every agent in our system] to be able to go to any human in a complete two-sided collaboration process between humanity and the agentic system.
Speakers’ Debate
Felix Naser
COO of Liquid.AI
Our mission is to build capable and efficient general-purpose AI systems at every scale.
Debate
14:45 – 15:45 | Plenary session 13
Brics Expansion: Implications for the Future of Global Order
Nikolaus Lang
Managing Director and Senior Partner in BCG’s Munich office
From our side, the expanded BRICS will have impacts on five areas that are critical for corporations: energy, trade, infrastructure and development, monetary policy, and last but not least, technological cooperation.
Etienne Berchtold
Ambassador of the Republic of Austria to the United Arab Emirates, former Foreign and European Policy Spokesperson for three Austrian Chancellors
So far, there have been no concrete plans to implement a currency at the BRICS level but if we continue to threaten them maybe they will get the idea to do that[…]. We have to be careful that it does not backfire.
Trudi Makhaya
Board Member, Spar Group & Former Economic Advisor to the President of South Africa
In a sense, I can say that BRICS has been very important in terms of providing options but when it comes to some of the fundamental structural changes we want to see in the way Africa engages with the rest of the world, that is still very much a work in progress.
Constanza Negri Biasutti
Brazil B20 Sherpa and former Trade & International Integration Head at CNI (National Confederation of Industry) in Brazil
Despite the differences we see in terms of the composition and geopolitical views, the G20 and BRICS should be as seen as complementary.
Qiao Yide
Vice Chairman and Secretary General of Shanghai Development Research Foundation
The NDB is operating very well and is rated at AA+ by Standard and Poor, which is higher than the individual five countries. The NDB is raising capital in the international market, the cost is only 30 or 40 bps, higher than that of the World Bank.
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
15:45 – 16:15 | Plenary session 14
Conversation with Anwar Gargash
H. E. Anwar Gargash
Diplomatic Advisor to President of the United Arab Emirates
I think we also have a responsibility in the region to work to not repeat past mistakes, to try to understand that the region is very difficult for one ideological view to be superior. We have to accept that the region has to reach equilibrium and, as I said, that equilibrium is about common sense.
16:30 – 19:00 | Parallel workshops
Workshop #1 – Workshop 1: Economy and Finance
Jean-Claude Trichet
Former President of the European Central Bank, Honorary Governor of the Banque de France
There has already been this surge of protectionism and the hedging post-Covid but also taking into account the geostrategic difficulties we are observing which, of course, was amplified by Trump.
Hur Kyung-Wook
Chairman of Seoul Financial Forum, Chairman of the Board of the Korea Center for International Finance, former Vice Minister for the Ministry of Strategy and Finance
First, our trade dependency is very high, and Germany is probably the only one of the top 12 countries to reach anything similar. […] The second element that makes Korea more vulnerable than other countries is that we are caught between the US and China.
Pierre Jacquet
Professor of Economics at the École nationale des ponts et chaussées (ENPC), Member of the Cercle des Économistes
We are clearly facing in the Euro Area a clear, long-term decline in total factor productivity, with even a negative trend growth since the early 2000s. This would mean that over the last quarter of a century, we are basically continuously using our production factors less efficiently!
Sébastien Jean
Associate Director of Ifri’s Geoeconomics and Geofinance Initiative, Professor of Economics at CNAM University
For me, it is certain that partners will retaliate but I am also assuming that most, if not all, will only retaliate partially and not try to match American duties, at least as far as the WTO’s usual definition of matching in terms of trade distortion.
André Lévy-Lang
Founder and Chairman of the Louis Bachelier Institute, former CEO of Banque Paribas
The dollar remains by far the main trade instrument as money or to use in trade. China’s efforts to use the renminbi have limited the use of the dollar to some extent but if you look at the numbers, the dollar is still by far the main currency used in trade.
John Lipsky
Senior Fellow of the Foreign Policy Institute at Johns Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, former First Deputy Managing Director of the IMF
One development that has been widely noted is the relatively recent good performance of the US economy in terms of total factor productivity growth. […] This outcome was not expected and differentiates the United States from all other major advanced economies.
Gary Litman
Senior Vice President for Global Initiatives at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
I think the mood in private reflects the uncertainty and especially that larger companies have to shift pretty quickly from the narrative of investing in the energy transition and climate to investing in security and tech.
Jean-Claude Meyer
Vice Chairman International of Rothschild & Cie
We can anticipate […] one scenario for Europe and two for the US, and maybe as a surprise, a third one for the US. In my view, there is only one scenario for Europe, which is continuous very slow growth of 0.9% to 1% next year and inflation around 2%.
Debate
Workshop #2 – Workshop 2: Energy and Environment
TotalEnergies and Energy Transition
In 2021 we changed our name to TotalEnergies, even though people continue to say Total, because we believe that the energy transition needs a multi-energy strategy.
Discussing Liquefied Natural Gas
If we start to calculate the CO2 emissions attached to a new LNG project, we should also take into account the avoided CO2 emissions that would have been emitted by alternative fuel.
Global Governance and Russia’s View on Energy
The Baku Declaration on adaptation recognized that the sole reduction of the use of fossil fuels will not solve the problem and that adaptation of the planet to the existing level of carbon emission is equally if not more important.
On Fugitive Methane Emissions, Carbon Markets and the Fight Against Coal
To truly improve the emissions footprint […], we must do more about fugitive methane emissions. Clearly, coalitions are being built, but many parts of the world are still excluded—not because they are not around the table, but simply because these issues have not yet reached them.
Energy Challenges in Latin America, Hydropower and Nuclear
There is still not a stable electricity supply in Lima and many other cities and communities. That is causing tremendous political tension in the country because gas is available, but it is going to LNG for export.
Focus on Argentina
Argentina has the determination to contribute to global security of supply and the mitigation of climate change through its vast natural resources, while carrying out its own energy transition.
Investing in the Energy Transition
We are talking about flexibility on the production and generation sides but there is no way we can achieve energy transition without flexibility on the demand side and the link between the two is the grid.
Final Comments
Workshop #3 – Workshop 3: Economic and Social Issues in the Middle East
Introduction
Dorothée Schmid
Head of the Türkiye/Middle East program at Ifri
There is now a need to build in parallel a working production system and a new system of relationships with the outside world [in Syria].
François Gouyette
Chairman of Pro Oriente Conseil, Vice-Chairman for Public Diplomacy of The Global Diwan, Advisor to the Chairman of Diot-Siaci
North Africa, sometimes considered as a backwater within the broader Middle East context, actually deserves, in my opinion, far more attention from the international community.
Raed Charafeddine
Central and Commercial Banker, former First Vice Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon
Yet, amid this persistent chaos, the trauma of destruction, displacement, and loss, the Lebanese people continue to exhibit extraordinary resilience and strength, which binds them together across divides.
Adil Alzarooni
CEO of Al Zarooni Emirates Investments and Al Bidayer Holding, Founder of Citizens School
In a fast-moving world with ever-changing technologies, their role as family businesses is in danger today in countries where the governments are taking the lead in top business sectors.
Kamel Abdallah
Managing Director and CEO of Canal Sugar, Egypt
Gone is the idea that food security is about availability and affordability, which used to be the case, but no longer, as we have gone beyond that idea to say we need to be self-sufficient.
Monica Malik
Économiste en chef à la Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
These are still relatively small, but you continue to see the focus on governments realizing that they cannot continue to just be oil exporting countries, and that they need to gradually diversify and morph into new economic models.
Fareed Yasseen
Secretary General of the Iraq Pugwash Association, former Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq to the United States
There are mainly three reasons for water scarcity: upstream dams, climate change, and inefficient water management. […] Iraq is where agriculture was invented but if we want to pursue it in the future, we have to reinvent it.
Ernesto Damiani
Professor at Khalifa University for the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Director of the Center for Cyber-Physical Systems (C2PS)
Climate, energy, food security, water are all problems but there are also waves of opportunities for new economic developments based on the technologies you are trying to create to handle these problems.
Debate
19:30 | Gala dinner with His Excellency Sheikh Salem bin Khalid Al Qassimi
H. E. Sheikh Salem bin Khalid Al Qassimi
Minister of Culture, United Arab Emirates
The pursuit of peace and stability is another area where culture plays a significant role. In a world increasingly marked by polarization, fostering inter-cultural dialogue can build bridges and mutual understanding.
09:00 – 10:30 | Plenary session 15
Global Health Challenges
Michel Kazatchkine
Special Advisor to the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
Health is a huge issue on the international economic agenda, of commerce and industry. It is also an issue of social justice and human rights and it is an integral part of intertwined, interconnected crises and challenges we face, food, climate, energy and water.
Antoine Flahault
Director of the Institute of Global Health at the University of Geneva, Director of the Swiss School of Public Health
It is not about prolonging our lives infinitely but much more about improving our health and quality of life within our already long-life expectancy.
Maha Barakat
Assistant Minister for Health and Life Sciences at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the UAE
Many of the global health challenges we have to deal with today can fall under the causation of climate change or become much worse because of climate change.
Jean-François Etter
Professor at the Institute of Global Health (ISG) of the University of Geneva
Tobacco harm reduction aims at offering safe alternatives to cigarettes to people who cannot quit, for instance people with mental health problems who find it very difficult to quit smoking and have to get their nicotine by other means than smoking.
Juliette Tuakli
Mercy Ships International Diplomatic Ambassador for Africa, former Clinical Professor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, Founder and former Medical Director of CHILD Accra in Ghana
Prevention is not just about avoiding disease, which is important, it is also about building healthier, more resilient communities on the continent.
Yoshiyuki Sagara
Senior Research Fellow at the Asia Pacific Initiative (API) specialized in health security policy
Prevention is always a difficult and challenging topic for policy-makers in terms of mobilizing political commitments as well as resources. This is not the first time the world has emphasized pandemic prevention, and my concern is that we may be repeating the cycle of panic and neglect.
Debate
10:30 – 11:45 | Plenary session 16
Geopolitics, Food, World Hunger: A Forgotten and Explosive Subject
Jean-Michel Severino
President of Investisseurs & Partenaires, former Vice President of the World Bank for Asia, former CEO of France’s International Development Agency (AFD)
In all those three international negotiations, agricultural issues were basically very low on the agenda, if not. This lack of focus on what is, with health, one of the most critical of our global issues when it comes to the sustainability of our livelihoods, is a big question.
Máximo Torero Cullen
Chief Economist of the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
We have 733 million people in chronic hunger, which is the midpoint estimated in the latest survey. We have 2.3 billion people who lack regular access to food and affordable subsidized access for 2.8 billion people.
Philippe Chalmin
Founder of Cercle Cyclope, Professor Emeritus at Paris-Dauphine University
To my mind agricultural production globally is not really a problem, sufficient agricultural products are produced in the world to satisfy human needs. […] The problem is not there, it is a problem of poverty, and I am afraid to say that trade is not really the solution […].
Bayu Krisnamurthi
Professor at the Bogor Agricultural University, former Vice Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia
Hunger is alarming but at the same time it is a paradox. There are 1 billion meals wasted and if they could be distributed and reallocated to the hungry then we could solve this problem instantly.
Kamel Abdallah
Managing Director and CEO of Canal Sugar, Egypt
Whenever we hear the word hunger, we need to redefine in our minds that hunger is about having nutritious food, not just about having food and that is a very important distinction.
Jean-Marc Astorg
Strategy Director at the Centre national d’études spatiales (CNES)
Today, with spatial data we can accurately know about soil conditions on a global and local scale, allowing us to obtain data on individual plots. […] This optimizes water and input use.
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
11:45 – 12:30 | Plenary session 17
Politics and Religion in the Middle East
Olivier Roy
Research Director at CNRS (French National Center for Scientific Research)
The jihadist wave, which began in 1995 and, to me, ended very recently, blinded us Westerners to the real dynamics in the Middle East. In other words, we saw everything through the lens of the jihad and terrorism. But that was not really what politically mobilized the man in the street.
Haïm Korsia
Chief Rabbi of France
I do not have the feeling that there was an Israeli-Palestinian war. There is an Israeli-Hamas war. There is no doubt about that. Then there is Israel’s war against Hezbollah. But there has certainly not been an Israeli-Palestinian war since October 7.
13:30 – 14:15 | Plenary session 18
What Perspectives for a Sustainable Arab-Israeli Peace?
Nabil Fahmy
Dean Emeritus of the American University in Cairo, former Foreign Minister of Egypt
Before October 7 we were all becoming complacent that this could continue with occupation and tension, security and insecurity, without there being damage.
Itamar Rabinovich
Vice Chairman of the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv, Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution
One of the explanations for what happened is that it was so rotten that it only took a push for the regime to fall.
The Role of Türkiye in the Middle East
I would actually argue that strategically, Turkish-Arab cooperation is much more important than the Idlib issue and I think that the Turks would come around on this, although for reasons you know, they are hypersensitive in terms of the Kurdish issue.
The Role of Iran
I think there is a great deal of opposition to the regime in Iran itself, there is a lot of criticism with people saying they have suffered economically while billions of dollars have been wasted in Lebanon and other places and it all came to nothing, so maybe it is time to rethink the policies.
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Both sides know where they are beginning and where the ultimate objective is. The problem is neither side, and again I am being very generous here, trusts the other so we need to take action on the ground with a vision towards the future but create some teeth for that vision.
The Palestinian Authority
I am not sure [the Palestinian Authority is] ready for statehood right now and to have a failed Palestinian state, let us say, create a state by fear and for it then to fail after a year would be very counterproductive.
Trump’s Influence in Iran and Israel
I do believe that Trump will be open to the idea of a grand compromise with Iran or a grand package, but I do not think he will succeed in doing that.
14:15 – 15:15 | Plenary session 19
War and Peace in the Middle East: What Role for the Europeans?
Renaud Girard
Senior Reporter and International Columnist at Le Figaro
War and peace in the Middle East are not only about the Israelis and the Palestinians; it is also Turks and Kurds through Julani in Syria, and of course war between Israel and Iran.
Syria
Aside from getting to know these people, I think the first thing for Europe, the Arabs and everybody else who wants to help, is to support a UN-supported but Syrian-owned political process to get an all encompassing, inclusive political governance setup in Syria, including a constitutional discussion.
European Diplomacy in the Middle East
For several European countries it is a tricky issue to deal with this region because they have to face domestic consequences. It is true in Germany where refugees from the Middle East are sensitive to the Palestinian cause.
Israel-Iran Tension
They have been unable to protect their proxies, which means that their image, their aura, in the Middle East is gone. I guess they will have some hard internal discussions in Tehran, and I hope, and basically also expect, that they will decide to build their own country rather than trying to dominate regional countries.
Additional Comments
Debate
15:15 – 16:15 | Plenary session 20
Building a Sustainable Future in Africa
Seán Cleary
Chairman of Strategic Concepts (Pty) Ltd, Founder and Executive Vice Chair of the FutureWorld Foundation
The opportunities are equally extraordinary because Africa will have the largest demographic dividend in the world over the course of the next 70 years.
Nardos Bekele-Thomas
CEO of the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), former United Nations Resident Coordinator in South Africa
Africa contributes only 4% of carbon emissions, but we are bearing the greatest burden of climate change. […] The world has to wake up because we need to help Africa to build its capacity to adapt, but also to mitigate.
Vincent Biruta
Minister of Interior of the Republic of Rwanda, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Rwanda
Regional integration is not an option for African countries but a must if we want to achieve economic development and peace.
Nialé Kaba
Minister of Economy, Planning and Development of Côte d’Ivoire
[The ECOWAS] embodies a shared ambition for inclusive economic development in a context of peace and regional integration.
Jean-Michel Severino
Ancien vice-président de la Banque mondiale pour l’Asie, ancien directeur général de l’Agence française de développement (AFD)
What is good for growth, as we have long known, is added value, investment in agriculture, intelligence and capacity building. Which is something that most of the countries that have borrowed heavily to finance their development have failed to do.
16:15 – 17:30 | Plenary session 21
President Trump: What Economy and Foreign Policy?
