New India-EU trade route: Bringing the Gulf states closer?
For the Saudi Arabian investment minister, it's a project deserving of superlatives. The new trade route, which will go from India to the Middle East, via Europe, will be just as important as the Silk Road or the Spice Route were historically, Khalid al-Falih enthused in September while at the first India-Saudi Arabia Investment Forum in New Delhi.
It was at the G20 summit earlier in the month, that the US, the European Union, India, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other member states declared they wanted to create an India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, or IMEC, which will include a rail link, as well as an electricity cable, a hydrogen pipeline and a high-speed data cable, according to a document prepared by the European Commission.
The planned corridor would run around 4,800 kilometers and will have two separate wings: The eastern wing will connect India with the Gulf states and the northern one will go from the Gulf states into Europe.
Aligning nations of same mind and same vision?
The plan is a historic one, according to Saudi investment minister al-Falih. "People talk about the silk route, the spice route of India through the Arabian Peninsula, but this is going to be more significant and relevant because it's going to be about new energy, data, connectivity, human resources, aviation routes and it's about aligning countries that are of the same mind and same vision," he said at the G20 meeting.
Al-Khalil's words are optimistic. The reality is that, as much as the economic interests of the involved nations may be similar, they still differ in important areas — and especially in political terms.
The US' deputy national security adviser, Jon Finer, spoke in more realistic terms about the project. It would benefit low- and middle-income countries in the region and also enable the Middle East to play an important role in global trade, he said during the G20 summit. But of course, there was more to the new trade corridor than trade, he noted.
India targets net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, says Modi
India’s economy will become carbon neutral by the year 2070, the country’s prime minster has announced at the COP26 climate crisis summit in Glasgow. The target date is two decades beyond what scientists say is needed to avert catastrophic climate impacts. India is the last of the world’s major carbon polluters to announce a net-zero target, with China saying it would reach that goal in 2060, and the United States and the European Union aiming for 2050.
COP26: What climate summit means for one woman in Bangladesh
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Why China's climate policy matters to us all
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Deliver on promises, developing world tells rich at climate talks
A crucial U.N. conference heard calls on its first day for the world's major economies to keep their promises of financial help to address the climate crisis, while big polluters India and Brazil made new commitments to cut emissions. World leaders, environmental experts and activists all pleaded for decisive action to halt the global warming which threatens the future of the planet at the start of the two-week COP26 summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Monday. The task facing negotiators was made even more daunting by the failure of the Group of 20 major industrial nations to agree ambitious new commitments at the weekend.