Europe just became the world’s most dangerous place
Not long ago, Europe was seen by the world as a model for peace and cooperation. The Cold War had ended with the peaceful implosion of the Soviet Union. The EU and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe were seen as a beacon for the rest of the world, including Asia and the Middle East, to emulate. Today, these claims are shattered. While the Ukraine situation continues to evolve, there are some immediate consequences. The Ukrainian crisis is another nail in the coffin of the post-war liberal order. The order was already fraying due to a global economic shift from the West to China. That shift was in motion even before US President Trump assumed office with a foreign policy agenda that distrusted both economic globalisation and multilateral institutions. Upon taking office, US President Biden pledged to ‘repair our alliances and engage with the world once again’. The Ukraine crisis is set to impede multilateralism, paralyse the UN Security Council and limit cooperation among the major powers. It is likely to return the world to opposing power blocs where the United States and its NATO allies face Russia and China. In confronting Russian President Putin, Biden has turned to NATO. There have been celebrations about renewed NATO unity induced by Putin’s provocations. But NATO has been part of both the problem and the solution. Writing in the New York Times in 1997, George F Kennan — the father of the US ‘containment’ strategy against the Soviet Union — warned that ‘expanding NATO would be the most fateful error of American policy in the entire post-Cold War era’. Kennan’s warning has proven correct.
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.