KEY COMMITMENTS AND EXPECTATIONS FROM THE 2024 NATO SUMMIT IN WASHINGTON

How the military burden affects economic growth, especially in developing countries, is the subject of much research in the economic literature. Studies have varied on the findings of the effects of military expenditure (ME) on growth. Therefore, we see multiple schools of thought about the relationship between ME and economic growth. However, there is a consensus that ME does in general come at an economic cost.In this paper, we use annual time series data on ME, economic growth, net export (NX), and central government expenditure (GE) in Israel and its four Arab neighbors for the period 1988-2010 to investigate the relationship between ME and the other variables for each country individually. The paper uses the unit root and cointegration techniques to determine the relationship between ME and GDP. To investigate the direction of causality between ME and GDP, we use Granger-Causality method.The main conclusion is that “relative” peace time doesn’t mean countries will stop or reduce ME. The rate of ME growth might not be as fast as it is during war times, but it is affected positively by the local income and the economic situation of the country.

Interpreting China's military expenditure has been a complicated issue with important regional implications. This article will first look at the various estimates of China's military budget and the discrepancies in the numbers as well as the geopolitical rationale driving Chinese military planning. Although China publishes its official defense budget and provides justifications for increases in its military spending, most observers remain skeptical of the accuracy of the official figures and wary of the military modernization efforts. This skepticism has shaped the responses of other Asia-Pacific nations toward China's military modernization. Ultimately, even if the Chinese leadership views the military buildup as a natural part of the country's ascension to great power status, the uncertainties surrounding its military expenditures actually undermine the contention that China's will be peaceful. Key words: East Asian security, China, military spending, arms race Introduction The rapid growth of China's economy and its increasingly vigorous diplomatic engagement with regional and international institutions have given to much discussion of China's peace- ful rise to great-power status.1 At the same time, the Pentagon has identified China as the only potential hegemon on the horizon that stands a chance of challenging the unipolar power of the United States. These two views of China-as a largely benign global partner or as a military superpower-to-be-rely on different understandings of a critical factor: the Chinese military budget. According to the Chinese government, the country's rising military budget reflects general economic growth, is devoted to non-threatening expenditures like better pay for soldiers, and remains only a small percentage of what the United States spends every year on the military. Critics, however, argue that China vastly underreports its military expenditures and that the country is acquiring new power-projection capabilities that change the regional balance of power. Determining which of these pictures of China's military spending is correct is not an easy task. In recent years, the Chinese government has published its official annual defense budget figures and provided justifications for the announced increases in military spending as part of its efforts to alleviate the fears outsiders might have about a rapidly rising China. But these published figures, since they don't match the estimates of outside observers, raise more questions than they answer. Why has there been a large discrepancy between China's official defense budget and other estimates? What are China's ultimate geopolitical goals and rationales behind its military planning? How have other nations in the Asia-Pacific region responded to the more robust Chinese military spending? Finally, what implications do the uncertainties in China's military have for its own national goals? A clear picture of China's military spending is essential for an understanding of the country's unfolding conception of itself, for any analysis of Northeast Asian regional politics, and, ultimately, the future trajectory of global geopolitics. How China resolves the seeming contradiction between its insistence on a peaceful to great power status and its considerable annual military budget increases will have an enormous impact on the shape of international institutions and the ends of multilateral action. Estimates of China's Military Expenditure The Official Chinese Case Calculating China's exact military expenditures is complicated by the Chinese government's relative lack of transparency. Although the Chinese government announces its military budget publicly, usually through the published annual report of the Ministry of Defense, its figures are vastly different from the estimates of outside analysts. Nor is there consensus among outside observers on the exact amount of Chinese military spending. …

The purpose of the article is to analyse the impact of military expenditures on budget policy in times of war and to assess the effectiveness of the traditional budget model without dividing it into defense and civilian sectors in the context of economic changes. The research methodology combines quantitative and qualitative methods, including comparative analysis, synthesis of literature, analysis of statistical data and correlation analysis using JASP tools, as well as methods of systematization and generalization to identify key factors influencing budget policy. The use of these methods allows for a comprehensive assessment of the dynamics of budgetary indicators and the effectiveness of public financial management in wartime. The correlation analysis showed that the most significant relationship exists between GDP and public debt (r = 0.917 at p < .001), and between military spending and budget revenues (r = 0.970 at p < .001), indicating a strong influence of these factors on the budgetary situation. Modelling based on the X matrix allows forecasting budgetary indicators, including revenues and expenditures, depending on macroeconomic variables such as GDP and military spending, to further improve budget policy. By analysing the impact of military spending on Ukraine’s budget policy, the article identifies the need to improve the financing of the defence sector to ensure macroeconomic stability in times of war. Given the increasing fiscal instability and limited opportunities for economic development due to the growth of military spending, the need to improve the financing of the defence sector was identified.