Virginie Robert
Foreign Desk Editor at Les Échos, Vice President of the European-American Press Club in Paris
Hiroyuki Akita
Commentator of Nikkei, Japan
The best approach is to take advantage of his slogan of “Make America Great Again”. […] Maybe we can say this to him, “As US allies, we really want US to become greater again. Also, we also want to be even greater together with the US […].” This approach will maybe give more leverage than preaching or flattering Trump.
Peter Beyer
Member of the Deutscher Bundestag, former Coordinator of Transatlantic Cooperation of the Federal Government
Donald Trump knows it is his last chance: two years, four years. It will start with dozens of executive orders, right from day one onwards, so we better prepare in Europe and elsewhere in the world.
Fareed Yasseen
Secretary General of the Iraq Pugwash Association, former Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq to the United States
In 2016 the Republicans were not actually really well prepared for winning the White House. That is why they had such a difficult time finding people that would stick with the Trump administration[…]. This time is going to be different. It will be rehearsed.
Jay Truesdale
CEO of TD International
However, while [President elect Trump] has a mandate and while he is entering the office with tremendous momentum, he has surrounded himself with individuals who do not have senior level executive experience.
Jean-Claude Gruffat
Member of United Way Leadership Council, Board member Atlas Network, Managing Director of Weild and Co LLC New York
I think if you want to understand what he is going to do, you have to understand that the Trump who is going to be the 47th President of the United States is not different from the Trump who was in business.
Speakers’ Debate
Debate
17:30 – 18:30 | Plenary session 22
Final Debate
General Francis A. Béhanzin
Co-Founder and Chairman of the Réseau mondial des professionnels de sécurité et de défense pour la prévention et la lutte contre le terrorisme, former Commissioner Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
In Mali, as in Burkina Faso and Niger, we have benefited from international solidarity, but the results have been unsatisfactory. That is the main reason why Africans have stood up against the presence of foreign forces in their countries.
Michel Foucher
Member of the Center for Higher European Studies (former ENA) and Senior Counsel on studies at MEDEF
We in the North must understand that we no longer have the monopoly on normative and narrative power, and so, hear the issues and messages of the local Souths.
Christophe Poinssot
Deputy CEO and Scientific Director of the Bureau de recherches géologiques et minières (BRGM)
The problem of securing supplies in metals, which we thought was relegated to the history of the Industrial Revolution, has come roaring back with a vengeance and that these metals are again essential for our economies and our public policies.
An Update on Syria
An Update on Syria
If Syria wants to survive, it needs to cut ties with foreign proxies—fast
Faisal Saeed Al Mutar
March 9, 2025
The new Syrian government just failed its first real test. No one expected Iran to sit idly by—it was always going to push sectarian tensions. Those tensions have existed for decades, but the way the new leadership handled this crisis exposed its real problem: a complete lack of strategy. Instead of proving it can lead, it’s already falling into the same traps that have kept Syria weak and divided.
One of the biggest red flags is the presence of foreign fighters in the military. Reports indicate that groups from Central Asia and elsewhere are now part of Syria’s security forces. This isn’t just a minor issue—it’s a direct challenge to Syrian sovereignty. A country trying to rebuild after years of war cannot afford to outsource its security to foreign mercenaries or ideological proxies. This is how Syria turns into a battleground for regional powers instead of reclaiming control over its own future.
We’ve seen this play out before. Iraq’s De-Ba’athification in the early 2000s wiped out experienced military and political officials, creating a vacuum that led to insurgency, civil war, and, eventually, ISIS. The lesson was clear: when you purge an entire system without integrating key figures into the new order, you don’t get stability—you get chaos. Syria is repeating that mistake right now. Instead of ensuring that former military officials—especially top officers—are brought into the fold, they’re being sidelined. That’s a recipe for resentment, fragmentation, and another round of conflict.
If the new leadership wants to govern rather than just survive, it needs to act fast. First, kick out the foreign fighters. The Syrian military should be Syrian, full stop. Second, integrate former regime officials and minority leaders into real positions of power—not just as a token gesture but in ways that actually give them influence. Stability isn’t about empty slogans; it’s about ensuring that everyone with a stake in the country’s future has a seat at the table.
A lot of forces in the region want Syria to fail. The new leadership needs to wake up to that reality. This isn’t the time for self-congratulatory interviews with video bloggers. It’s time to do the hard work—building institutions, securing the country, and preventing the same cycle of disaster that has already played out across the region. If they don’t, they won’t just be another failed government. They’ll be the ones who had a chance to fix Syria and blew it.
Trump’s cost-slashing Cultural Revolution risks harming U.S.
Trump’s cost-slashing Cultural Revolution risks harming U.S.
Defense and diplomacy not spared from Elon Musk-led purge of bureaucrats
Hiroyuki AKITA, Nikkei commentator
February 25, 2025
TOKYO — U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is embarking on an unprecedented campaign of cost cuts in the federal government, designed to dramatically weaken the bureaucracy in the name of reform, with potentially global repercussions.
Elon Musk is heading this effort as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, a temporary organization created by Trump’s executive order.
There is widespread shock in Washington over the restructuring. Budgets for important projects were abruptly cut, and government workers and employees of nongovernmental organizations worried that they could lose their jobs.
At Trump’s behest, Musk aims to significantly pare down the federal workforce from its current headcount of more than 2 million, and slash federal spending by over $1 trillion. The latter cuts would amount to more than half of all discretionary outlays, including spending on defense and foreign policy.
Musk is taking his task seriously. The administration sent an email to most government employees encouraging them to take “deferred resignations.” The U.S. Agency for International Development, which oversees foreign aid and employed roughly 10,000 people, was temporarily forced to shut down. The Department of Defense is set to lay off 5,400 civilian workers this week.
The Department of Veterans Affairs and the Forest Service have fired more than 1,000 and over 3,000 employees still in their probationary periods, respectively, according to Reuters. The Department of Education, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Office of Personnel Management have also issued layoff notices to probationary workers.
This has already gone beyond streamlining. The effort verges on effectively weakening the U.S. bureaucracy.
In China, between 1966 and 1976, Communist Party leader Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution in a bid to shore up his control over the party, throwing the country into chaos. He stirred up young “Red Guards” through a cult of personality to persecute intellectual elites.
Pragmatist elites such as then-President Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping were forced out of power, and government institutions and schools became crippled.
Though the scales involved are very different, some aspects of that time resemble what is happening in Washington now.
Trump perceives bureaucratic elites in the federal government as a potential threat to his grip on power. Many bureaucrats are believed to lean liberal, favoring the Democratic Party. Trump is using Musk as Mao’s Red Guard to purge workers who do not show sufficient loyalty.
The president is especially hostile toward diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the government, which broadened under previous President Joe Biden.
Many of Trump’s supporters believe members of racial or ethnic minority groups should not receive special consideration in government or corporate hiring. Musk also opposes DEI on the grounds that ability should be the top priority.
There is plenty of waste to be found in the enormous U.S. government, and its efficiency needs to be improved. Going too far with DEI can also cause harm. But drastic steps intended to destroy institutions risk weakening important functions of the government.
The impact on foreign policy is of particular concern. USAID has supported independent media and NGOs in Central and Eastern Europe and emerging countries to promote democracy. It has an annual budget of $40 billion.
Its shutdown was welcome news for China and Russia, which have opposed the agency’s work. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, praised it as a “smart move.”
The cuts extend as far as national security. The offer of deferred resignations went out to the entire Central Intelligence Agency, U.S. media reported.
According to a former senior official who handled national security policy during the first Trump administration, the president considers U.S. intelligence agencies to be political enemies, after he was suspected of colluding with Russia to interfere with the 2016 presidential election. A public investigation into the matter ended after finding no conclusive evidence.
Trump “believes the CIA leaked such information in an attempt to bring him down,” the former official said.
All eyes are on the impact on the Department of Defense and the military. The Washington Post reported Wednesday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered defense budget cuts of 8% annually over the next five years. He has also dismissed top military officers who had been appointed under Biden.
“The development and procurement of weapons, which involves a huge budget, is expensive, and there is much room for greater efficiency,” a security expert close to Trump said.
But a former senior DoD official warned that “rushing to cut budgets without scrutiny could lead to a decline in deterrence.”
The best-case scenario for the U.S. and its allies would be a restructuring that improves the government’s efficiency and enables it to better compete against China and Russia.
“Mao’s and Trump’s methods are similar in that they both galvanized the masses in an attempt to destroy existing power structures,” said Wu Junhua, research director at Japan Research Institute and an expert in China’s internal affairs. “But the latter aims to streamline a bloated government. If he succeeds, the U.S. is likely to be revived as a superpower. China is probably watching with trepidation.”
China’s Cultural Revolution wasted 10 valuable years. Trump should use its failures as a cautionary tale.
Trump must avoid an ‘ugly deal’ with China
Trump must avoid an ‘ugly deal’ with China
Beijing’s bait may be tempting, but he should never trade away security
Hiroyuki AKITA, Nikkei commentator
February 15, 2025
TOKYO — Just a few weeks into Donald Trump’s U.S. presidency, diplomatic and economic tensions between the U.S. and China are intensifying. On Feb. 4, Trump imposed an additional 10% tariff on all imports from China, signaling that further increases may follow.
Trump’s strategy to pressure China goes beyond trade disputes. He views China’s growing influence over the Panama Canal as a strategic threat and is poised to take action to remove its involvement there.
During a joint news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Feb. 7, Trump announced that the U.S. would strengthen its collaboration with Japan to counter China’s “economic aggression.” He pledged to deploy “the full strength of American deterrence capabilities” to defend Japan “100%” in the years ahead.
On the surface, it appears the U.S. is quickly heading toward a direct confrontation with China. However, Trump’s actions and rhetoric suggest a deeper intention to negotiate with Beijing for a “big, beautiful deal.”
Within the diplomatic circles of the world’s leading powers, two conflicting theories about Trump’s intentions are being discussed. One view holds that Trump sees China as a formidable adversary and is intent on ramping up pressure on both trade and diplomatic fronts. This approach could lead to an even more strained relationship than during his first term in office.
The alternative theory presents a stark contrast: Trump aims to secure favorable concessions from Chinese President Xi Jinping, using his pressure on China as a negotiation tactic.
While it is clear that Trump is concerned by China’s efforts to rival the U.S. in high-tech and economic sectors, his broader approach to China seems to align more with the second theory — seeking advantageous deals rather than engaging in outright strategic confrontations.
One strong argument for this view is Trump’s clear eagerness to engage with Xi. He initially extended an invitation to the Chinese leader for his inauguration in mid-January. When that didn’t materialize, Trump quickly expressed his desire to visit China at the earliest opportunity.
Furthermore, even on the eve of imposing the additional tariffs, Trump signaled plans to engage with the Chinese side “probably within 24 hours.” These actions clearly point to someone not gearing up for a confrontation.
Trump’s desire for direct negotiations with Xi goes beyond trade issues. He is also seeking Xi’s cooperation to help achieve his diplomatic goal of brokering a cease fire in Ukraine.
In a phone call with Xi just before taking office, Trump stressed the urgency of resolving the situation in Ukraine and urged cooperation, saying, “You ought to get it settled.”
The U.S. estimates that China supplies 70% to 90% of the precision electronic components and machine tools essential for Russia’s weapons production. Trump is expected to demand that Beijing halt these supplies.
Despite his harsh criticisms of China, Trump has avoided speaking negatively about Xi, instead praising him as a “great leader.” This suggests that Trump sees Xi as crucial to securing a successful U.S.-China deal through negotiation.
Patrick Cronin, the Asia-Pacific security chair at the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington, anticipates an upcoming meeting between Trump and Xi. Speaking at the Tokyo Global Dialogue, a symposium held in Tokyo on Jan. 29, Cronin said the debate about a possible economic deal will unfold “over the next couple of months,” adding, “It will happen as well in a face to face meeting, I believe, in the next month, even between Xi Jinping and President Trump.”
Meanwhile, China is holding a firm stance against yielding to pressure from Washington but appears determined to avoid a full-scale confrontation with the U.S. In light of its sluggish economy, Beijing is prioritizing social stability.
China aims to become a superpower on par with the U.S. by 2050. In pursuit of this goal, escalating unnecessary confrontations with the U.S. is seen as unwise. Chinese diplomatic experts suggest that these considerations shape Beijing’s approach to managing its relationship with the Trump administration.
U.S. hardliners on China, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, are likely uneasy about Trump’s eagerness to strike a deal with China. They regard China as an enemy posing a security threat and are determined to counter it on all fronts.
However, Trump takes a different approach. He seems to believe that international politics are shaped not by rules or ethics, but by negotiations and deals between major powers. In this view, China can be both an adversary and an essential negotiating partner for the U.S.
Yet, Beijing might try to leverage Trump’s love of dealmaking, offering substantial trade concessions in exchange for U.S. compromises on key security issues like Taiwan and the South China Sea. If Trump takes the bait, the outcome could be remembered as an “ugly deal” that destabilizes Asia.
Looking ahead, three potential scenarios emerge. The first involves the U.S. and China reaching a trade agreement, accompanied by diplomatic compromises, possibly including issues like a cease fire in Ukraine. The second sees an initial trade agreement fall apart as compromises fail, leading to heightened conflicts over security issues. The third scenario offers a middle ground between these two outcomes.
Of these, the second scenario — marked by heightened tensions — seems the most likely, as the U.S. and China are not just addressing isolated issues but are moving toward a structural cold war. However, if Trump shows any softness toward China on security issues during this process, it could undermine stability in Asia.
Randall Schriver, a former assistant secretary of defense during Trump’s first term, comments on Trump’s reluctance to accept unfavorable deals. “Trump likes to view himself as a deal maker, however, he doesn’t take bad deals,” Schriver said. “He will be interested in what Xi Jinping has to offer, but I don’t see evidence that he would make undue sacrifices or sacrifice security.”
If Trump wants to prove his negotiating skills, he must resist the temptation to make an easy but ugly deal. Rushed compromises on security issues would only lead people to question his claimed dealmaking prowess.
Never take China’s ‘smile diplomacy’ at face value
Never take China’s ‘smile diplomacy’ at face value
Apparent goodwill to nations such as Japan and India expected to fade
Hiroyuki AKITA, Nikkei commentator
February 2, 2025 08:41 JST
TOKYO — When Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest adviser visited Japan more than a decade ago, he secretly whispered this advice to Japanese policymakers.
“In Communist-ruled China, as was once the case in the Soviet Union, its [hard-line] foreign policy could shift suddenly and drastically, so stay alert.”
According to a source familiar with Japan-Russia relations, the advice came from Nikolai Patrushev, then-secretary of Russia’s Security Council.
Patrushev made the remarks in October 2012, the month after Japan nationalized the Senkaku Islands, which China claims as part of its territory. At the time, China responded vehemently to Japan’s actions, and a large fleet of Chinese vessels surged around the Senkaku area, escalating tensions.
Still, China’s policy toward Japan could change suddenly, and it would be wise not to miss that opportunity. That, clearly, was the essence of Patrushev’s advice.
Looking at the present, Beijing may be moving in the opposite direction, but this advice could still hold true. Recently, China has softened its diplomatic stance, ramping up interactions with Japan and India — both of which have territorial and maritime concerns with China — in an apparent attempt to ease tensions.
A symbolic event was the visit to China by Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya at the end of December. According to a Japanese official, Beijing went to great lengths to fill his 18-hour stay with as many meetings and activities as possible.
At a meeting with Iwaya, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said, “China-Japan relations are at an important period of improvement and development.” This was followed by a lunch with Wang Yi, a Politburo member and foreign minister, and dinner with Liu Jianchao, head of the Communist Party’s International Department. During the dinner, Iwaya and Liu discussed measures to promote personnel and economic exchanges between the two countries.
During its mid-January visit to China, a delegation from Japan’s ruling parties received a warm welcome. The group, composed of members from the Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, Komeito, met with several high-ranking Communist Party figures, including two of the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee and three of the top 24 Politburo members. According to the Japanese side, this was the first time in the past decade that so many senior Communist Party officials had engaged with a Japanese ruling party delegation in China.
