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27/08/2022 ---- 07/09/2022

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07.09.2022
THEME: POLITICS

Turkey escalating tensions with Greece while moving steps closer to East

Greece and Turkey have come close to war three times in the last half-century mainly due to Aegean Sea islands disputes and immigration. Ankara and Athens are also now entangled in a dispute over the right to explore for hydrocarbons near Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, where Cyprus and several Greek islands are also located. In the past few few weeks president of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who must contest elections by June next year, made several aggressive statements against the neighbouring country. He said on Monday that “Greece is not at our level, just as it is not our equal politically, economically, or militarily” in televised comments. He previously stated that Turkey may “come suddenly one night” amid a revival in accusations by his government that Greece has been illegally militarising islands near Turkey’s coastline. Greece denies the charges. “Your occupying the islands does not bind us. When the time, the hour, comes, we will do what is necessary”. This week the relationship reached a new low point as Greece’s government has written to NATO, EU, and the head of the United Nations asking them to condemn the aggressive talk by Turkey. Greece is warning the allies that current bilateral tensions could escalate into a second open conflict on European soil. In addition to this bilateral diatribe, statements have been directed also against the EU arguing it has an anti-Turkish attitude: “We know very well why the EU, which we are waiting to join, excludes us and includes countries that cannot be compared to us”. At only a few hours of the heavy statements by “Asian block” nations at the EEF, Erdogan said that “there is a West that is leading a policy based on provocation against Russia, which is not correct and will not be able to achieve any result”, adding that other countries should not underestimate Russia. His statements accompany a series of steps towards East: Turkey has not joined the Western sanctions regime against Russia and recently signed a new economic cooperation agreement with Moscow, including provisions of natural gas. Erdogan is expected to meet Putin at a regional summit in Uzbekistan next week. Chinese President Xi Jinping will also attend.

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07.09.2022
THEME: ECONOMY

A vision of a flourishing economy, based on mutual cooperation, is shared among Asian leaders at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok

It was a hot plenary session on September 7 at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok. In this session president of Russia Vladimir Putin and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China Li Zhanshu took the floor. Putin’s plenary session lasted approximately 37 minutes becoming the longest one compared to his previous speeches at this forum. He predicts that the competitiveness of European companies will decrease since the EU administration is forbidding access to raw materials and energy at affordable prices. In his words: “The level of quality of life Europe has attained is being burned to fuel this sanctions machine in the name of the so-called Atlantic Unity” and said that it will be no coincidence if the global dominance of some EU companies is going to be replaced by American counterparts. He stated that the Russian federation is launching a number of projects to develop Russia far-East with new cities and universities, with the aim to attract corporations and highly trained people from the world. In conclusion, he stressed that as most Asian nations have rejected sanctions imposed by Western countries the logic of cooperation, of pooling of potentials and of mutual benefit with reliable partners - in particular Asian countries - will allow for a sustainable long-term development and a flourishing economy in the future. By replying questions, Putin also stated that Russia has benefited from the military operation in Ukraine through strengthening Russia’s sovereignty. He also accused the EU of “cheating” to import of grain through Turkey, grain which would be destined to developing countries. However, he also admits there is no breach of any signed contract. As a remedy, he announces negotiations to limit grain export to Western destinations in order to favour poorer countries. On gas provisions to EU, which is currently stopped, he accused Ukraine and Poland of sanctioning and shutting down pipelines and UK to sabotage all efforts to repair Nord Stream 1 by leveraging maintenance contracts signed with the British division of Siemens - the company providing the turbine that needs repair. On the price cap decided by G7 on September 2 he stated that “this decision has no future” and that the EU attempt to restrict prices will instead lead to a price increase. He rejects allegations of Russia using energy as a weapon and confirms that gas pipelines will be built to increase delivery to China. Li Zhanshu, in his intervention, said that China is interested in the vision of a strong Asian economy and reassured his country’s cooperation with Russia “across the whole spectrum”. In his words: “China believes that Russia is an important partner in international cooperation and will continue to develop cooperation in trade, finance, technology, science, education, and culture”. He also stated that China is ready to actively contribute to the development of Russia far-East. Alongside Putin and Li Zhanshu, in the plenary session short talks were given by Myanmar’s Chairman of the State Administration Council Min Aung Hlaing, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrein Oyun-Erdene.