Reviewed by: Strategic Asia 2005-06: Military Modernization in an Era of Uncertainty Carlyle A. Thayer Strategic Asia 2005–06: Military Modernization in an Era of Uncertainty. Edited by Ashley J. Tellis and Michael Wills. Seattle and Washington, DC: National Bureau of Asian Research, 2005. Softcover: 461 pp. The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) has established itself as one of the world's leading organizations that promotes strategic analysis. This is well illustrated by its annual publication, Strategic Asia, which rivals if not surpasses Strategic Survey, issued by the International Institute of Strategic Studies, for the quality of its analysis. The NBR's Strategic Asia, however, does not attempt to systematically canvass the previous year's major developments. Strategic Asia focuses on a special theme each year and is limited in its geographic coverage. Strategic Asia is a very well-organized volume. Each chapter is prefaced with a short executive summary that succinctly sets out the main argument and policy implications. Each chapters examines the strategic context from the point of view of country or region concerned, analyses the specific types of military modernization programmes that are currently being undertaken, and concludes with an assessment of the political and strategic implications of military modernization in each sub-region as well as Asia as a whole. Unlike Strategic Survey, Strategic Asia identifies its contributors who are generally leading American specialists. Strategic Asia is also fully documented. These footnotes provide a rich guide to current strategic analysis. The chapters in Strategic Asia are quite current, indicating a short turnaround time from submission to publication. Strategic Asia also contains a brief index. Strategic Asia 2005–2006 focuses on military modernization in an era of strategic uncertainty. The editors, Ashley J. Tellis and Michael Wills, define military modernization "as the relevant upgrade or improvement of existing military capabilities through the acquisition of new imported or indigenously developed weapons systems and supporting assets, the incorporation of new doctrines, the creation of new organizational structures, and the institutionalization of new manpower management and combat training regimes" (p. 15). Strategic Asia 2005–2006 contains 13 chapters grouped into four major sections. The first section comprises an overview of military modernization in Asia. This is followed by five country studies that focus on the major actors — United States, China, Japan, the two Koreas, and Russia (Stephen J. Blank). Section three comprises chapters that canvass military modernization in Central Asia (Kimberly Marten), between India and Pakistan, and Southeast Asia (Sheldon W. Simon). [End Page 178] Section four contains four special studies: Australian strategic policy, nuclear proliferation, China's economic growth, and military modernization in Taiwan. Strategic Asia 2005–2006 concludes with a statistical section, "Strategic Asia by the Numbers". Twenty-one strategic indicators are grouped into nine major categories: Economic (GDP, GDP growth, and inflation), Trade (trade, export patterns, import patterns), Investment (FDI, origins of FDI), Population (population, population growth, and life expectancy), Politics and International Relations (politics, political rankings), Energy (energy consumption, oil supplies and reserves), Defence Spending (total defence expenditures, defence expenditure as a share of GDP), Conventional Military Capabilities (manpower, conventional warfare capabilities), Weapons of Mass Destruction, or WMD (nuclear weapons, intercontinental ballistic missiles, non-proliferation commitments, and WMD export control regimes). In his introductory overview, Tellis writes that military modernization in Asia is a response to strategic uncertainty but the forms that modernization takes reflects "both the diversity of the region itself and the challenges peculiar to each of the 'security complexes' of which Asia is composed" (p. 5). Strategic Asia 2005–2006 identifies four major security complexes: Northeast Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Central Asia (p. xi). The Asian continent is the arena where the interests of China, the United States, and Russia actively intersect. Tellis argues that Asia "is poised to become the new center of gravity in global politics" and the site for "the single largest concentration of global economic power" (p. 3). The complexity of the security environment is a structural driver behind military modernization in Asia. For example, economic growth will be increasingly dependent on access to secure sources of energy and "the protection of energy access constitutes one of the key drivers of military modernization among the...