In the meantime, Japan and China took reciprocal actions to improve ties, agreeing to ease visa restrictions. China has also started considering resuming imports of Japanese seafood, which have been halted since the summer of 2023 following the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant.
China’s overtures are clearly tied to a political development in the U.S. — the return of Donald Trump to the presidency. Anticipating an increasingly bitter rivalry with the U.S., China is working to ease tensions with neighboring countries. Beijing is also seeking to boost its faltering economy by attracting more investment and trade.
China is also directing its “smile diplomacy” at India, as relations between the two have been strained in recent years. A June 2020 border clash resulted in over 20 fatalities, prompting India to restrict Chinese investments and visas. As a result, exchanges between the two Asian giants have stagnated.
The tide shifted in October when Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met for the first time in five years. The leaders agreed on the need for stability in the disputed areas and, about two months later, decided on six concrete measures to achieve this goal.
According to a former senior Indian military officer with inside knowledge of his nation’s diplomatic affairs, it was China that first proposed the border stability measures. Regarding Beijing’s intentions, he suggested that the Chinese leadership likely wants to reduce flashpoints with India before a possible confrontation with the Trump administration.
Some U.S. allies, such as Australia and several European countries, were targeted by China’s goodwill gestures before Japan and India. By the end of 2024, Beijing had lifted all punitive tariffs on Australian wine and lobster. In April of the same year, China invited German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Beijing, and the following month, Xi made his first visit to France in five years.
The key question is how long China’s overtures will last. Historically, China has used diplomatic maneuvers to approach U.S. allies and neighbors whenever tensions with the U.S. rise. However, this posture is often short-lived, as Beijing views it as secondary to addressing issues with Washington.
A typical example is China’s relations with Japan. In 1989, Beijing faced a severe
deterioration in its ties with Western countries after its crackdown on anti-government protests in Tiananmen Square. To avoid international isolation, China turned to Japan and sought to initiate mutual visits among leaders.
However, starting in the mid-1990s, Beijing’s attitude toward Japan cooled as U.S.-China relations began to improve. The government of then-President Jiang Zemin began intensifying criticism of Japan over historical issues, causing relations between the two countries to grow increasingly acrimonious.
The same pattern was repeated in 2018, the year after the first Trump administration came to power. That year, the prime ministers of Japan and China visited each other, hinting at a diplomatic thaw, but this did not result in a substantial change in their relationship.
Sadly, it is likely that Beijing’s current smile diplomacy will eventually fade, just as it has in the past. There will also be limits to the concessions China is willing to make, as its primary motive is to strategize against the U.S.
However, other countries should take advantage of China’s conciliatory gestures while they last and work to resolve difficult issues. At the same time, they should remain vigilant about China’s underlying intentions and prepare for a shift in policy and rising tensions.
Bilahari Kausikan, former permanent secretary of Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, cautions against viewing Beijing’s current diplomatic stance as a sign of real change.
“This is a tactical move as China does not want to fight on too many fronts simultaneously, particularly since it has serious economic weaknesses,” Kausikan said. “Once Beijing becomes confident that relations with Trump will not get out of hand, it will revert to its old ways.
“We should enjoy the situation while it lasts, but should not get complacent and mistake a tactical shift for a substantive policy change.”
Trump’s bullying diplomacy harks back to Yalta-era world order
Trump’s bullying diplomacy harks back to Yalta-era world order
Greenland, Panama proposals show incoming leader’s focus on force over norms
Hiroyuki AKITA, Nikkei commentator
January 15, 2025 01:44 JST
TOKYO — With days to go before his inauguration, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is already causing alarm with proposals to seize control of Greenland and the Panama Canal, as well as his refusal to rule out the use of military or economic force to do so.
The response from international officials can roughly be divided into two.
The first group sees the remarks merely as a bluff and a way to draw out diplomatic concessions. Even Trump would not truly think he can acquire Greenland, which is a Danish territory, or the Panama Canal, they say.
The second group believes Trump may be serious to some extent — that Trump considers international relations as a domain for major powers, where smaller countries should simply do what they are told.
It may be best to assume Trump’s worldview fits the latter. He has previously signaled his willingness to go over the heads of U.S. allies in order to settle international issues between major global powers.
In terms of the Ukraine war, the Biden administration has coordinated closely on its response with European NATO members. In contrast, Trump is looking to negotiate directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the fighting. He has shown no interest so far in coordinating his position beforehand with European allies.
The same applies to North Korea. Rather than working with Japan and South Korea to contain the situation, Trump seems interested in making a breakthrough through direct talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Trump has said he received “beautiful” love letters from Kim while in office. The warm comments are less about any personal affinity Trump feels toward Kim, and more a sign that he sees North Korea’s autocratic leader as an important negotiation partner.
Under the United Nations Charter created in the aftermath of World War II, every nation regardless of size is expected to abide by international rules. But Trump sees the world as a jungle governed by power, not ethics or rules. This view, which stems from his career in the cutthroat real estate sector, is not expected to change.
Trump has no interest in shaping the world order. However, he could unintentionally usher in the return of great-power diplomacy like the world saw from the Yalta Conference of 1945. From the creation of the U.N. to the occupation of Germany to determining spheres of influence, events after World War II unfolded largely the way U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin had agreed during the meeting.
Trump’s aggressive attitude against Denmark and Panama and his disregard for alliances makes sense when considering his interest in Yalta-like great-power dealmaking.
But it is Russian President Vladimir Putin who is most interested in the return of great-power diplomacy. He wants to decide on the future of Ukraine and the power balance in Europe through direct negotiations with Trump, putting the interest of U.S. allies on the back burner.
Concern over Trump’s diplomatic style loomed large over the World Policy Conference in the United Arab Emirates in December.
Trump’s approach “is the worst-case scenario” for Europe because it could result in “a deal between Putin and Trump that would be at the cost of Europe and Ukrainian security interests,” German lawmaker Norbert Roettgen said.
If there is a possibility that Trump will negotiate with the North Korean leader, “we hope that there will be very close consultation with South Korea,” said Hur Kyung-wook, South Korea’s former vice minister of strategy and finance.
In November, Alex Younger, former head of British intelligence service MI6, also expressed concerns over Trump in a podcast with the Financial Times.
“He’s a Yalta man through and through,” Younger said. “It’s all fundamentally inimical to Britain’s interests.”
Trump’s diplomacy could yield surprising results. But there is an even greater chance that he could create lasting problems.
While Putin and Kim essentially have no term limits, Trump has four years in office. If he rushes for a deal on the Ukraine war or North Korea, he would likely be put at a disadvantage.
U.S.-China ties are another thing to watch. Views on China within Trump’s team differ between hawks like Marco Rubio, Trumps choice for secretary of state, wealthy entrepreneurs like Elon Musk, and “America first” devotees like Vice President-elect JD Vance.
It is hard to imagine Musk, who is making big profits in China, taking a hard line against Beijing. While the America First faction is concerned about China, it is reluctant to spend heavily on defense to increase American involvement in Asia.
Trump has chosen to incorporate these varying viewpoints into his incoming administration. By leaving the door open to both hardline and conciliatory policies, he may be trying to keep China on its toes.
While a real estate deal concludes once a contract is signed, diplomacy does not end after one big deal. An impatient Trump could risk failure if he treats the two the same.
Gospodarka Rosji na krawędzi. Inflacja i kryzys walutowy
01.02.2025
Gospodarka Rosji na krawędzi. Inflacja i kryzys walutowy
Gospodarka Rosji zaczyna się pogrążać. Inflacja przekracza już 9 proc., co zmusiło bank centralny do podniesienia głównej stopy procentowej do 21 proc. Oprocentowanie kredytów w bankach osiągnęło niemal 30 proc., a kurs rubla spadł do poziomu z pierwszych miesięcy wojny — opisuje sytuację w Federacji Rosyjskiej francuski dziennik Le Monde.
Międzynarodowy Fundusz Walutowy (MFW) przewiduje dalsze spowolnienie rosyjskiej gospodarki. W 2025 roku wzrost PKB ma spaść do zaledwie 1,3 proc. W obliczu tych trudności szefowie rosyjskich firm, nawet tych powiązanych z Kremlem, otwarcie przyznają, że sytuacja staje się krytyczna.
Nieefektywna polityka monetarna to negatywne skutki dla przemysłu Rosji
“Stopa banku centralnego jest 2,5 razy wyższa niż inflacja, a mimo to inflacja nie spada. Wygląda na to, że lekarstwo jest bardziej szkodliwe niż choroba” — ocenił Aleksiej Mordaszow, szef przedsiębiorstwa górniczo-hutniczego Severstal. Podobne stanowisko zajmuje German Graf, szef Sbierbanku: “Sytuacja jest trudna. Gospodarka nie wytrzyma długo. Widzimy wyraźne oznaki spowolnienia”.
Siergiej Czemiezow, kierujący holdingiem Rostiech, ostrzega, że podwyżki stóp procentowych “poważnie hamują wzrost w sektorze przemysłowym”. Jak twierdzi, dalsze utrzymywanie takiej polityki grozi masowymi bankructwami przedsiębiorstw.
Presja na zakończenie konfliktu w Ukrainie
Przedstawiciele rosyjskiego biznesu nieoficjalnie sygnalizują, że sytuacja gospodarcza wymaga pilnych działań, w tym zakończenia konfliktu w Ukrainie. “Gospodarka jeszcze się trzyma, ale to nie potrwa długo” — mówi anonimowy rozmówca Le Monde. Jednocześnie wskazuje, że zawarcie rozejmu mogłoby wstrząsnąć reżimem Putina, co ujawniły wydarzenia takie jak bunt Jewgienija Prigożyna.
Międzynarodowe reakcje i dylematy Kremla. Oczekiwania wobec Donalda Trumpa
Pojawiają się spekulacje, że nowo wybrany prezydent USA Donald Trump mógłby dążyć do szybkiego porozumienia z Moskwą, zmuszając Ukrainę do ustępstw terytorialnych. Kreml jednak nie wykazuje zainteresowania takim scenariuszem. Jak zauważa Le Monde, Putin wciąż trzyma się swoich fundamentalnych założeń, a pokój chce zawrzeć wyłącznie na swoich warunkach.
W obliczu zachodnich sankcji i ich coraz bardziej odczuwalnych skutków gospodarczych, Putin staje przed trudnymi wyborami. Thierry de Montbrial, prezes organizacji World Policy Conference, prognozuje, że rosyjski przywódca przez kilka miesięcy będzie obserwował sytuację polityczną w USA, unikając jednocześnie działań, które mogłyby doprowadzić do załamania gospodarki.
Read article on Forsal.pl.
“L’Europe doit faire face à ses défis stratégiques et économiques”
12.2024
« L’Europe doit faire face à ses défis stratégiques et économiques »
Fondateur et président de l’Institut français de relations internationales (Ifri) et initiateur de la World Policy Conference, Thierry de Montbrial décrypte les bouleversements de l’ordre mondial. II revient sur le recul stratégique de l’Europe, les enjeux de la guerre en Ukraine et l’urgence pour l’Union européenne de s’adapter face aux défis économiques et technologiques globaux.
Avec le retour de Donald Trump à la Maison-Blanche, quel impact voyez-vous sur l’ordre mondial et la relation transatlantique ?
Thierry de Montbrial : La première chose frappante est le déni persistant des Européens face à cette réalité. Même après la victoire de Trump, certains continuent de minimiser l’ampleur de sa victoire. Ce refus révèle une incompréhension des transformations profondes aux États-Unis au cours des deux dernières décennies. Les clivages internes des partis politiques américains se sont intensifiés, et depuis la chute de l’Union soviétique, la question de l’avenir de l’OTAN et de la relation transatlantique était clairement posée. Lorsque Macron a évoqué la “mort cérébrale” de l’OTAN, il pointait un problème réel. C’est la guerre d’Ukraine qui a poussé les Européens à se rassembler autour de l’Alliance atlantique, bien que la Russie n’ait pas attaqué l’OTAN.
Or la guerre d’Ukraine est une guerre mondiale par ses effets globaux. Elle exacerbe les tensions économiques et renforce les populismes au détriment de l’Europe. Au lendemain du premier mandat de Trump, les Européens ont poussé un soupir de soulagement, mais les États-Unis restent centrés sur leurs propres défis. Que ce soit Trump ou un autre, la priorité américaine se recentre désormais sur leurs intérêts nationaux étroitement conçus. Cette tendance au retour sur soi est la manifestation d’un cycle classique. L’élection de Trump a des causes profondes et les changements qui s’opèrent aux États-Unis manifestent une cohérence au-delà des personnes qui les dirigent.
Est-ce la fin pour nous, les Européens ? Certains disent que cela pourrait nous pousser à ne plus être attentistes.
Le discours sur la nécessité de renforcer les capacités de défense européennes est ancien mais les progrès concrets ont été insignifiants. Sur le plan économique, l’Europe recule depuis des années. Le décrochage par rapport aux États-Unis est flagrant. L’UE s’est considérablement affaiblie depuis le début de la guerre d’Ukraine, notamment à cause de l’envol des prix de l’énergie, mais pas seulement. Aujourd’hui, près de trois ans après le début de cette guerre et avec les perspectives des nouveaux élargissements insuffisamment réfléchis de notre Union, on peut s’interroger sur l’avenir du projet européen. Le risque d’un lent détricotage de ce qui est supposé faire notre unité, non pas formelle mais réelle, doit être pris extrêmement au sérieux.
Ce décrochage transatlantique, se manifeste-t-il aussi dans le domaine de l’innovation et de l’entrepreneuriat ?
La maîtrise de la technologie et de l’innovation est la clé du pouvoir et de l’influence. Le recul de notre influence internationale, je le ressens presque physiquement depuis le temps où j’avais mis en place puis dirigé le Centre d’analyse et de prévision au Quai d’Orsay, sous la présidence de Georges Pompidou. Les États-Unis continuent plus que jamais de dominer l’innovation grâce à une culture très agile et des financements structurés à cette fin. Dans une tout autre culture, la Chine a également accompli des exploits. En France, entreprendre reste une prouesse face aux innombrables obstacles d’une société à de nombreux égards toujours bloquée. La capacité américaine à mobiliser talents et capitaux est bien illustrée par les succès d’Elon Musk, notamment dans le domaine spatial. L’Europe doit profondément réformer ses structures. En sera-t-elle capable ?
L’Ifri est un think tank extrêmement influent. Comment faites-vous face à la pression des financeurs ?
L’indépendance dans toutes ses dimensions a toujours été une préoccupation essentielle pour moi. Quand j’ai créé l’Ifri en 1979, il n’y avait pas d’équivalent en France. Mon objectif était de construire une institution comparable aux grands think tanks nés aux États-Unis et en Grande-Bretagne au lendemain de la Première Guerre mondiale. Pour cela, je me suis mis à la recherche de financements privés, une démarche unique à l’époque pour ce genre d’activité. Au début, les grands patrons pensaient que les questions internationales étaient du ressort exclusif de l’État.
De leur côté, les chercheurs répugnaient à travailler avec les entreprises. J’ai dû convaincre les uns et les autres de changer de logiciel. Aujourd’hui, la part des subventions étatiques de l’Ifri est inférieure à 15% et les financements privés sont suffisamment diversifiés pour contribuer aussi à garantir notre indépendance. Nous appliquons un code de déontologie rigoureux, auquel tout financement est soumis. Les grands projets impliquent plusieurs financements, contribuant aussi à garantir notre autonomie et notre statut d’un centre de recherche aux antipodes du lobbying.
Aux États-Unis, comment les think tanks sont-ils financés ?
L’État américain finance bien sûr de nombreux projets. Mais surtout, comme l’avait noté Tocqueville en son temps, il existe aux États-Unis une extraordinaire tradition philanthropique, dont bénéficient les think tanks de toute nature, notamment dans le domaine des relations internationales où les institutions comparables à l’Ifri sont infiniment mieux dotées. Le budget de la Brookings Institution avoisine les 100 millions de dollars et celui de la Rand Corporation les 400 millions. Aux États-Unis les fondations financent des projets de manière indépendante, mais leurs choix sont souvent en harmonie avec les intérêts stratégiques américains. Par exemple, dès 1989, certaines grandes fondations ont redirigé leurs soutiens vers l’Europe de l’Est pour l’ancrer dans le camp occidental. J’ai pu constater moi-même une forte présence d’acteurs non-étatiques américains en Ukraine avant même la chute de l’Union soviétique.