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06.09.2022
THEME: ENVIRONMENT

Thwaites Glacier is melting at an increasing rate: an acceleration of sea level raising is possible in the coming years

The Thwaites Glacier, located in West Antarctica, is one of the widest on Earth and is larger than the state of Florida. It has been nicknamed “doomsday glacier” because of its high rise of collapse and threat to global sea level. In the coming years, scientists say, it has the potential to rapidly retreat, amplifying concerns over the extreme sea level rise that would accompany its potential demise. At some point in the last two centuries, the base of the glacier dislodged from the seabed and retreated at a rate of 1.3 miles (2.1 kilometres) per year. In a study published on September 5 in the journal Nature Geoscience it has been reported that new seabed imagery indicates that the glacier previously retreated at double its current rate, implying that mass loss could accelerate in the near future. The Thwaites Glacier, located in West Antarctica, is one of the widest on Earth and is larger than the state of Florida. But it's just a faction of the West Antarctic ice sheet, which holds enough ice to raise sea level by up to 16 feet, according to NASA. As the climate crisis has accelerated, this region has been closely monitored because of its rapid melting and its capacity for widespread coastal destruction. In 2021, a study showed the Thwaites Ice Shelf, which helps to stabilize the glacier and hold the ice back from flowing freely into the ocean could shatter within five years. The nature is warning us: climate change is happening and the time to find solutions is running out.

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06.09.2022
THEME: POLITICS

“Asian block” nations strengthen cooperation at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia

The 7th Eastern Economic Forum EEF, scheduled to be held from September 5 to 8 in Vladivostok, is focused this year on the theme "On the Path to a Multipolar World," according to the official website of the forum. Tomorrow September 7 high officials of the most relevant Asian nations will meet at the (EEF) in bilateral meetings planned around the plenary talk of Russian president Vladimir Putin. Alongside Putin, taking part in the plenary session will be Myanmar’s Chairman of the State Administration Council Min Aung Hlaing, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrein Oyun-Erdene and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China Li Zhanshu. All these nations constitute a large block - the majority of Asia - and their relationships are currently strengthening. This aggregation of interests is accelerated by the Ukraine and Taiwan unresolved issues with Western countries, particularly US. The G20 in Bali, taking place in November, will see the leaders of these nations face to face with EU and US leaders for the first time since the Ukraine war started.

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05.09.2022
THEME: POLITICS

New UK Prime Minister Liz Truss takes office in a difficult historical moment

Across the United Kingdom, businesses and households are warning that they won't make it through the winter without help from the government. That sets up enormous challenges for the incoming prime minister Truss, elected today as successor to Boris Johnson. With inflation running above 10% yearly, soaring energy bills, and the ongoing Brexit consequences the UK is arguably the most impacted European state in the coming winter. During the electoral campaign the PM has defined China a threat - while the bilateral relationship has been growing in the past decade: a course inversion that could bring further economic turmoil. On other foreign matters such as pending issues with the EU and the will to see Russia defeated in Ukraine, new PM Truss is likely to continue the doing of her predecessor. With other nations already taking significant economic measures, PM Truss - already defined as the new Iron Lady - has the possibility to write history for her country in such a complex historical moment.

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05.09.2022
THEME: WORLD

Chile voted on the most progressive constitution in the world: 62% rejected the proposal

On September 4 2022 Chile voted on the proposal to adopt a new constitution where social inclusion, ecology, gender parity, indigenous rights are unmovable pillars. The text contains a number of articles designed to boost science, expand environmental protection and improve the nation’s education system. These stand in stark contrast to the contents of the text enacted more than four decades ago under the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. In the past years many Chileans protested economic inequalities and demanded a new constitution. In 2020 the nation voted overwhelmingly to replace the document. A democratically elected assembly, including scientists, teachers, students and Indigenous representatives, formed to draft it. It is the first time in Chile's history a constitution was drafted democratically. With protests in Chile being heavily supported by feminist movements, the draft contains several strong points on gender parity. State bodies and public companies, among other entities, would have gender parity. The state would take measures to eradicate and punish gender violence. The proposal said every person is entitled to sexual and reproductive rights, including the voluntary interruption of pregnancy - abortion in Chile is currently legal only in cases that involve rape, unviable pregnancies or when the mother's life is in danger. The constitution draft also had an entire chapter dedicated to environment, stating that "nature has rights" and that animals are "subjects of special protection." Fighting climate change would be a state duty as would be protecting biodiversity, native species and natural spaces. Wetlands and glaciers would be "excluded from any mining activity" - Chile is the world's largest producer of copper and one of the top lithium producers. Clearly impacting many strong powers (such as mining corporations) the political campaign has been intense and characterised by accusations of misinformation. Today 62% rejected the proposal. Chile remains now with the constitution written by the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.