Many studies have examined the relationship between defense spending and growth in real aggregate output with mixed results. Most recently, Atesoglu (2002) finds a positive relationship between defense spending and output. Capturing the error correction term as the long run adjustment parameter and including the long run adjustment in the relationship, we do not find evidence that defense spending promotes growth in real output. Instead, defense spending responds to aggregate income shocks. We re‐estimated the relationship and dummied all US military conflicts with similar results concerning military spending's effect on output. Interestingly, we find trade‐offs between defense and non‐defense government spending during war time. * The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the US Air Force, the Department of Defense, or the US Government. The authors would like to express their thanks for the comments from Craig Stone and the other participants at the 2006 Canadian Economics Association conference, as well the comments received from three anonymous referees and the editor.

The aim of this article is to discuss all aspects of NATO’s approach to global partners, as well as how the Alliance’s new partnership policy can affect relations with these countries. This article examines the implications of the change in US foreign policy for NATO and it asserts that the impact of the financial crisis on defence budgets of NATO member states and the shifting American strategic focus to the Asia Pacific region will also force NATO to focus on finding new global partners from this region where there is no possibility for Alliance expansion in the short to medium term. Clearly, in an age of austerity, and with its new partnership policy, NATO aims to focus more on developing its relations with global partners

The large-scale war taking place on the territory of Ukraine as of 2023 has a significant impact on budgetary processes and the financial system. In the face of new challenges, the budget system is becoming a key tool for ensuring financial stability and fulfilling the strategic objectives of the state. Military expenditures, reconstruction of the affected territories, social support for citizens and other unforeseen expenditures require effective management of the state and local budgets and improvement of the financial security mechanism. The purpose of this article is to define the theoretical and practical foundations of Ukraine’s budget security, to develop proposals for a strategy and measures to ensure the sustainability of the budget system in times of war. In studying the issues of formation and functioning of Ukraine’s budget security, the author used a combination of empirical, comprehensive, systemic and analytical methods and approaches that helped to achieve this goal. The study analysed statistical data reflecting the state of budget security, including indicators reflecting the specifics of the state budget system management. Nevertheless, the events that took place in the period from 2014 to 2022 led to political and economic instability in the country, which resulted in an imbalance in the functioning of Ukraine’s budget security. Given the difficulties associated with ensuring budgetary security in a time of war, the author offers recommendations for achieving future stability of the state’s financial system, which involves adherence to the national strategy and development of new financial security mechanisms. At the same time, a sustainable budget policy promotes efficient resource management and stimulates economic development. Investments in key industries, support for enterprises and innovations help to strengthen the country’s economy. The scientific results obtained in the course of this study solve the urgent problem of developing and substantiating theoretical and methodological approaches to the functioning of budget security, and can also be used to determine ways to improve it and apply it by the country’s state authorities

The large-scale war taking place on the territory of Ukraine as of 2023 has a significant impact on budgetary processes and the financial system. In the face of new challenges, the budget system is becoming a key tool for ensuring financial stability and fulfilling the strategic objectives of the state. Military expenditures, reconstruction of the affected territories, social support for citizens and other unforeseen expenditures require effective management of the state and local budgets and improvement of the financial security mechanism. The purpose of this article is to define the theoretical and practical foundations of Ukraine's budget security, to develop proposals for a strategy and measures to ensure the sustainability of the budget system in times of war. In studying the issues of formation and functioning of Ukraine's budget security, the author used a combination of empirical, comprehensive, systemic and analytical methods and approaches that helped to achieve this goal. The study analysed statistical data reflecting the state of budget security, including indicators reflecting the specifics of the state budget system management. Nevertheless, the events that took place in the period from 2014 to 2022 led to political and economic instability in the country, which resulted in an imbalance in the functioning of Ukraine's budget security. Given the difficulties associated with ensuring budgetary security in a time of war, the author offers recommendations for achieving future stability of the state's financial system, which involves adherence to the national strategy and development of new financial security mechanisms. At the same time, a sustainable budget policy promotes efficient resource management and stimulates economic development. Investments in key industries, support for enterprises and innovations help to strengthen the country's economy. The scientific results obtained in the course of this study solve the urgent problem of developing and substantiating theoretical and methodological approaches to the functioning of budget security, and can also be used to determine ways to improve it and apply it by the country's state authorities