Sur la guerre d’Ukraine, quel est votre avis ?
“Cette guerre n’aurait jamais dû éclater. Nous avons raté la sortie de la guerre froide”
Après la chute de l’Union soviétique, le monde occidental a adopté l’idéologie de la “fin de l’histoire” : démocratie + économie de marché = paix et prospérité. Cette idéologie a connu des versions soft avec un président démocrate comme Bill Clinton, ou des versions hard avec un George W. Bush. Sous ces différentes formes, elle faisait fi de la résilience de l’Histoire. Dans les années 1990, rien n’a été fait pour penser sérieusement les conséquences inévitables à moyen et long terme d’un phénomène aussi considérable que la chute de l’empire russe, laissant un vide que Poutine a cherché à combler. Les tensions ont vraiment commencé après la révolution orange de 2004. La Russie voulait que l’Ukraine soit neutre. Elle réclamait une révision de la sécurité européenne, mais ses demandes sont restées sans réponse. Puis Poutine s’est lancé dans la guerre.
Qu’entendez-vous par système de sécurité européen ?
Un système de sécurité européen implique un code de conduite partagé entre toutes les parties prenantes, notamment des accords de maîtrise des armements comme l’avaient fait les Américains et les Soviétiques après la crise des missiles de Cuba en 1962. Quand la guerre d’Ukraine sera terminée, il faudra reprendre la démarche qui avait conduit aux accords d’Helsinki entre 1973 et 1975.
Comment résumer la mission de l’Ifri ?
Comprendre les grands enjeux internationaux, stratégiques, politiques et économiques. Cette mission repose sur une recherche autonome menée par des chercheurs salariés de l’Ifri, experts de terrain, en prise directe avec les réalités contemporaines. Ils doivent éclairer les décideurs – États, organisations internationales, entreprises – de façon indépendante. L’indépendance intellectuelle est aussi un pilier de l’Ifri. Nous appliquons le principe de neutralité axiologique (issu de Max Weber), qui impose à chacun de ne pas se laisser guider par ses propres passions.
L’Ifri est un espace d’échanges d’idées sur le long terme. Comment la World Policy Conference s’inscrit-elle dans cette vision ?
En 2006, j’ai décidé de lancer la World Policy Conference (WPC). Je disposais dans le monde entier d’un réseau construit notamment sur des décennies de rencontres avec les plus grands spécialistes des relations internationales, mais aussi avec de nombreux chefs d’État et responsables économiques. J’ai voulu créer un espace de débat ouvert, contrairement aux conférences fermées comme le Bilderberg, qui peuvent alimenter des fantasmes conspirationnistes par leur confidentialité.
L’idée était de faire de la WPC un lieu de dialogue global, ouvert notamment aux puissances moyennes et aux pays émergents. J’étais convaincu que la mondialisation, vécue dans un modèle néolibéral “de monde plat”, ne fonctionnerait pas durablement. Il fallait un équilibre entre ouverture et protection pour éviter les extrêmes conduisant aux conflits. La première édition, en 2008 à Évian, s’est tenue juste après la faillite de Lehman Brothers, en pleine crise financière. J’avais invité des figures majeures comme Jean-Claude Trichet, alors président de la BCE. Nicolas Sarkozy et Dmitri Medvedev, à l’époque respectivement présidents de la France et de la Fédération de Russie, y ont discuté de la crise en Géorgie. Depuis, la WPC rassemble environ 200 personnes de haut niveau, où l’on aborde les grands sujets du moment.
Quels seront les sujets de la prochaine WPC à Abu Dhabi ?
Nous aborderons des enjeux clés des relations internationales actuelles : économie, technologie, IA, dans une perspective globale et stratégique. Au Moyen-Orient, par exemple, une grande interrogation est : Israël s’apprête-t-il à intervenir en Iran, avec ou sans les États-Unis ? Si Kamala Harris avait été élue, les Israéliens auraient probablement attaqué seuls les installations nucléaires militaires iraniennes avant son entrée en fonction. Avec Trump, le calcul change: Israël pourrait prendre son temps afin de s’assurer du soutien américain et viser une élimination plus complète du programme iranien. Bien d’autres sujets géopolitiques seront traités : l’Ukraine bien sûr, l’avenir de l’Europe, la Chine… Le monde continue de changer, très vite.
Interview led by Désirée de Lamarzelle for Forbes France and published in December 2024 issue.
La World Policy Conference : « Pour un monde raisonnablement ouvert »
12.13.2024
La World Policy Conference : « Pour un monde raisonnablement ouvert »
Trois questions à… Thierry de Montbrial, président fondateur de la World Policy Conference (WPC) et de l’Institut français des relations internationales (IFRI).
Du 13 au 15 décembre 2024 doit se tenir à Abou Dabi la 17e édition de la World Policy Conference. Quels sont ses objectifs ?
T. de Montbrial : La World Policy Conference (WPC) est une conférence internationale annuelle unique qui réunit des décideurs, des intellectuels, des entrepreneurs et des représentants d’institutions internationales venant des quatre coins du monde. Son but est d’offrir un espace de discussion autour des grands défis de notre époque, qu’il s’agisse de la gouvernance mondiale, de la sécurité, du changement climatique, ou encore des nouvelles technologies. La particularité de la WPC est de favoriser une gouvernance mondiale qui respecte la diversité des nations. Dans un monde de plus en plus interdépendant, il est essentiel de créer des ponts entre les différents acteurs et d’encourager une coopération internationale qui prend en compte les spécificités et les intérêts de chacun. Cette diversité de perspectives enrichit les débats et aide à construire des solutions plus inclusives et durables.
La WPC cherche à établir un cadre de dialogue informel, où les participants peuvent échanger librement et de manière constructive, sans les contraintes de la diplomatie traditionnelle. Elle permet aux participants de prendre du recul, de s’écouter, et de s’exprimer en confiance. L’idée est de renforcer les liens de coopération dans un environnement détendu mais sérieux, car nous croyons qu’un dialogue ouvert et honnête est la première étape pour avancer vers des solutions communes aux enjeux globaux.
Quelles sont les idées fondatrices de la WPC et en quoi cette conférence est-elle unique ?
La WPC est fondée sur trois idées clés qui sont, selon moi, essentielles pour une gouvernance mondiale efficace. La première idée est que la mondialisation est irréversible. Les fondements objectifs de la mondialisation, qu’ils soient économiques, technologiques ou sociaux, sont là pour durer. Plutôt que de tenter de les contrer, nous devons trouver des moyens de nous y adapter de manière constructive, en défendant l’idée d’un monde raisonnablement ouvert, tout en prenant soin de protéger les identités et les spécificités locales.
La deuxième idée repose sur la notion de gouvernance. Dans un monde aussi interdépendant, la stabilité structurelle mondiale dépend de la capacité de chaque nation à comprendre et prendre en compte les intérêts fondamentaux des autres, même lorsque certains aspects de ces intérêts peuvent poser des problèmes. La WPC encourage les participants à rechercher un équilibre commun entre ces intérêts, car sans cela, une ouverture excessive du système international risque d’accroitre les tensions géopolitiques et géostratégiques plutôt que de les atténuer.
Enfin, la troisième idée centrale est celle de la « puissance moyenne ». Il s’agit de ces États qui, bien que ne disposant pas toujours de vastes ressources, choisissent de consacrer une partie de leurs moyens à contribuer de manière positive à la gouvernance mondiale. Ces puissances moyennes jouent un rôle essentiel en apportant de la diversité dans les discussions et en participant activement à la recherche de solutions. Ce qui rend la WPC unique, c’est justement cette combinaison d’idées et cet environnement de confiance. Les participants peuvent s’exprimer librement, sans crainte de jugement ou de pression, ce qui est rare sur la scène internationale. Notre but, bien que modeste, est nécessaire : apporter, même à petite échelle, une contribution à la paix et à la compréhension internationale.
Que faut-il attendre de l’édition 2024 ?
La 17e édition de la World Policy Conference, à Abou Dabi, est un événement significatif dans le domaine des relations internationales et des débats sur les enjeux mondiaux. À nouveau, la WPC met en lumière des thématiques géopolitiques cruciales, mais aussi la gouvernance économique, les dynamiques de la mondialisation, le changement climatique ou encore l’impact des technologies comme l’intelligence artificielle, et les défis de la sécurité alimentaire.
La compétence des participants permet de décrypter les grandes transformations géopolitiques actuelles et de réfléchir à la manière dont les grandes puissances et alliances — comme les BRICS — influencent l’ordre mondial en pleine mutation.
En choisissant Abou Dabi, non seulement nous positionnons la conférence dans un carrefour géopolitique clé, mais nous créons également un espace propice à un dialogue de haut niveau entre des leaders d’opinion. C’est une opportunité rare d’entendre et de dialoguer avec certains des esprits les plus brillants et les plus influents de notre époque.
Read article on Magazine Diplomatie.
قرقاش: مستقبل سوريا ولبنان في أيدي أبنائهما وعلى إيران وقف طموحاتها التوسّعية
12.14.2024
قرقاش: مستقبل سوريا ولبنان في أيدي أبنائهما وعلى إيران وقف طموحاتها التوسّعية
رأى أنور قرقاش المستشار الدبلوماسي لرئيس دولة الإمارات أنّ العالم اليوم تسوده الفوضى، وأن “ما نشهده في المنطقة وحتى قبل انهيار نظام الأسد يمثل زلزالاً استراتيجياً وسنستغرق وقتاً قبل فهم أبعاده الإستراتيجية”.
وقال في مداخلة خلال مشاركته في مؤتمر السياسات العالمية المنعقد في أبوظبي اليوم، إنّ ثلاثة دروس يمكن استخلاصها من سوريا: المخاوف والأمل والفرصة. وناشد الشعب السوري أن يكون قادراً على بناء نظام جديد لإحراز التقدّم وهذا مهمّ للغاية من أجل التغلّب على تاريخ البلاد من الاضطرابات والانقلابات والصراعات والحروب ولا سيّما في سنوات حكم الأسد الـ 54 التي كانت أكثر صعوبة كما رأينا من الصور التي نقلت واقع السجون وغيرها”.
أمّا الدرس الثاني فيتعلّق بالقلق كون هذا الوضع يتّسم بدينامية متغيّرة، مشيراً إلى “أننا نسمع الكثير من المقولات حيال المخاوف من القوّة الجديدة التي تتشكّل ومدى ارتباطها بـ”القاعدة” أو الإخوان المسلمين، وهذه مؤشرات مقلقة تدفعنا إلى التعامل بتفاؤل مع الشعب السوري لمساعدته لأنّه لا يمكننا تجاهل ما شهدته هذه المنطقة من أزمات مماثلة في الماضي”.
أمّا الدرس الثالث فيتّصل بالفرصة معرباً عن أمله أن تكون إيران قد فهمت ممّا حصل في سوريا ولبنان بأنّ تدخّلاتها في العالم العربي لن تحقّق لها الأمن وعليها أن تركّز في شكل حقيقيّ على المخاوف على أمنها واقتصادها في شكل مختلف.
ورأى القرقاش أنّها الفرصة اليوم للعالم العربي ليمدّ يده إلى سوريا لمساعدتها للمضي قدماً في مقاربة أكثر شمولية، وإعادة إعمارها.
وقال إنّ الدول العربية مهتمة بسوريا، مشيراً إلى العلاقات التي تتحسّن مع إيران يعني أنّ عليها أن تتخلّى عن طموحاتها التوسّعية في المنطقة.
وتناول إسرائيل بالقول إنّ استغلالها أزمة سوريا من أجل تقويض قدراتها قد يبدو طبيعياً ولكنّه ليس في مصلحة أيّ طرف، داعياً إلى نظرة عقلانية تبتعد عن المشاريع الأيدولوجية التي أوصلت المنطقة إلى ما هي عليه اليوم.
ورداً على سؤال عمّا إذا كانت إيران ستتغير، قال إنّ الخلاصة ممّا رأيناه من التطوّرات “يدعونا إلى التركيز على الحلّ السياسي وخفض التصعيد والاهتمام بالاقتصاد، وإيران وإسرائيل مدعوّتان إلى تقويم عقلاني وإلّا فستحصلان على النتائج نفسها. فالحاجة اليوم إلى أرضية مشتركة رغم الاختلافات في الرأي”.
عن اتفاقات أبراهام وإمكان أن تنخرط فيها إيران، قال إنّ الأمر يعود إليها، مشيراً إلى أنّ هذه الاتفاقيات اجتازت فترة صعبة في ظلّ ما يحصل ولكنّها ستستمرّ لتعزيز التعاون الاقتصادي، لافتاً إلى الدور الأميركي مع الرئيس الجديد دونالد ترامب وما ستكون عليه سياسته في هذا الشأن، ولا سيّما في الشأن الفلسطيني، مؤكّداً على الحاجة إلى دولة فلسطينية وأنّ العمل يجري في هذا الاتجاه.
وتطرّق إلى الملفّ اللبناني فأكّد على أهمية إعادة إحياء مفهوم الدولة التي تكون لها السيطرة على سيادتها والسلاح والحدود انطلاقاً ممّا رأيناه حيال تطبيق القرار الدولي 1701، داعياً إلى انتخاب رئيس والسيطرة على السلاح. وقال إنّ الأمر في يد اللبنانيين و”إذا لم يكن لديهم الإرادة فلا يمكننا أن نفعل شيئاً. لبنان طوى الصفحة والمستقبل في يد أبنائه”.
ورداً على السيناريوهات السلبية المحتملة، قال إنّ موقعه وتعاطيه في السياسة الخارجية والعلاقات الدولية يدفعه إلى اعتماد النظرة الإيجابية والإيمان بالحلول الدبلوماسية من أجل فتح الأبواب التي تبدو مغلقة بإحكام، ورغم ذلك علينا أن نخطّط للأسوأ.
ورأى أنّ رئيس الوزراء الإسرائيلي بنيامين نتنياهو تمكّن ربما من تحقيق النجاح العسكريّ ولكن قد يكون بات عاجزاً عن الحلّ السياسيّ وهذا يتطلّب المزيد من القيادة والتفهّم من إدارة الرئيس ترامب.
Read article on An Nahar.
مؤتمر السياسات العالمية يفتتح أعماله في أبو ظبي: الصراعات المتزامنة والمتعددة تهدد السلام والاستقرار
12.13.2024
مؤتمر السياسات العالمية يفتتح أعماله في أبو ظبي: الصراعات المتزامنة والمتعددة تهدد السلام والاستقرار
انطلقت صباح الجمعة أعمال مؤتمر السياسات العالمي “World Policy Conference” في دورته السابعة عشرة في أبو ظبي. وهذه السنة الرابعة على التوالي تستضيف الإمارة الحدث الذي يجمع عدداً كبيراً من أصحاب القرار والشأن العام في العالم.
يتناول المؤتمر قضايا ساخنة تشغل العالم تحت عناوين أساسية تشكل محور الجلسات وورش العمل، مثل مستقبل أوروبا بعد حرب أوكرانيا وانتخاب ترامب، الإدارة الاقتصادية العالمية في عالم مجزّأ، الحرب والسلام في الشرق الأوسط، تراجع العولمة أو إعادة العولمة، الرئيس ترامب: أي اقتصاد وسياسة خارجية؟ الجغرافيا السياسية لتغير المناخ، النمو الاقتصادي والتحديات الجيوسياسية في آسيا، ثورة الذكاء الاصطناعي وتوسع “البريكس”.
افتتحت وزيرة الدولة الإماراتية نورة الكعبي المؤتمر، بمشاركة نائب رئيس جمهورية ساحل العاج تيموكو ميليت كوني، البطريرك المسكوني للارثوذكس برتلماوس الأول، والرئيس المؤسس للمؤتمر تييري دو مونتريال.