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05.09.2022
THEME: ECONOMY

Germany announces 65 billions package to curb soaring energy costs

Germany has announced a 65 billions package of measure to curb the rising energy costs due to scarce supplies after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told journalists Germany would get through the winter, adding that Russia was "no longer a reliable energy partner".He said the government would make one-off payments to pensioners, people on benefits and students. There would also be caps on energy bills. Some 9,000 energy-intensive businesses would receive tax breaks to the tune of €1.7bn. Countries across Europe are considering similar measures. EU energy ministers are due to meet on 9 September to discuss how to ease the burden of energy prices across the bloc.

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02.09.2022
THEME: WORLD

G7 leaders agree on price cap for Russian oil while Kremlin promises hard reaction

Yesterday Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters that Russia will suspend supplies of oil and petroleum products to states which will decide to restrict the price of oil from the country. On the same day the chairman of the board of Russia’s largest private oil company LUKoil (Ravil Maganov, 67) died after falling from a Moscow hospital window plunging from the sixth-floor window of the Central Clinical Hospital - known as the “Kremlin Clinic”. It is with these premises that today September 2 the finance ministers of G7 nations gathered in Elmau (Germany) to decide on the restrictions on Russian oil. The outcome of such meeting shows a strong resolve by EU on this matter. A joint statement has been released: “ […] We will curtail Putin’s capacity to fund his war from oil exports by banning services, such as insurance and the provision of finance, to vessels carrying Russian oil above an agreed price cap. We are united against this barbaric aggression and will do all we can to support Ukraine as they fight for sovereignty, democracy and freedom”. With this the G7 Leaders reaffirmed a shared commitment to preventing Russia from profiting from its war of aggression, to supporting stability in global energy markets and to minimising negative economic spillovers, especially on low- and middle-income countries. To deliver on this commitment, today they confirm a joint political intention to finalise and implement a comprehensive prohibition of services which enable maritime transportation of Russian-origin crude oil and petroleum products globally – the provision of such services would only be allowed if the oil and petroleum products are purchased at or below a price (“the price cap”) determined by the broad coalition of countries adhering to and implementing the price cap. In the following days and weeks such measures will be implemented, with a reaction by Russia to be expected. A few hours later Gazprom announced the possibility of a prolonged halt of natural gas supply through a key pipeline to Germany (Nord Stream 1), citing the need for urgent maintenance work. Today the energy ministers of G20 nations had a parallel meeting in Bali to discuss energy security. The meeting was wrapped up without producing a joint statement toward a stable supply of energy. Differences between Russia and the West likely prevented their reaching an agreement.

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01.09.2022
THEME: WORLD

UN reports human rights violations against Uyghurs in Xinjiang, China

The Uyghurs are recognised as native to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwest China. They are one of China's 55 officially recognised ethnic minorities. Since 2014 the Chinese government created camps to ensure “adherence to to Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ideology, preventing separatism, fighting terrorism, and providing vocational training to Uyghurs”. A report published on Wednesday in the wake of the visit by UN High Commissioner of Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet in May, said that “allegations of patterns of torture, or ill-treatment, including forced medical treatment and adverse conditions of detention, are credible, as are allegations of individual incidents of sexual and gender-based violence.” The UN rights office said that Wednesday’s report was “based on a rigorous review of documentary material currently available to the Office, with its credibility assessed in accordance with standard human rights methodology. At the same time China firmly opposes the release of the so-called Xinjiang-related report by the UN Human Rights Office. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said China attaches importance to balanced promotion of all types of human rights, to dialogue and cooperation with member states, and opposes the wrong practice of politicising human rights and double standards.

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31.08.2022
THEME: POLITICS

EU decides to suspend the visa agreements with Russia

Today the European Union has decided to fully suspend a 2007 visa agreement with Russia and intensify scrutiny over the future applications submitted by Russian tourists. The suspension of the agreement is expected to significantly hinder the visa application process, making it much more expensive, burdensome and drawn-out for Russian nationals planning to visit the bloc. "It’s going to be more difficult and longer, and consequently the number of new visas will be substantially reduced," said Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, at the end of an informal meeting of foreign affairs ministers in Prague. While this move demonstrates the EU resolve about the Ukraine matter, some argue that it may strengthen Putin’s regime.

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30.08.2022
THEME: POLITICS

EU struggle with gas pricing anticipates a hard winter energy crisis

EU has been struggling with a growing gas pricing since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis. With Gazprom - Russia’s state controlled energy giant - reducing the gas flux towards EU, and temporarily stopping them for alleged maintenances, prices at the Title Transfer Facility (TTF) - the continent's leading trading hub - reached €321 per megawatt-hour, a stratospheric figure compared to the €27 set a year ago. Some European countries, like Poland, Bulgaria and Finland, have already had their supplies cut off, while others (Germany, Austria, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, etc.) have seen their deliveries significantly reduced. Ministers and leaders in EU are now discussing measures: stocks are being cumulated and energy-saving measures are being implemented. Leaders will also meet to decide wether a gap to the energy price should be implemented. Despite such efforts, some are already announcing that companies may face energy ‘rationing’ this winter.

