International Organizations and Multilateralism
Rhetoric on the crisis of multilateralism is frequent. International organizations (UN, WTO, etc.) remain no less important, while other forums (G20, BRICS, etc.) are asserting themselves.
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Consequences and Lessons of a Virus
As Europeans get ready for their summer holidays, the Covid-19 pandemic seems to be winding down, despite hotspots cropping up here and there. However, we are not safe from the next wave. After so many careless speeches, nobody dares to make any more precise forecasts. In any case, any confirmed lull fosters broader reflections both on the disaster’s consequences and the dysfunctions that allowed it to happen.
The Post-Coronavirus World Is Already Here
The unforeseeable COVID-19 crisis raises fundamental questions on a number of levels.
COVID-19: A Public Health and Geopolitical Shock
The COVID-19 crisis has hit the countries of the European Union (EU) hard.
Global Public Goods: Beyond Empty Words
As I write these lines, the COVID-19 pandemic seems to be following the pathway forecast by those epidemiologists and virologists, who have been telling us for weeks that the wave is past its peak. If it is, this does not mean that we are safe from a second wave some time later, but only that the first surge is over.
Embattled at Home, Trump Finds Himself Isolated Abroad, Too
With American cities burning and the coronavirus still raging, killing more people than in any other country, President Trump also has growing problems overseas. He has never before been so isolated and ignored, even mocked.
Economy and Diplomacy: China’s two Challenges in the Post-Covid-19 World
Will China rise stronger from the pandemic? A flow of media reports and op-eds have recently flourished, forecasting the decline of the West and the triumph of China on the world stage amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have declared the dawn of a “post-Western world”.
Japan in the 2019 G20 and G7 Summits: A Key Partner for Europe?
This essay offers a general assessment of Japan’s performance in the 2019 G20 and G7 Summits, held respectively in Osaka, Japan and Biarritz, France and looks at how Tokyo coordinated with its European partners (The European Union (EU) institutions and the EU Member States) in these international settings.
Europe’s relationship with China is now one of mistrust and hostility
At the start of the pandemic, Europe and China helped one other. Then the mood changed.
China's Mix of Aggressive and Charming Coronavirus Diplomacy could Worsen Europe's Fractures, Report warns
A prominent French think tank has warned that China's so-called "mask diplomacy" amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic threatens to further exacerbate divisions within the European Union, with Beijing tailoring its approach to suit different nations. The French Institute of International Relations (IFRI) published a new report Thursday detailing how coronavirus could alter EU-China relations, both during the outbreak and in the long-term.
Hubris, Black Swans and the Future of Europe
European Council meetings are seldom exciting. But last week’s virtual gathering showed once again that, despite fears, Europe is moving forward in the most serious crises.
Easing the Lockdown: Some of the Issues
After my first editorial a month ago (it seems like forever!), I am back with some concise remarks.
Perspectives on European integration and China-Europe cooperation
Françoise Nicolas, director of Ifri's Asian Studies Center, spoke during a webseminar on European integration and China-Europe cooperation, organized by Chinese think tank CCG.
Coronavirus: China wants to lead the fight against Covid-19, but can it overcome the mistrust?
With the United States gripped by a domestic struggle with Covid-19, China appears to have stepped into its shoes as a global provider.
A Pandemic Response for Peace and Freedom
“Populism is the great beneficiary of inefficiency. Without a virtuous response … authoritarian regimes will have free rein to thrive and rebuild walls — or wage war.”
COVID-19: The Price of Negligence
It is not easy to step back and gain perspective on a battle that is raging on the home front for all of us and has not yet reached its peak. However, I do want to share some of my thoughts on the COVID-19 pandemic, especially its context.
Japan’s Trade Policy in the Midst of Uncertainty
The multilateral trading system under the World Trade Organization (WTO) has been of the utmost importance for Japan’s trade policy.
Saudi Arabia’s Policy in Africa : Vectors and Objectives
Until recently, Saudi Arabia was the country out of the Gulf countries that had the greatest number of diplomatic missions in Africa (27[1]).
How can global governance be fixed in an age of upheaval?
Ifri’s Executive Chairman Thierry de Montbrial spoke at the 20th World Knowledge Forum in Seoul on September 25, 2019 with Robin Niblett, Chatham House's director, Ed Feulner, The Heritage Foundation's Founder and Former President and Feng Zhu, Director of the Institute of International Studies at Nanjing University about the major governance issues of our time.