واستهلت الكعبي بكلمة رحبت فيها بالمؤتمرين في أبو ظبي، وقالت: “بينما نجتمع اليوم، فإننا نفعل ذلك في عالم يتسم بعدم اليقين والتحول العالمي العميق. من التوترات الجيوسياسية إلى الأزمات البيئية، تبدو التحديات التي يواجهها العالم هائلة.
إن الصراعات المتزامنة والمتعددة تهدد السلام والاستقرار في إفريقيا والشرق الأوسط وأوروبا. وفي الوقت نفسه، كان عام 2024 مليئا بعدد غير مسبوق من الانتخابات الرئيسية التي ستشكل السياسة العالمية في السنوات المقبلة. ومع ذلك، وسط هذه التغييرات، هناك أيضا
وعد بإحراز التقدم المرتكز على تصميمنا الجماعي على رسم مسار إيجابي إلى الأمام”.
وأضافت: “عندما نبدأ، لا بدّ من الاعتراف بالمآسي المستمرّة التي تلقي بثقلها على كاهل الضمير العالمي. مضى على الحرب في غزة الآن أكثر من عام، وما زالت هناك خسائر في أرواح المدنيين ولا تزال الأزمة الإنسانية في غزة تشكل مصدراً عميقاً للقلق، ولا يمكن وصفه في ظلّ المعاناة والخسائر في الأرواح. وتؤكّد الإمارات مجدّداً دعوتها إلى الوقف الفوري للأعمال العدائية”.
وتابعت: “نحن نؤمن إيمانًا راسخًا بالحاجة إلى وقف التصعيد وإيصال المساعدات إلى الأشخاص الموجودين في المنطقة. ويسلط هذا الوضع الضوء على الحاجة الماسة إلى دبلوماسية وتعاون قويين. إنه بمثابة تذكير صارخ بالطبيعة المترابطة للسلام والأمن العالميين. لقد رأينا الآثار الجانبية للحرب في غزة مباشرة على لبنان. وفي الوقت نفسه، شهدنا وعوداً بالدبلوماسية للتوسط في وقف إطلاق النار في لبنان. ونأمل أن يؤدي هذا إلى مزيد من التحسن في الوضع، وأنه ستكون هناك إنجازات دبلوماسية مماثلة في المستقبل. ولا تبقى هذه الصراعات محصورة، وتمتد عواقبها إلى الخارج، على نحو يعطل الاقتصادات، ويجهد المجتمعات، واختبار قدرتها على الصمود إلى ما هو أبعد من ذلك بكثير من حدودها”.
ثم كانت كلمة لمؤسس ورئيس المؤتمر تييري دو مونبريال عرض فيها التحديات التي تواجه العالم والتي سيتناولها المؤتمرون، ان على المستوى الاقتصادي والاجتماعي او على صعيد المتغيرات الجيوسياسية ولا سيما في العام الماضي اي منذ المؤتمر الاخير الذي انعقد على وقع حرب غزة واليوم جاءت احداث سوريا لتعيد التذكير بضرورة النظر في آفاق المرحلة المقبلة حيث يصعب جداً توقع ما ستكون عليه. وتناول مونبريال كذلك السيناريوهات المتعلقة بالحرب الأوكرانية، والولاية الثانية للرئيس الأميركي دونالد ترامب.
ويتابع المؤتمر أعماله حتى الأحد .
Read article on An Nahar.
Senior UAE official stresses concerns over Syrian rebels’ Islamist ties, slams Israeli strikes
12.14.2024
Senior UAE official stresses concerns over Syrian rebels’ Islamist ties, slams Israeli strikes
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — A senior UAE official says that his government has concerns about the Islamist affiliation of the forces that ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
“We hear some reasonable, rational language about unity, not imposing a system on all Syrians” from the country’s new rulers, says Anwar Gargash, a presidential adviser in the United Arab Emirates, in remarks at the World Policy Conference in Abu Dhabi.
But “the nature of the new forces, the affiliation with the [Muslim] Brotherhood, the affiliation with Al-Qaeda, I think these are all indicators that are quite worrying,” he says.
“We have to be optimistic on the one hand and help Syrians… but at the same time we can’t ignore the region has seen episodes like this before, so we need to be on guard,” adds Gargash, citing the “brutal adventures” of the Islamic State group over the past decade in both Syria and Iraq.
Islamist-led rebel forces toppled Assad on Sunday following a lightning offensive that ended his family’s five-decade rule and capped nearly 14 years of civil war.
The offensive was spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is rooted in al-Qaeda’s Syria branch and is designated a terrorist organization by many Western governments, but has sought to moderate its rhetoric.
A transitional government installed by the HTS-led forces has insisted the rights of all Syrians will be protected, as will the rule of law.
The presidential adviser also condemns a wave of Israeli airstrikes on strategic military sites in Syria.
“Using the crisis in Syria to structurally degrade Syrian capabilities might be seen a sensible thing from an Israeli practical point of view, but I think it’s dumb politics,” Gargash says.
“This is a new Syria that is creating itself,” he says, arguing that Israel “should have sent a different message. I don’t say a message of peace, because we are not there yet, but I think a different message.”
Read article on The Times of Israel.
«مؤتمر السياسات العالمي» ودعم السلام الإقليمي
12.17.2024
«مؤتمر السياسات العالمي» ودعم السلام الإقليمي
انطلاقاً من مسؤوليتها إزاء بسط الأمن والاستقرار في المنطقة والعالم، وسعياً إلى تطوير حوار قادر على بلورة رؤى تسهم في تحسين البيئة الأمنية والسياسية في منطقة الشرق الأوسط، بما لها من أهمية جيوسياسية كبرى، استضافت دولة الإمارات، من 13 إلى 15 ديسمبر الجاري، «مؤتمر السياسات العالمي» في دورته السابعة عشرة، حيث تناول عدداً من أبرز القضايا التي تُسهم في رسم مستقبل العالم، وركز بصورة رئيسة على التحديات التي تمر بها المنطقة العربية والشرق الأوسط.
وفي إطار من الوعي بالتحديات القائمة، ناقشت الجلسات وورش العمل والحلقات النقاشية التي شملها المؤتمر، حزمة من القضايا الرئيسة التي يشهدها النظام الدولي خلال المرحلة الحالية، وتؤثر في تشكيل مستقبل المنطقة والعالم، ومن أبرز تلك القضايا: مستقبل أوروبا بعد حرب أوكرانيا، وانعكاسات انتخاب ترامب، والإدارة الاقتصادية العالمية في عالم مجزّأ، والحرب والسلام في الشرق الأوسط، وقضية العولمة، والجغرافيا السياسية لتغير المناخ، والنمو الاقتصادي والتحديات الجيوسياسية في آسيا، وثورة الذكاء الاصطناعي، وتوسع «بريكس».
وقد أكدت نورة بنت محمد الكعبي، وزيرة دولة، خلال كلمتها في افتتاح المؤتمر، أهمية التعاون الدولي في مواجهة التحديات القائمة، كما شددت معاليها على التزام دولة الإمارات الحوارَ والدبلوماسية وتعزيز التطور المستدام، ودعت إلى العمل الجماعي لمعالجة الأزمات التي يواجهها العالم، بما في ذلك التوترات الجيوسياسية وتغير المناخ. ومع استضافة دولة الإمارات هذا الحدث المرموق للمرة الرابعة، قالت معالي الكعبي «إن دولة الإمارات تقوم بدورها كشريك في بناء الجسور وترسيخ السلام والازدهار. كما نؤكد التزامنا بتوطيد التعاون وتشجيع الابتكار بناءً على القيم التي توحدنا جميعاً».
وتأتي استضافة دولة الإمارات مؤتمر السياسات العالمي لتؤكد مجدداً تحمُّلَها مسؤولية السعي لترسيخ الجهود العالمية لوقف العنف والتصعيد وتعزيز هذه الجهود، وأولوية إيصال المساعدات للأشخاص المحتاجين إليها، وهو ما يتطلب بالضرورة تقوية العمل الدبلوماسي على الصعيد الدولي ودعم التعاون المشترك على هذا الصعيد.
والحاصل أن «مؤتمر السياسات العالمي» يعد تأكيداً على رسوخ العلاقة بين السلام والأمن، وأهمية تجاوز تبعات الحروب بالمنطقة، وضرورة دعم الحلول الدبلوماسية وجهود الوساطة النوعية الساعية لإعادة ترتيب أسس الأمن الإقليمي والعالمي، بشكل يجنب العالم تعطُّل حركة الاقتصادات، ومن هذا المنطلق ركز المؤتمر على قضية دعم قدرة المجتمعات على الصمود في مواجهة التحديات من أجل تعزيز قدرتها على التنمية.
وفي الواقع، فإن المؤتمر كان فرصة ثمينة لترويج رؤية عالمية تتسق مع مستهدفات وطنية تعطي الأولوية لتسوية الأزمات الإقليمية، والتعامل الفاعل مع التحديات على المستويين الاقتصادي والاجتماعي، أو على صعيد المتغيرات الجيوسياسية بالمنطقة وعلى المستوى العالمي، بهدف تقديم رؤية تساعد على صياغة أطر لتسوية الأزمات الراهنة.
وتسهم الأفكار التي تم طرحها خلال الفعاليات المختلفة لـ«مؤتمر السياسات العالمي» في طرح مقاربات نوعية لمعالجة تحديات الوضع الراهن، وتعجل بتسوية الأزمات الإقليمية والدولية، وتقدم حلولاً لبعض التحديات الجيوستراتيجية التي تعيق تطورات الأوضاع الاقتصادية والاجتماعية، وهو ما يتطلب حزمة من الرؤى التي تحظى بالتكامل البنيوي، وتسهم في طرح مقاربات جديدة تساعد على استعادة الأمن والاستقرار للمنطقة، وتوفر الفرص المناسبة لتحولات نوعية على الصعيد العالمي.
وتنسجم مخرجات «مؤتمر السياسات العالمي»، مع توجهات دولة الإمارات وأولوياتها في إحلال الاستقرار والأمن للسياق الإقليمي، وكذلك المساعي والجهود التي تبذلها الدولة في هذا المجال، وهو ما يرسخ الصورة الذهنية الإيجابية لدولة الإمارات، بعدِّها من المساهمين الرئيسين في إرساء الأمن والسلام الإقليمي، ويدعم صورتها كمسهم وشريك رئيس في تعزيز الأمن العالمي.
كما تتسق الرؤى التي حظيت بالتوافق خلال أيام المؤتمر الثلاثة، مع التأكيد المستمر من جانب دولة الإمارات على محورية الأمن الإنساني، على الصعد الإقليمية والدولية، وسعيها لاستضافة الفعاليات التي تدعم تحقيق هذا الهدف، والانخراط في الجهود الإقليمية والدولية الرامية للحفاظ عليه، وهو ما يعزز من إدراك دورها المهم، شريكاً رئيساً في توطيد أركان الأمن العالمي والإقليمي، وطرفاً فاعلًا في جهود تهيئة البيئة الملائمة لتحقيق تقدم اقتصادي يسهم في الرخاء والازدهار العالمي.
Read article on Al Etihad.
L’incertitude domine au Proche-Orient
12.18.2024
L’incertitude domine au Proche-Orient
CHRONIQUE. Comment favoriser le retour à la paix civile en Syrie? Comment profiter de l’affaiblissement de l’Iran pour le pousser à un accord sur le nucléaire? Les deux questions ont été abordées à la World Policy Conference, qui vient de se dérouler à Abu Dhabi et à laquelle notre chroniqueur François Nordmann a eu accès
La Syrie a toujours été le terrain de jeu favori des grandes puissances et des puissances régionales au Moyen-Orient depuis son indépendance, acquise en 1946, sauf peut-être à l’époque de la fusion avec l’Egypte orchestrée par Nasser. Elle a été gouvernée la plupart du temps par des militaires qui se succédaient au pouvoir à la suite de coups d’Etat, jusqu’à ce que Hafez el-Assad impose son autorité. Son fils Bachar n’a pas hérité du sens politique de son père, et le peuple s’est dressé contre lui en 2011. Il s’est maintenu au pouvoir par une répression féroce, en faisant intervenir l’Iran, puis la Russie.
La chute de la maison Assad aujourd’hui ne suffit pas à garantir le retour à la paix civile. Des troupes turques, américaines et israéliennes stationnent sur une partie du territoire syrien. «Israël a surréagi» en occupant le côté syrien du Golan, a déclaré le professeur Itamar Rabinovich, spécialiste de la Syrie et ancien ambassadeur d’Israël à Washington. Il s’exprimait devant la World Policy Conference – organisée chaque année par Thierry de Montbrial, président de l’Institut français des relations Internationales –, qui s’est tenue le week-end dernier à Abu Dhabi. Le jeu de la Turquie lui paraît particulièrement dangereux, Erdogan poursuivant deux objectifs: il veut renvoyer les 3 millions de réfugiés syriens qu’il a abrités sur son territoire; il entend pourchasser les Kurdes vivant en Syrie. Mais ses visées néo-ottomanes ne sont soutenues par personne au Proche-Orient.
[…]
Read full article written by François Nordmann on Le Temps.
عمر نجيب: صراع القوى الإقليمية والدولية في سوريا يهدد بسايكس-بيكو جديدة… بدون حل القصية الفلسطينية لا سلام ولا استقرار في الشرق الأوسط
12.17.2024
عمر نجيب: صراع القوى الإقليمية والدولية في سوريا يهدد بسايكس-بيكو جديدة… بدون حل القصية الفلسطينية لا سلام ولا استقرار في الشرق الأوسط
دخلت منطقة الشرق الأوسط المركز في مرحلة انتقال وتحول سياسي وإستراتيجي جديدة مع سقوط دمشق تحت سيطرة مجموعة من القوى المسلحة تحت قيادة جبهة تحرير الشام التي يتزعمها أحمد الشرع “محمد الجولاني”، مرحلة مكملة ومترابطة بأشكال متشابه حينا ومختلفة حينا آخر مع ما حدث بعد احتلال الولايات المتحدة للعراق سنة 2003 وتدخل حلف الناتو في ليبيا في مارس 2011، والحرب في اليمن في مارس 2015، والصراع المسلح في السودان المتعدد الأقطاب محليا ودوليا في أبريل 2023. هذا التحول قلب إلى حد ما التوازنات التي تشكلت من وفي الصراعات العسكرية والسياسية بعد عملية طوفان الأقصى في 7 أكتوبر 2023.
بعض المحللين الغربيين ومنهم من تقلدوا مناصب مسؤولية عليا سواء في الأجهزة الأمنية والسياسية في واشنطن ولندن يشيرون إلى أن نجاح تل أبيب بالتعاون الفعلي مع حلفائها الغربيين في قتل حسن نصرالله زعيم حزب الله وجزء أساسي من قيادات التنظيم في 27 سبتمبر 2024 في بيروت شكل شرارة تسريع التحول الذي قاد إلى التطورات التي يمكن أن تنفع تل أبيب مرحليا وفي نفس الوقت قد تشكل سيفا ذو حدين.
من الناحية الإستراتيجية شكل التحول في سوريا خسارة لموسكو وطهران، ولحزب الله في لبنان إذا قطع ساسة دمشق الجدد خط تسليحه عبر سوريا، إسرائيل كسبت واستطاعت احتلال الجزء الذي استعاده الجيش السوري من هضبة الجولان في حرب أكتوبر 1973 وزادت عليه جبل الشيخ والقنيطرة وأصبحت قواتها على بعد 25 كيلومتر من دمشق، كما دمرت ما بين 75 و 80 في المئة من أسلحة الجيش السوري بحيث صعبت مهمة قادة سوريا الجدد في بناء قوة عسكرية قادرة على القيام بجهد لاستعادة أراض محتلة أو تأمين الاستقرار والأمن الداخلي.