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29.08.2022
THEME: TECHNOLOGY

China space station continues its assembly and makes steps towards deep space exploration

Today NASA announced postponing Artemis I flight due to engine issues. At the same time the Chinese space program continues towards a fully functional space station and receives good news from botanic experiments onboard. China's Wentian lab module successfully arrived at the China Space Station in the early hours on July 25 and docked with the Tianhe core cabin. Wentian is the second section of the three module Chinese Space Station. Before China, only the former Soviet Union and the US were capable of assembling ultra-large spacecraft in orbit. Today, August 29, good news come from the Wentian’s ecology experimental module as rice seeds have sprouted into tall plants and growing. The experiment is expected to complete a full life cycle "from seeds to seeds”, and during the process astronauts will collect samples and then freeze and preserve them, before finally returning them to the ground for analysis. If completed, this will be the world's first to complete the whole life cycle of rice cultivation under space microgravity conditions. The long term goal of such developments being deep space exploration, a new highly competitive race may have started between US and China in space.

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28.08.2022
THEME: TECHNOLOGY

Towards long-term permanence on the Moon: NASA historic Artemis mission to set off on August 29

Almost 50 years after the last Apollo mission ventured to the lunar surface, NASA has established the Artemis program, which has the ultimate goal of establishing a long-term presence on the Moon’s surface. With a long-term presence established on or around the Moon, it would then be used for future missions further afield, including to Mars - and it all begins with Artemis I. All of the objectives for the inaugural Artemis flight will demonstrate capabilities necessary for when the Orion spacecraft carries humans to deep space. The list includes an overall safe flight, the performance of the rocket, testing the heat shield and retrieving the spacecraft. Artemis I is officially a test flight where new technologies will be tested without crew onboard. After Artemis I comes Artemis 2 and 3, NASA’s first manned lunar missions in five decades. Artemis 3 will be the first crewed lunar landing since Apollo 17 in 1972. It is also intended to be the first mission to land a woman on the Moon. After the discovery in 2009 of Lunar pits and caves that could provide Earth-like temperatures (17 degrees Celsius, 63 Fahrenheit) long term permanence on the Moon’s surface may not be too far away. These pit craters, and the caves to which they may potentially lead, would make safer, more thermally stable base camps for lunar exploration and long-term habitation than the rest of the Moon’s surface, which heats up to 260 degrees (126.6 Celsius) during the day and drops to 280 degrees below zero at night (-173.3 Celsius).

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27.08.2022
THEME: ENVIRONMENT

15 years of negotiations not enough for UN international treaty to preserve Earth’s oceans biodiversity

It is a scientific fact that human life depends on oceans and their biodiversity. In the last decades an incredible number of species in the sea have reduced in number so much that they are now at risk of extinction. A study published in Science found that under business-as-usual global temperature increases, marine systems are likely to experience mass extinctions on par with past great extinctions. Protecting the biodiversity that has been created in the seas in the last 50 million years is now a critical and urgent global matter. Yet, a fifth round of negotiations for a UN ocean treaty to protect and manage the high seas failed to reach an agreement on Friday in New York. The negotiations focused on four key areas: (1) Establishing marine protected areas for more than 30% of the earth’s surface; (2) Improving environmental impact assessments; (3) Providing finance and capacity building to developing countries; (4) Sharing of marine genetic resources - biological material from plants and animals in the ocean that can have benefits for society, such as pharmaceuticals, industrial processes and food. Laura Meller, who leads Greenpeace’s ocean protection campaign, accused rich countries such as the United States of being too slow to compromise. “Russia has also been a key blocker in negotiations, refusing to engage in the treaty process itself, or attempting to compromise with the European Union and many other states on a wide range of issues,” Meller said. The talks will resume next year unless a special emergency session is called before the end of 2022. One of the most sensitive issues revolves around the sharing of possible profits gained from developing genetic resources in international waters, where pharmaceutical, chemical and cosmetic companies hope to find miracle drugs, products or cures. Such costly research at sea is largely the prerogative of rich nations, but developing countries do not want to be left out of potential windfall profits drawn from marine resources that belong to no one. Similar issues of equity between the Global North and South arise in other international negotiations, such as on climate change, where developing nations feel outsized harms from global warming and try in vain to get wealthier nations to help pay to offset those impacts. Economic differences between nations are hindering developments that are more and more urgent for our species’ future survival.

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