China and the New Geopolitics of Technical Standardization
China is rapidly emerging as a formidable power in the development of technical standards, transforming the international standard-setting landscape and reintroducing an element of geopolitics into what are too often considered as benign, technical processes.
Europe and Africa
In this special issue of Politique étrangère devoted to the proceedings of the conference organized by Ifri on April 10, 2019, in the Grand Amphitheater of the Sorbonne, on the occasion of its fortieth anniversary, discover the conversation between Louise Mushikiwabo, Secretary General of La Francophonie and Thierrry de Montbrial, Founder and Executive Chairman of Ifri.
Defence and Foreign Policy Under President-elect François Hollande
We know little about François Hollande's stance on wider foreign and defence policy issues. Though we are unlikely to see major changes from his predecessor, some clues from his successful campaign suggest that President-elect Hollande will adopt a more European and Gaullist approach.
Ukraine at the Crossroads: Between the EU DCFTA and Customs Union
After serious decline in the 1990s, Ukraine's economy finally started its recovery and systemic reform in early 2000. While the economy rapidly grew by 2008, its transformation remained unfinished. Ukraine has three possible roads to development.
South Africa and the Arab Spring: opportunities to match diplomacy goals and strategies
This paper highlights how the Arab Spring magnified a two-dimensional gap in South Africa’s foreign policy. First that South Africa does not have a vision which reconciles demands for achieving the goals of protecting human rights, sovereignty, and multilateralism; second, that its strategies do not meet set goals. The paper then provides tentative explanations to this gap. It ends by elaborating what in the “African Awakening” and in the midst of the Arab Spring are opportunities for South Africa to overcome this gap.
IEA Crisis Management: Evolving with the Risks
Last week the IEA chose not to renew its June strategic stock release. It was the right decision. The volumes of strategic crude and product taken up by the market will be reaching refineries now and incremental volumes produced in the Arabian Gulf will be steaming towards markets.
A Look at the IEA 2011 Release of Strategic Oil Reserves
This paper examines the motivations and the potential consequences of the International Energy Agency’s coordinated action to release petroleum stocks on June 23, 2011.
Chinese Climate Policy: Institutions and Intent
Until the late 1990s, the balance of Chinese energy production and consumption was treated by the rest of the world as a net figure. No one knew what was going on inside the Chinese economy - it was a black box. As far as anyone was concerned, the Chinese would not soon be a major factor in world energy markets.
The Governance of Energy Poverty in Southeastern Europe
This report presents the outcomes of a recently-completed research project1 aimed at uncovering the different ways in which energy poverty – understood as a condition wherein the domestic energy services available to a household are below socially and materially necessitated levels – is produced by, and mitigated through, the interaction of relevant decision-making institutions in the energy, social welfare, health and housing domains. The project focused on conditions in Southeastern Europe, where energy prices have been recently on the rise despite falling incomes and poor access to efficient and adequate energy services.
The G20 and the Challenge of International Financial Re-regulation
The crisis, it is now widely accepted, means that markets failed. Meeting for the first time in Washington in November 2008, the G20 embarked in a ride of re-regulation. Months of negotiations later, it dramatically appears different to agree on principles and broad objectives, and to write and enforce rules and commitments.
An Analysis of North Korea's Principal Trade Relations
The Direction of Trade Statistics by IMF is the most representative statistical data for bilateral trade with North Korea. However, IMF statistics underestimate North Korea's international trade since they do not classify inter-Korean trade as international trade. Therefore, this study restructures statistics on North Korea by combining the IMF and inter-Korean trade data, and it analyzes the structure of North Korea's international trade. In addition, it conducts a unique analysis of trade structures, since other studies have not analyzed production processes in North Korean trade.
This analysis identifies six main characteristics of North Korea's trade:
Russian Gas Diplomacy
Thank goodness our early warning systems during the cold war were not structured so we could see the flash at the same time we heard the warning. On Monday, the Russians notified the Europeans under an “Early Warning” agreement negotiated after the last Ukrainian gas cutoff that they had already cut gas flows to Belarus by 15% and that would increase cuts to 85% by the end of the week. Not very good news for the Belarusians who enjoy the most gasified economy in the world - everything there runs on gas.
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