تركيا ساندت مختلف القوى المسلحة التي انطلقت من إدلب للسيطرة على حلب وصولا إلى دمشق، وفي هذه العملية تشاركت في العملية العسكرية مع أوكرانيا التي قدم عسكريوها السند للفصائل المسلحة بالطائرات المسيرة ومختلف أساليب الحرب الالكترونية كأسلوب انتقام من موسكو، وهي بذلك وجهت ضربة لعلاقتها مع الكرملين. أنقرة بدعمها للقوى الجديدة المسيطرة حاليا على دمشق ونجاحها في اسقاط الأسد وسعت نطاق نفوذها الذي يتقدم شرقا في الجمهوريات الإسلامية وسط جنوب آسيا التي كانت جزء من الاتحاد السوفيتي حتى انهياره في العقد الأخير من القرن العشرين، وكذلك غربا وجنوبا الذي يمتد من القرن الأفريقي حتى ليبيا.
المشكلة التي تواجه أنقرة وهي توسع نطاق نفوذها شرقا وغربا، هي فرضية اصطدامها بالمشروع الأمريكي الغربي لإقامة دولة كردية تضم أراض من إيران شرقا عبر العراق وسوريا وتركيا غربا مع العلم أن تركيا تضم أكبر مجموعة كردية بين الأقطار الثلاثة السابق ذكرها بما يصل إلى 14 مليون نسمة وجيشها يقاتل منذ حوالي أربعة عقود حركة الانفصال الكردية.
خصوم ساسة تركيا الحاليين، يتهمون الرئيس التركي أردوغان وحزبه العدالة والتنمية بأنهم يريدون إحياء الدولة العثمانية التي خسرت سيطرتها على مساحات ضخمة من الشرق الأوسط بعد هزيمتها في الحرب العالمية الأولى.
ولتعزيز هذه المقولة يشار إلى ما قاله أردوغان خلال خطابه في المؤتمر الإقليمي الثامن لحزب العدالة والتنمية بولاية سكاريا يوم 13 ديسمبر 2024: “هذا الشعب التركي أنصار، والسوريون مهاجرون. لن نقوم بطردهم من هذا البلد أبدا، وسنظل ندعمهم”.
وهاجم إردوغان التساؤلات المتعلقة بوجود تركيا في سوريا، معتبرا أنها تنم عن “جهل بالتاريخ أو تعصب أيديولوجي”، حسب تعبيره.
وقال إردوغان: “لو كانت نتائج الحرب العالمية الأولى مختلفة، لكانت مدن مثل الرقة وحلب وإدلب ودمشق جزءا من وطننا تماما كمدن عنتاب وأورفة وهاتاي”.
وأضاف الرئيس التركي، “بدأ السوريون الذين لديهم منازل أو عائلات هناك بالعودة تدريجيا، وسنعمل بإذن الله على تطهير ما تبقى من الأراضي السورية من التنظيمات الإرهابية”، في إشارة إلى وحدات حماية الشعب الكردي. المسألة الأخرى الشائكة ماذا عن موقف أنقرة من التوسع الإسرائيلي في سوريا ومساندتها للإنفصاليين الأكراد.
عربيا أيدت غالبية الحكومات العربية خيارات الشعب السوري. ولكن الأطراف التي كانت لها أدوار في الصراع بفضل قدراتها المالية وتأثيراتها على الفصائل المسلحة، كانت لها أراء مختلفة ففيما تحمست قطر لمساندة حكام دمشق تمسكت أطراف أخرى بالحذر.
أعرب أنور قرقاش المستشار الدبلوماسي للرئيس الإماراتي عن قلق أبو ظبي إزاء الانتماء الإسلامي للفصائل السورية المسلحة التي أسقطت نظام بشار الأسد.
وقال أنور قرقاش خلال كلمة في “مؤتمر السياسات العالمية” في أبوظبي: “نسمع تصريحات معقولة وعقلانية حول الوحدة وعدم فرض نظام على جميع السوريين”. وأضاف “لكن من ناحية أخرى أعتقد أن طبيعة القوى الجديدة وارتباطها بالإخوان وبالقاعدة، كلها مؤشرات مقلقة للغاية”.
وأضاف المستشار الدبلوماسي “يتعين علينا أن نكون متفائلين من ناحية وأن نساعد السوريين في المهمة الصعبة اليوم، وفي الوقت نفسه لا يمكننا تجاهل أن المنطقة شهدت حلقات مشابهة سابقا لذا يتعين علينا أن نكون حذرين”.
في القاهرة علق الرئيس المصري عبد الفتاح السيسي، الأحد 15 ديسمبر، على تطورات الأوضاع في سوريا بالقول إن “أصحاب البلد” هم من يتخذون القرارات في الوقت الحالي و”إما أن يهدموها أو يبنوها”، وذلك في وقت أعلنت فيه مصر في بيانات سابقة أنها تدعم عملية سياسة تحافظ على وحدة واستقرار وسيادة سوريا.
في القدس المحتلة صرح وزير الدفاع الإسرائيلي يسرائيل كاتس يوم الأحد 15 ديسمبر 2024، إن التهديدات في سوريا تتزايد رغم الصورة “المعتدلة” التي يقدمها القادة حاليا عن أنفسهم.
وأضاف: “لم تختف المخاطر المباشرة على البلاد، والتطورات الأخيرة في سوريا تزيد من حدة التهديد، على الرغم من الواجهة المعتدلة التي يدعي قادة المتمردين أنهم يقدمونها”.
وفي هذا الصدد دعا إلى الهدوء والحذر من الرسالة التصالحية للجولاني، وأضاف: “الرجل جهادي متطرف تابع لتنظيم داعش، ومحاولة تقديم نفسه للغرب على أنه معتدل حقيقي لا أساس لها من الصحة”.
موازاة مع ذلك صادقت حكومة إسرائيل يوم الأحد 15 ديسمبر 2024 على خطة بقيمة 11 مليون دولار لزيادة عدد مستوطنيها في هضبة الجولان المحتلة إلى المثلين، قائلة إن التهديدات التي تواجهها من سوريا لا تزال قائمة.
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الإمارات تنتقد الضربات الإسرائيلية على سوريا عقب سقوط نظام الأسد وتعرب عن “قلقها” من الانتماءات الإسلامية للفصائل التي أسقطت الأسد
12.14.2024
الإمارات تنتقد الضربات الإسرائيلية على سوريا عقب سقوط نظام الأسد وتعرب عن “قلقها” من الانتماءات الإسلامية للفصائل التي أسقطت الأسد
ابوظبي ـ (أ ف ب) – أعرب مسؤول إماراتي رفيع المستوى السبت عن “القلق” بشأن الانتماءات الإسلامية للفصائل السورية المسلحة التي أسقطت الرئيس بشار الأسد وتولت السلطة في دمشق.
وقال أنور قرقاش المستشار الدبلوماسي للرئيس الإماراتي خلال كلمة في “مؤتمر السياسات العالمية” في أبوظبي “نسمع تصريحات معقولة وعقلانية حول الوحدة، وعدم فرض نظام على جميع السوريين، لكن من ناحية أخرى، أعتقد أن طبيعة القوى الجديدة، ارتباطها بالإخوان، وارتباطها بالقاعدة، كلها مؤشرات مقلقة للغاية”.
وأضاف قرقاش “يتعين علينا أن نكون متفائلين من ناحية وأن نساعد السوريين في المهمة الصعبة اليوم، ولكن في الوقت نفسه لا يمكننا تجاهل أن المنطقة شهدت حلقات مشابهة سابقا، لذا يتعين علينا أن نكون حذرين”.
وأعلنت هيئة تحرير الشام بقيادة أبو محمد الجولاني الذي صار يستعمل اسمه الحقيقي أحمد الشرع، أنها أنهت ارتباطها مع تنظيم القاعدة عام 2016. لكن الهيئة لا تزال مصنفة “منظمة إرهابية” في العديد من الدول الغربية، وأبرزها الولايات المتحدة.
ووعد محمد البشير الذي كلف رئاسة الحكومة المسؤولة عن الفترة الانتقالية حتى الأول من آذار/مارس، بأن تكون سوريا “دولة قانون” وضمان “حقوق كل الناس وكل الطوائف”، في ظل مخاوف أعرب عنها المجتمع الدولي.
ويعقد في الأردن وزراء ومسؤولون أميركيون وأوروبيون وعرب وأتراك اجتماعا السبت في العقبة على البحر الأحمر لبحث الملف السوري.
واختتم المستشار الدبلوماسي للرئيس الإماراتي محمد بن زايد آل نهيان كلمته قائلا “علينا مسؤولية العمل على عدم تكرار أخطاء الماضي”.
كما انتقد أنور قرقاش السبت الضربات الإسرائيلية على سوريا منذ سقوط بشار الأسد والهادفة إلى تدمير الترسانة العسكرية للجيش السوري.
وقال المسؤول الإماراتي إن “الاستفادة من الأزمة في سوريا لتقليص القدرات السورية هيكليا قد يبدو الشيء السليم الذي ينبغي عمله من وجهة نظر إسرائيلية، لكنني أعتقد أنها سياسة غبية”.
وأضاف أن “سوريا جديدة يتم إنشاؤها، كان ينبغي عليهم توجيه رسالة مختلفة، أنا لا أقول رسالة سلام لأننا لم نصل إلى هناك بعد، ولكن رسالة مختلفة”. وقد طبعت الإمارات علاقاتها مع إسرائيل عام 2020.
وشنت إسرائيل السبت ضربات جديدة على “مواقع عسكرية للنظام السابق” في دمشق وريفها، بحسب المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان.
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Ана Брнабић: Све оно због чега свет цени Србију је разлог зашто се организује хибридни рат
12.13.2024
Ана Брнабић: Све оно због чега свет цени Србију је разлог зашто се организује хибридни рат
АБУ ДАБИ – Председница Народне скупштине Републике Србије Ана Брнабић изјавила је да је Србија све значајнија и цењенија земља на светском нивоу управо због независне и суверене политике председника Александра Вучића.
Брнабић је у Абу Дабију, након отварања World Policy самита на којем је учествовала на уводном панелу, истакла да је оно због чега свет поштује и цени самосталну спољну политику Србије уједно и разлог због чега из године у годину у Србији постоје покушаји унутрашње дестабилизације земље, баш као што је то случај ових дана.
Она је навела да оно због чега свет цени и поштује Србију и због чега је Србија све значајнија земља у европским и светским оквирима јесте независна и самостална спољна политика наше земље.
„Грађење односа и визија председника Александра Вучића, грађење мостова и померање од сукоба, како ми не бисмо били трава по којој слонови газе када се бију, све оно због чега цене Србију у свету је разлог због чега ми из године у годину имамо покушаје дестабилизације у нашој земљи, па и ово што се тренутно дешава јесте покушај дестабилизације и хибридни рат”, навела је Брнабић.
Указала је да је све што свет цени у политици Александра Вучића – независност, самосталност и отпорност Србије, истовремено разлог за покушај унутрашње дестабилизације. „То је некако занимљиво из политичког погледа, али је истовремено и изузетно тужно”, закључила је Брнабић.
Она је истакла да су односи Србије у Уједињених Арапских Емирата на изузетно високом нивоу због рада и труда председника Вучића, као и његових личних осноса са председником УАЕ Мухамедом Бин Заједом Ал Нахјаном. „Увек је добро бити у Абу Дабију, зато што су наши односи са Уједињеним Арапским Емиратима, као једне од најважнијих светских супер сила, све бољи због рада и енергије које је у изградњу тих односа уложио председник Републике Србије Александар Вучић, као и његових личних односа са председником УАЕ шеиком Мухамедом Бин Заједом Ал Нахјаном”, навела је Брнабић.
Подсетила је да је Србија ове године имала част не само да угости председника УАЕ Бин Заједа, већ и да са Уједињеним Арапским Емиратима потпише уговор о слободној трговини. Она је још једном честитала Влади Републике Србије на том успеху, указујући да ће то бити од изузетног значаја за све наше привреднике и српску пољопривреду у годинама које долазе.
Брнабић је подсетила да је Србија само током ове године имала прилику да угости неке од највећих светских лидера. „Ми смо у 2024 угостили и председника Народне Републике Кине Си Ђин Пинга и председника Француске Емануела Макрона и канцелара Немачке Олафа Шолца. Председник Србије Александар Вучић је имао разговор са председником Руске Федерације Владимиром Путином.
Угостили смо и председника Уједињених Арапских Емирата Шејка Мухамеда бих Заједа, који је свакако један од пет најважнијих светских државника данас, и председника Турске Режепа Тајипа Ердогана, и председника Казахстана господина Токајева, председницу Европске комисије Урсулу фон дер Лајен и многе друге”, рекла је Брнабић.
Нагласила је да за земљу од 6.8 милиона становника то само говори колико је наша политика препозната и колико је Србија данас важнија земља него што је икада била. „Са друге стране је то најтежа политика коју једна земља може да води, посебно мала земља као што је Србија.
Најбоља за наш народ и све наше грађане, али и најтежа. Због тога толики притисци који су све већи, нажалост, видимо их и сада”, истакла је Брнабић, преноси Танјуг.
Read article on Politika.
قرقاش: مؤشرات مقلقة للغاية ارتباط الفصائل السورية بـ «الإخوان» و«القاعدة» أعربت الإمارات عن «القلق» بشأن انتماءات الفصائل المسلحة التي أسقطت بشار الأسد.
12.14.2024
«لا يمكننا تجاهل أن المنطقة شهدت حلقات مشابهة سابقاً»
قرقاش: مؤشرات مقلقة للغاية ارتباط الفصائل السورية بـ «الإخوان» و«القاعدة»
أعربت الإمارات عن «القلق» بشأن انتماءات الفصائل المسلحة التي أسقطت بشار الأسد.
وقال أنور قرقاش، المستشار الدبلوماسي للرئيس الإماراتي خلال «مؤتمر السياسات العالمية» في أبوظبي، أمس، «نسمع تصريحات معقولة وعقلانية حول الوحدة، وعدم فرض نظام على جميع السوريين، لكن من ناحية أخرى، أعتقد أن طبيعة القوى الجديدة، ارتباطها بالإخوان، وارتباطها بالقاعدة، كلها مؤشرات مقلقة للغاية».
وأضاف «يتعين علينا أن نكون متفائلين من ناحية وأن نساعد السوريين في المهمة الصعبة اليوم، لكن في الوقت نفسه لا يمكننا تجاهل أن المنطقة شهدت حلقات مشابهة سابقاً، لذا يتعين علينا أن نكون حذرين».
وأكد قرقاش «علينا مسؤولية العمل على عدم تكرار أخطاء الماضي».
كما انتقد المستشار الدبلوماسي الضربات الإسرائيلية على سورية.
وقال إن «الاستفادة من الأزمة في سورية لتقليص القدرات السورية هيكلياً قد يبدو الشيء السليم الذي ينبغي عمله من وجهة نظر إسرائيلية، لكنني أعتقد أنها سياسة غبية».
Read article on Al Raï.
قرقاش: قلقون من طبيعة القوى الجديدة في سورية
12.14.2024
قرقاش: قلقون من طبيعة القوى الجديدة في سورية
أعرب مسؤول إماراتي رفيع المستوى، اليوم، عن «القلق» بشأن الانتماءات الإسلامية للفصائل السورية المسلحة التي أسقطت الرئيس بشار الأسد وتولت السلطة في دمشق
وقال أنور قرقاش المستشار الدبلوماسي للرئيس الإماراتي الشيخ محمد بن زايد، خلال كلمة في «مؤتمر السياسات العالمية» في أبوظبي «نسمع تصريحات معقولة وعقلانية حول الوحدة، وعدم فرض نظام على جميع السوريين، لكن من ناحية أخرى، أعتقد أن طبيعة القوى الجديدة، ارتباطها بالإخوان، وارتباطها بالقاعدة، كلها مؤشرات مقلقة جداً». وأضاف قرقاش «يتعين علينا أن نكون متفائلين من ناحية، وأن نساعد السوريين في المهمة الصعبة اليوم، ولكن في الوقت نفسه لا يمكننا تجاهل أن المنطقة شهدت حلقات مشابهة سابقاً، لذا يتعين علينا أن نكون حذرين».
Read article on Al Jarida.
Ο Πατριάρχης Βαρθολομαίος προτείνει κοινό Πάσχα για όλους τους χριστιανούς
12.16.2024
Ο Πατριάρχης Βαρθολομαίος προτείνει κοινό Πάσχα για όλους τους χριστιανούς
«Πραγματικό βήμα για την αποκατάσταση παλαιών συγκρούσεων» η επιστροφή στο Ιουλιανό ημερολόγιο για κοινό υπολογισμό του Πάσχα
Επίσκεψη στα Ηνωμένα Αραβικά Εμιράτα πραγματοποίησε ο Οικουμενικός Πατριάρχης Βαρθολομαίος, στο πλαίσιο συμμετοχής του στο διεθνές συνέδριο «World Policy Conference».
Στην ομιλία του, κατά την έναρξη των εργασιών του συνεδρίου, ο κ. Βαρθολομαίος αναφέρθηκε, μεταξύ άλλων, στην επέτειο των 1.700 ετών από την Α΄ Οικουμενική Σύνοδο και στη σημασία καθορισμού κοινής ημερομηνίας εορτασμού του Πάσχα για όλους τους χριστιανούς.
Η ανακοίνωση του Οικουμενικού Πατριαρχείου
«Στην επικείμενη επέτειο των 1.700 ετών από την Α΄ Οικουμενική Σύνοδο της Νικαίας, η οποία θα εορταστεί κατά το προσεχές έτος 2025, και στον ισχυρό συμβολισμό που θα αποτελέσει η αποδοχή από όλες τις Χριστιανικές Εκκλησίες μίας κοινής ημερομηνίας για τον εορτασμό της Ανάστασης του Κυρίου, αναφέρθηκε η Α.Θ. Παναγιότης ο Οικουμενικός Πατριάρχης κ.κ. Βαρθολομαίος, στην επίσημη ομιλία του κατά την έναρξη του Διεθνούς Συνεδρίου “World Policy Conference”, που πραγματοποιείται στο Abu Dhabi των Ηνωμένων Αραβικών Εμιράτων.
Απευθυνόμενος στο πολυπληθές ακροατήριο του Συνεδρίου, στην αγγλική γλώσσα, επεσήμανε, μεταξύ άλλων, ότι η Συνοδική παράδοση της Ορθοδόξου Εκκλησίας προσφέρει πολύτιμες γνώσεις για τις σύγχρονες παγκόσμιες προκλήσεις και υπενθύμισε, με αφορμή και την επικείμενη επέτειο, το πώς ο Αυτοκράτορας Μ. Κωνσταντίνος και οι Πατέρες της Εκκλησίας που συμμετείχαν στη Σύνοδο της Νικαίας, ανταποκρίθηκαν στα ποικίλα και πολυδιάστατα ζητήματα της εποχής τους, και πόσο οι δυσκολίες που αντιμετώπισαν μοιάζουν με τις προκλήσεις της σημερινής εποχής. “Η Εκκλησία στη Νίκαια επέδειξε ευαισθησία απέναντι σε όσους είχαν αποκοπεί από την κοινωνία μαζί της και εξεδήλωσε ενδιαφέρον για όσους δεν καταλάβαιναν τη φωνή της. Αυτή η συνειδητοποίηση μας βοηθά σήμερα να αντιμετωπίσουμε σύγχρονα προβλήματα”, είπε ο Πατριάρχης.
Με αφορμή το επικείμενο Πάσχα του 2025, το οποίο, λόγω ημερολογιακής σύμπτωσης, όλοι οι Χριστιανοί θα εορτάσουν την ίδια ημέρα, ο Πατριάρχης υπενθύμισε ότι το ζήτημα καθορισμού της ημέρας εορτασμού του Πάσχα είχε επιλύσει η Σύνοδος της Νικαίας. Χαρακτήρισε δε ως ένα πραγματικό βήμα για την αποκατάσταση παλαιών συγκρούσεων την έκκληση του Οικουμενικού Πατριαρχείου και του ιδίου προσωπικώς προς τη Ρωμαιοκαθολική Εκκλησία και τον Πάπα Ρώμης Φραγκίσκο “να επιστρέψουν στο Ιουλιανό ημερολόγιο για κοινό υπολογισμό του Πάσχα”.
Ο Πατριάρχης πρόσθεσε ότι γνωρίζοντας ότι η Εκκλησία αποτελεί το Σώμα του Χριστού, “η ρεαλιστική αυτή πρόταση παρουσιάζει ένα καθαρό δρόμο προς την ενότητα”, και τόνισε ότι ο κοινός εορτασμός μπορεί να ενισχύσει την καλύτερη αμοιβαία κατανόηση, καθώς και τους σημαντικούς διαλόγους μεταξύ των Χριστιανικών παραδόσεων. Οπως είπε, “εορτάζοντας την Ανάσταση του Χριστού μαζί, μάς βοηθά να αναγνωρίσουμε το κοινό μας παρελθόν και να προχωρήσουμε προς τη μελλοντική ενότητα. Αυτός ο κοινός εορτασμός θα μας βοηθήσει να ξεπεράσουμε άλλες διαφορές, καταδεικνύοντας ότι η κοινή μας Πίστη μάς επιτρέπει να υπερβούμε παλαιές διαιρέσεις και να συνεργαστούμε για τη δόξα του Θεού”.
Ο Παναγιώτατος αναφέρθηκε, επίσης, σε μία σειρά από σημαντικά κοινωνικά ζητήματα που απασχολούν την Εκκλησία και ιδιαιτέρως το Οικουμενικό Πατριαρχείο, όπως είναι η κλιματική αλλαγή και η οικολογική κρίση, η ραγδαία ανάπτυξη της βιοτεχνολογίας και της τεχνητής νοημοσύνης, αλλά και η ανάγκη εφαρμογής δίκαιων οικονομικών πολιτικών, διατυπώνοντας συγκεκριμένες θέσεις και προτάσεις της Αγίας του Χριστού Μεγάλης Εκκλησίας, στο πλαίσιο της ποιμαντικής μέριμνάς της.
Κατά την εναρκτήρια συνεδρία συμμετείχαν, επίσης, η Εξοχ. Υπουργός Επικρατείας παρά τω Υπουργείω Εξωτερικών των Ηνωμένων Αραβικών Εμιράτων κυρία Noura Al Kaabi, ο Εξοχ. Αντιπρόεδρος της Ακτής Ελεφαντοστού κ. Tiémoko Meyliet Koné, και ο Ελλογιμ. κ. Thierry de Montbrial, Ιδρυτής και Πρόεδρος του Γαλλικού Ινστιτούτου Διεθνών Σχέσεων (Ifri) και Ιδρυτής και Γενικός Διευθυντής του World Policy Conference, ενώ στις εργασίες του συμμετέχουν προσωπικότητες από όλο τον κόσμο».
Read article on Kathimerini.
Ecumenical Patriarch departs for Abu Dhabi to speak at “World Policy Conference”
12.11.2024
Ecumenical Patriarch departs for Abu Dhabi to speak at “World Policy Conference”
On Wednesday, December 11, 2024, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew departed for Abu Dhabi, where he will deliver a keynote address at the prestigious “World Policy Conference,” following an official invitation.
Accompanying the Patriarch on this significant visit are Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon and Grand Ecclesiarch Aetios, Director of the Patriarchal Office.
During the Patriarch’s absence, Metropolitan Maximos of Selyvria has been appointed as acting guardian of the Patriarchal See and was present to bid him farewell at Constantinople Airport.
The Ecumenical Patriarch is expected to return to Constantinople on Saturday afternoon.
Read article on Orthodox Times.
“Des indicateurs assez inquiétants”: un pays de la péninsule arabique émet des craintes vis-à-vis des nouveaux dirigeants syriens
12.14.2024
“Des indicateurs assez inquiétants”: un pays de la péninsule arabique émet des craintes vis-à-vis des nouveaux dirigeants syriens
Un haut responsable des Émirats arabes unis s’est dit “inquiet” samedi des affiliations islamistes des groupes rebelles ayant fait chuter le président Bachar al-Assad et qui détiennent désormais le pouvoir en Syrie.
“Nous entendons des messages raisonnables sur la volonté de ne pas imposer de système aux Syriens, mais d’un autre côté la nature des nouvelles forces (au pouvoir, NDLR), leur affiliation aux Frères musulmans et à Al-Qaïda, sont des indicateurs assez inquiétants”, a déclaré Anwar Gargash, conseiller diplomatique du président des Émirats arabes unis, lors d’un discours à la World Policy Conference organisée par l’Institut français des relations internationales (IFRI) à Abou Dhabi.
“Nous devons être optimistes d’une part et aider les Syriens (…) mais en même temps nous ne pouvons ignorer que la région a déjà connu des épisodes comme celui-ci, nous devons donc être vigilants”, a-t-il ajouté en rappelant notamment les “aventures brutales du groupe État islamique” en Irak et en Syrie au cours de la décennie précédente.
À l’issue d’une offensive de 11 jours, une coalition de factions rebelles emmenées par le groupe islamiste radical Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) a pris aux forces gouvernementales la majeure partie du pays, mettant fin à un demi-siècle de pouvoir de la famille Assad.
HTS, dirigé par Abou Mohammad al-Jolani, affirme avoir rompu avec le jihadisme mais reste classé “terroriste” par plusieurs capitales occidentales, dont Washington.
Le nouveau Premier ministre chargé de la transition jusqu’au 1er mars, Mohammad al-Bachir, a promis un Etat de droit et de “garantir les droits de tous”, face aux inquiétudes de la communauté internationale.
En Jordanie, ministres et responsables américains, européens, arabes et turcs tiennent samedi une réunion à Aqaba sur la mer Rouge, pour discuter du dossier syrien.
Read article on La Libre.
トランプ流、日本に試練 「互恵外交」で連携の輪を 2025年を読む 変革の行方①
12.24.2024
トランプ流、日本に試練 「互恵外交」で連携の輪を2025年を読む 変革の行方①
2024年は国際社会のあちこちで亀裂が深まった。政治や経済をめぐる課題で日本には変革の芽も生まれている。それをどう育てられるか、来年を展望する。 Continue reading “トランプ流、日本に試練 「互恵外交」で連携の輪を 2025年を読む 変革の行方①”
UAE official says new Syria leaders’ Islamist ties ‘worrying’
12.14.2024
UAE official says new Syria leaders’ Islamist ties ‘worrying’
A senior UAE official said on Saturday that his government had concerns about the Islamist affiliation of the forces that ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
We hear some reasonable, rational language about unity, not imposing a system on all Syrians” from the country’s new rulers, said Anwar Gargash, a presidential adviser in the United Arab Emirates, in remarks at the World Policy Conference in Abu Dhabi.
But “the nature of the new forces, the affiliation with the (Muslim) Brotherhood, the affiliation with Al-Qaeda, I think these are all indicators that are quite worrying,” he said.
“We have to be optimistic on the one hand and help Syrians… but at the same time we can’t ignore the region has seen episodes like this before, so we need to be on guard,” added Gargash, citing the “brutal adventures” of the Islamic State group over the past decade in both Syria and Iraq. Islamist-led rebel forces toppled Assad on Sunday following a lightning offensive that ended his family’s five-decade rule and capped nearly 14 years of civil war.
The offensive was spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is rooted in Al-Qaeda’s Syria branch and is designated a “terrorist” organisation by many Western governments, but has sought to moderate its rhetoric.
A transitional government installed by the HTS-led forces has insisted the rights of all Syrians will be protected, as will the rule of law.
As governments in the region and beyond eye the developments in Syria with some concern, Gargash said that the Arab world has “the responsibility to work not to repeat past mistakes”. The presidential adviser also condemned a wave of Israeli air strikes on strategic military sites in Syria. ”Using the crisis in Syria to structurally degrade Syrian capabilities might be seen a sensible thing from an Israeli practical point of view, but I think it’s dumb politics,” Gargash said. “This is a new Syria that is creating itself,” he said, arguing that Israel “should have sent a different message. I don’t say a message of peace, because we are not there yet, but I think a different message.”
The UAE normalised relations with Israel in 2020, one of only a handful of Arab governments to do so.
Read article on The Economic Times.
Korea’s Democratic Resilience and Asia’s Path to Economic Dominance
12.17.2024
Korea’s Democratic Resilience and Asia’s Path to Economic Dominance
In the 17th edition of the World Policy Conference, Hur Kyung-wook, Chairman of Seoul Financial Forum and chairman of the Board of the Korea Center for International Finance, shares his views on the political challenges faced in the Asian economy and the importance of laws that need to be consistent in the political level. He pointed out the growing concern of Asian nations in maintaining the economic and financial linkage with developed nations. Following are the key insights:
The martial law imposed by President Yoon was resisted by the people through mass protests. Even though there was short-term turbulence in the financial space, Korea’s economic stability remains intact. However, the economy is anticipated to improve, similar to past instances of market instability. Asia is becoming a key economic player, with the GDP share expected to soar 50% by 2040. India plays a rising role in the Asian economy and is positioned to become the third-largest economy neutral to China and the US.
Domestic Challenges in Korean Politics
The martial law was a single isolated individual event engineered by President Yoon. It needs to be more consistent with the Korean political and economic development level and not supported by mass people on the street. Of late, there was a badly misjudged and unfortunate event, but it was very short-lived. More importantly, it’s the people on the street who resist this martial law; they just voluntarily swarmed to the National Assembly, blocking soldiers from intervention from trying to pull out National Assembly members, and even the soldiers were very reluctant to obey the order, so that they are not aggressive at all, creating enough space for the member of parliament to get in.
According to the constitution, they voted unanimously, not only by the opposition members but also by some members of the ruling party who were present, unanimously agreed to lift this martial law. It was two hours and 30 minutes after the imposition of martial law. So, we have seen not the decay of democratic Korea but rather the attestation of the democratic resilience of Korea because it’s just the people on the street who clearly said no to this ill-conceived attempt.
Financial Instability
There was some short-term turbulence in the financial market, but it was contained to an acceptable degree. All the credit rating agencies, like S&P and Moody, said that Korean economic stability is intact. They don’t have any intention to change their rating of Korean sovereign rating, and this is unfortunate. However, we witnessed these eight years ago, and even at the time, despite the short-term turbulence in the market, the economy came back after a couple of months.
Geopolitical Tension
Asia is the most dynamic region. In the 1970s, the Asian economy’s share of global GDP was 20%. However, the market exchange rate in the previous year was 36%, and most likely, it will reach 50% in the 2040s, so-called the coming of the Asian century. Still, now we are facing some unfavorable winds. It’s a dilemma between economic reality and geopolitical pressure, particularly the rivalry between the US and China, which is getting increasingly severe. Asian economies are very closely integrated with the Chinese and US economies, and now there is increasing political tension to pressure Asian countries to take sides, politically at least. Regarding geopolitical reality, a common concern exists: the ongoing tension in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, which remains a crucial flashpoint. Moreover, there is a new development that adds another layer of instability in the area, which is the presence of North Korean troops in Russia.
Asia’s Key Stabilizer
India is growing in importance in Asia and is currently the fifth-largest economy. As they go further, they will be the third largest economy. It’s neutral to both China and the U.S. so that it can stabilize the region. Korea is also strengthening relations with India and the rest of the world. India is going to play a more critical role. Moreover, there was a brief mention of Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership CPTPP) and WTO is in paralysis, so that regional arrangements are essential. Korea also wants to join the CPTPP. Also, even though it’s not a trading regime, it actively participates in the IPF. And all these regional arrangements can stabilize the region.
Read article on Asia Business Outlook.
트럼프가 초래한 보호무역주의 …’세계화 재편’ 촉발할 것
12.16.2024
트럼프가 초래한 보호무역주의 …’세계화 재편’ 촉발할 것
제17회 세계정책콘퍼런스 … 석학들이 본 무역환경
“지금 세계는 그 어느 때보다 높은 불확실성에 직면해 있다. 모두가 아는 ‘게임의 법칙’ 자체가 사라진 상황이다.” 제17회 세계정책콘퍼런스(WPC)가 열린 지난 13일 아랍에미리트 아부다비 파크하얏트. 이곳에 모인 세계 석학들은 “기존의 통상 질서는 끝났다”고 입을 모았다. 국제사회는 이제 기존 규칙들이 더 이상 통용되지 않는 새로운 국면에 접어들었다는 분석이다.
불확실성을 키운 직접적 원인으로는 도널드 트럼프 후보의 미국 대통령 당선이 우선적으로 지목됐다. 트럼프 당선인은 대선 선거운동 기간 10~20%의 보편관세와 중국에 대한 60% 이상의 고율관세 적용을 공약한 바 있다.
빈센트 코엔 경제협력개발기구(OECD) 경제검토국 국가분석실장은 “(트럼프 당선 이후) 세계 무역 정책을 둘러싼 불확실성이 급격히 증가했다”며 “많은 사람이 무역전쟁 가능성을 우려하고 있지만, 정확하게 예측하기란 쉽지 않다”고 밝혔다.
트럼프의 보호무역주의와 자국우선주의는 국제사회를 ‘탈세계화(de-globalization)’시킬 것이라는 우려를 낳고 있다. 그러나 이날 세션에서는 오히려 새로운 형태의 세계화, 즉 ‘재세계화(re-globalization·세계화의 재편)’가 촉진될 수 있다는 주장이 나왔다. 피에르 자케 프랑스 ENPC대 교수는 “불확실성의 증가로 인해 각국은 디리스킹(de-risking·위험 축소)에 나섰다”고 밝혔다. 특정 국가나 지역에 대한 수입 의존도를 낮추며 위험을 관리하고 있다는 의미다. 자케 교수에 따르면 이러한 디리스킹 전략은 역설적으로 국가 간 상호 의존성을 높이는 결과를 낳을 수 있다. 보호주의가 심해질수록 해외 시장의 폐쇄성을 우려한 기업들이 현지 생산에 대한 투자를 늘릴 가능성이 커지기 때문이다. 즉 디리스킹 전략이 탈세계화 흐름으로 귀결되는 대신, 새로운 형태의 세계화로 이어질 수 있다는 설명이다.
다만 이러한 재세계화를 향한 상호 의존성은 경제 성장을 위한 수단이 아니라 경제를 무기화하려는 도구로 활용되는 경향이 있다. 스즈키 가즈토 도쿄대 공공정책대학원 교수는 “국가들은 서로의 이해관계를 관철하기 위해 상호 의존성을 협박 수단으로 삼고 있다”며 “한 국가가 상호 의존 관계에서 홀로 배제될 경우 치명적인 피해를 볼 수 있기 때문”이라고 지적했다. 예컨대 서방사회의 대(對)러시아 경제 제재는 러시아를 압박하기 위해 상호 의존성을 무기화한 사례로 볼 수 있다.
이어 스즈키 교수는 “앞으로의 세계화는 ‘지경학(geo-economics)’이라는 새로운 틀로 정의될 것”이라며 “경제적 논리보다 지리적 요인이 더 중요해질 것”이라고 강조했다. 과거에는 더 많은 투자를 유치하기 위해 국가 간 지리적 경계를 초월하려는 노력이 두드러졌다면, 이제는 지리적 위치가 경제 정책의 전략적 요소로 떠오르고 있다는 것이다.
전문가들은 국제사회가 새로운 세계화 질서를 보다 적극적으로 만들어가야 한다고 주장했다. 자케 교수는 “세계화는 단순히 경제 성장뿐만 아니라 문화 교류, 연구 협력, 전염병 대응 등 인류가 직면한 여러 과제를 해결하는 데 필수적”이라고 설명했다. 코로나19 팬데믹 대응에서도 개별 국가의 노력보다는 세계적 공조가 결정적 역할을 했다는 의미다. 앞으로 한국과 같은 중견 국가들의 역할이 더욱 중요해질 것이라는 전망도 나왔다. 자케 교수는 “세계는 다극 체제(multi-polarity)로 전환되고 있다”며 “중견 국가들이 글로벌 무대에서 협상력을 강화해야 한다”고 말했다. 박태호 전 통상교섭본부장은 “중견국을 포함해 같은 뜻을 가진 국가들이 협력해 목소리를 높여야 한다”며 “미국이 세계무역기구(WTO) 개혁을 통해 다자간 무역 거버넌스를 활성화하도록 리더십을 발휘해야 한다”고 촉구했다.
한국이 직면한 도전 과제에 대한 지적도 나왔다. 코엔 실장은 “한국과 일본 같은 국가들은 에너지 보조금 문제로 인해 공공부채가 심각한 수준”이라며 “재정 압박 속에서도 고령화 사회 대응, 지정학적 갈등으로 인한 국방비 증가 등 지출이 지속해서 늘어나고 있다”고 말했다. 장피에르 카베스탕 홍콩 침례대 교수는 “청년 세대를 위한 기회 창출이 중요하다”고 강조했다.
WPC는 국제 관계 싱크탱크인 ‘프랑스국제관계연구소(IFRI)’가 주최하는 콘퍼런스다. IFRI는 프랑스 외교부 산하 ‘분석 및 예측센터’ 등을 지휘한 티에리 드 몽브리알 회장이 이끌고 있다.
Read article on Maekyung Media Group.
Kazakhstan Reiterates Commitment to Multilateral Cooperation at World Policy Conference
12.17.2024
Kazakhstan Reiterates Commitment to Multilateral Cooperation at World Policy Conference
ASTANA—Since gaining independence, Kazakhstan has pursued a multivector, pragmatic, and balanced foreign policy, Kazakh Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko said at the 17th annual World Policy Conference (WPC), organized by the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), on Dec. 13-15 in Abu Dhabi, according to the ministry’s press service.
The distinguished French scholar Thierry de Montbrial, founder and long-standing president of IFRI, highlighted Kazakhstan’s diplomatic course as a model for multivector diplomacy, which has earned the country a recognition as a responsible partner in the international community. According to him, Kazakhstan has not only refined its approach to foreign policy but is also increasingly active in addressing global challenges as a middle power.
During the subsequent discussion, Vassilenko used the metaphor of the traditional Kazakh round felt house, the yurt, to explain the country’s balanced and pragmatic foreign policy. “In the traditional Kazakh home, there are no corners,” he said. “Therefore, the need to take sides or choose a corner, as one might in a boxing ring, runs contrary to our national mentality.”
“The only side we should be all taking is the side of cooperation, not rivalry; engagement rather than isolation, the rule of law rather than lawlessness; mutual benefit and the concept of win-win outcome rather than mutual exclusion and zero-sum games. That is the approach we have been pursuing over the past 30 years,” he said.
Speaking of the role of middle powers amid the international security crisis, Vassilenko reiterated Astana’s commitment to strengthening the UN as the sole global body addressing security and development challenges. He emphasized President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s call for long-overdue reforms of the UN Security Council to make it more representative and reflective of current global realities.
“What we can do as a middle power – and we take this designation very seriously – is to collaborate with like-minded nations, in a network of such countries in searching for collective solutions and in persuading global superpowers to prioritize the interests of humanity as a whole and urgently address critical global issues, such as climate change, inequality, and poverty,” he noted.
Responding to the moderator’s question on Kazakhstan’s stance toward the conflict in Ukraine, Vassilenko reiterated that “President Tokayev has consistently emphasized that the resolution of this problem can only be achieved through diplomacy. We advocate for the swift cessation of the conflict and the resolution of differences at the negotiating table. Kazakhstan is ready to fully support efforts in this direction.”
Highlighting Kazakhstan’s neutral position and constructive ties with all sides, Vassilenko added, “We are prepared to play our role as a neutral host country if needed, maintaining good positive relations with Russia, Ukraine, and the West.”
Read article on The Astana Times.
Kazakhstan’s Role as Middle Power in Focus at World Policy Conference
12.16.2024
Kazakhstan’s Role as Middle Power in Focus at World Policy Conference
Abu Dhabi, December 16, 2024 – Kazakhstan’s contributions to addressing global challenges and its emerging role as a growing middle power were in the focus of discussions at the 17th annual World Policy Conference (WPC), organized by the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI) in Abu Dhabi on December 13-15.
Thierry de Montbrial, founder and long-standing president of IFRI – one of Europe’s leading think tanks – moderated a conference session titled “Multivector Foreign Policies?”. He highlighted Kazakhstan’s diplomatic course as a model for multivector diplomacy, which has earned the country recognition as a responsible partner in the international community. According to the distinguished French scholar, Kazakhstan has not only refined its approach to foreign policy but is also increasingly active in addressing global challenges as a middle power.
De Montbrial noted that this raises pertinent questions: What are the foundations of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy? How does it manage to maintain positive relations with various geopolitical power centers in an era of heightened tensions? And what can the country achieve in its newly acquired status, particularly, in conflict resolution efforts?
During the subsequent discussion, Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Roman Vassilenko used the metaphor of the traditional Kazakh round felt house, the yurt, to explain the country’s balanced and pragmatic foreign policy. “In the traditional Kazakh home, there are no corners,” he said. “Therefore, the need to take sides or choose a corner, as one might in a boxing ring, runs contrary to our national mentality.”.
He further emphasized that “Kazakhstan rejects dividing nations into blocs. We believe that if states must indeed take a side, it should be the side of cooperation rather than rivalry, engagement rather than isolation, the rule of law rather than lawlessness, mutual benefit and the concept of a win-win outcome, rather than mutual exclusion and zero-sum games. Thanks to this approach, Kazakhstan has built mutually respectful and beneficial relationships with all its partners and enjoys amicable relations with all countries,” he added.
Addressing what middle powers can do amid a crisis in the international security system, the Deputy Minister underscored Astana’s commitment to strengthening the United Nations as the sole global organization tasked with addressing issues of global development and security.
“To this end, as President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has noted, the long-overdue reform of the UN Security Council must become a priority. For many years, the Security Council has been deadlocked on critical issues of war and peace. Kazakhstan believes the Security Council must become more representative and ensure fairer representation, reflecting today’s realities.”
According to Roman Vassilenko, “what we can do as a middle power – and we take this designation very seriously – is to collaborate with like-minded nations, in a network of such countries in searching for collective solutions and in persuading global superpowers to prioritize the interests of humanity as a whole and urgently address critical global issues, such as climate change, inequality, poverty, etc.”.
Responding to the moderator’s question on Kazakhstan’s stance toward the conflict in Ukraine, Vassilenko reiterated that “President Tokayev has consistently emphasized that the resolution of this problem can only be achieved through diplomacy. We advocate for the swift cessation of the conflict and the resolution of differences at the negotiating table. Kazakhstan is ready to fully support efforts in this direction.”.
The panel discussion also featured Serbia’s Speaker of Parliament Ana Brnabić and Georgia’s First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lasha Darsalia, who shared their countries’ approaches to the topic.
The conference explored issues of global geopolitics and economics, bringing together politicians, diplomats, experts, business leaders, and journalists from Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Africa. Representatives of international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development also participated.
Read article on the website of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
الإمارات ترى “مؤشرات مقلقة” في طبيعة القوى الجديدة بسوريا
12.14.2024
الإمارات ترى “مؤشرات مقلقة” في طبيعة القوى الجديدة بسوريا
الإمارات أكدت حرصها على وحدة سوريا
أعرب مسؤول إماراتي رفيع المستوى، السبت، عن “القلق” بشأن الانتماءات الإسلامية للفصائل السورية المسلحة التي أسقطت الرئيس بشار الأسد وتولت السلطة في دمشق وعلى رأسها هيئة تحرير الشام.
وقال أنور قرقاش المستشار الدبلوماسي للرئيس الإماراتي خلال كلمة في “مؤتمر السياسات العالمية” في أبوظبي “نسمع تصريحات معقولة وعقلانية حول الوحدة، وعدم فرض نظام على جميع السوريين، لكن من ناحية أخرى، أعتقد أن طبيعة القوى الجديدة، ارتباطها بالإخوان، وارتباطها بالقاعدة، كلها مؤشرات مقلقة للغاية”.
وأضاف قرقاش “يتعين علينا أن نكون متفائلين من ناحية وأن نساعد السوريين في المهمة الصعبة اليوم، ولكن في الوقت نفسه لا يمكننا تجاهل أن المنطقة شهدت حلقات مشابهة سابقا، لذا يتعين علينا أن نكون حذرين”.
وأعلنت هيئة تحرير الشام بقيادة أبو محمد الجولاني الذي صار يستعمل اسمه الحقيقي أحمد الشرع، أنها أنهت ارتباطها مع تنظيم القاعدة عام 2016. لكن الهيئة لا تزال مصنفة “منظمة إرهابية” في العديد من الدول الغربية، وأبرزها الولايات المتحدة.
والأحد الماضي، اعتبر قرقاش، أن سوريا “ليست في مأمن بعد، وأنه وجود التشدد والإرهاب لا يزال مصدرا أساسيا للقلق.”
وعزا قرقاش سقوط الأسد إلى الفشل السياسي وقال إنه لم يستغل “شريان حياة” قدمته له عدة دول عربية من قبل.
وتابع “كان هناك فشل كبير في الأساس، بشكل جوهري في الإدارة والسياسات لأن الأسد لم يستغل حقا نوعا من شريان الحياة قدمته مختلف الدول العربية ومنها الإمارات، ولم يستغله للمضي قدما في المناقشات الدستورية التي كانت تجري”.
وكانت الإمارات أكدت الإثنين في أول تعليق رسمي على سقوط الأسد، حرصها على وحدة سوريا وسلامة الدولة الوطنية وضمان الأمن والاستقرار للشعب السوري.
وشددت على ضرورة حماية الدولة الوطنية السورية بكافة مؤسساتها، وعدم الانزلاق نحو الفوضى وعدم الاستقرار.
وكانت الإمارات تأمل في إبعاد الأسد عن إيران، ولعبت دورا قياديا في استئناف علاقاته مع دول عربية كانت قد نأت بنفسها عنه بعد أن قبل مساعدة إيران وروسيا لقمع المعارضة.
Read article on Al Hurra.
UAE Official Says New Syria Leaders’ Islamist Ties ‘Worrying’
12.14.2024
UAE Official Says New Syria Leaders’ Islamist Ties ‘Worrying’
A senior UAE official said on Saturday that his government had concerns about the Islamist affiliation of the forces that ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
“We hear some reasonable, rational language about unity, not imposing a system on all Syrians” from the country’s new rulers, said Anwar Gargash, a presidential adviser in the United Arab Emirates, in remarks at the World Policy Conference in Abu Dhabi.
But “the nature of the new forces, the affiliation with the (Muslim) Brotherhood, the affiliation with Al-Qaeda, I think these are all indicators that are quite worrying,” he said.
“We have to be optimistic on the one hand and help Syrians… but at the same time we can’t ignore the region has seen episodes like this before, so we need to be on guard,” added Gargash, citing the “brutal adventures” of the Islamic State group over the past decade in both Syria and Iraq.
Islamist-led rebel forces toppled Assad on Sunday following a lightning offensive that ended his family’s five-decade rule and capped nearly 14 years of civil war.
The offensive was spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is rooted in Al-Qaeda’s Syria branch and is designated a “terrorist” organisation by many Western governments, but has sought to moderate its rhetoric.
A transitional government installed by the HTS-led forces has insisted the rights of all Syrians will be protected, as will the rule of law.
As governments in the region and beyond eye the developments in Syria with some concern, Gargash said that the Arab world has “the responsibility to work not to repeat past mistakes”.
The presidential adviser also condemned a wave of Israeli air strikes on strategic military sites in Syria.
“Using the crisis in Syria to structurally degrade Syrian capabilities might be seen a sensible thing from an Israeli practical point of view, but I think it’s dumb politics,” Gargash said.
“This is a new Syria that is creating itself,” he said, arguing that Israel “should have sent a different message. I don’t say a message of peace, because we are not there yet, but I think a different message.”
The UAE normalised relations with Israel in 2020, one of only a handful of Arab governments to do so.
Read article on Barron’s.