<p>For over a decade, the International Soil Moisture Network (ISMN) has been providing free in-situ soil moisture data for validating and improving global satellite soil moisture products, weather prediction, agricultural activities, research and training as well as for the development of hydrological models. The ISMN is a community-wide effort and aggregates soil moisture observations from several organizations, harmonizes them and provides a centralized platform where end users can access them. Presently, the ISMN consists of over 72 soil moisture networks and more than 2800 stations spread across the globe. For more than a decade, the ISMN has been funded by European Space Agency and established, developed and maintained by Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien), Austria.</p><p>For continuing development, outreach and maintenance of the ISMN, a sustainable and long-term support is required. In order to achieve such long-term support, the ISMN will be transferring to the German Federal Institute of Hydrology (BfG) and connected International Center for Water Resources and Global Change (ICWRGC) in Germany within 2022. While BfG and ICWRGC (operating under the auspice of UNESCO and WMO) will host and maintain the ISMN data facility, long-term financial support will be provided by the German Federal Institute of Hydrology through the Federal Ministry of Digital Infrastructure and Transport.</p><p>The ICWRGC has being coordinating the Global Terrestrial Network – Hydrology (GTN-H) as well as Global Environment Monitoring System for Freshwater (GEMS/Water Data Center) for several years. Hence, the center has an extensive experience, resources as well as scientific advisory support for a long-term sustainable operation and maintenance of the ISMN. As we look forward to a new future of ISMN, we also want to maintain, even improve on the great community support the project has received.</p><p>Therefore, our presentation aims to give an overview of the contribution of ISMN to research and training development, provides recent updates regarding the data service and ongoing technical developments. Furthermore, we want to introduce the new host as well as presenting the future outlook of the ISMN, which include setting up scientific advisory board with members from relevant UN organizations, key data providers and data users that would help promote and develop the ISMN further. Through the connection to UN organizations, member states could be encouraged to share their operational soil moisture data with the ISMN for continuing support of global climate and water resources observations. We also look forward to gaining new collaborations that will help in extending the ISMN database, initiate discussion between stakeholders to improve visibility and scientific advancement of the ISMN as well as promoting the importance of soil moisture within global earth observations data products.</p>

The Republic Act (R.A.) 10349, otherwise known as the Revised Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program, is a recapturing of the AFP’s initial efforts at modernizing. Successor to R.A. 7898, the document reorients the priorities and the fiscal responsibilities of the Philippine government in ensuring the modernization of the armed forces into the 21st century. The concept of modernization 25 years onward has matured but it has barely deepened much to the detriment of AFP itself. Despite warnings of external security threats, the study has found nominal evidence hinting at the defense budget’s continuous prioritization of internal security threats. The study has likewise found nominal indicators that modernization funds set forth by R.A. 10349 are not utilized to ‘modernize’ the armed forces in the truest sense of the word. The study recommends addressing these issues of prioritization before any further attempt at military modernization.

The Republic Act (R.A.) 10,349, otherwise known as the Revised Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program, is a recapturing of the AFP’s initial efforts at modernizing. Successor to R.A. 7898, the document reorients the priorities and the fiscal responsibilities of the Philippine government in ensuring the modernization of the armed forces into the twenty-first century. The concept of modernization 25 years onward has matured but it has barely deepened in implementation much to the detriment of AFP itself. Despite warnings of external security threats, the study has found nominal evidence hinting at the defence budget’s continuous prioritization of internal security threats. The study has likewise found that modernization funds set forth by R.A. 10,349 are not utilized to “modernize” the armed forces in the truest sense of the word. The study recommends addressing this issue of prioritization before any further attempt at military modernization.

Developing future health care leaders continues to emphasize the need for competency based education. Given the increasing impact global health issues has on health status and population health on a country, graduate health care management program should include exposure to knowledge and skills in the curriculum. The geographic boundaries of domestic based graduate education often limit the ability for global engagement. Many student experiences diversity among the profile in classroom, whether on-line or residential, and some content related material on global issues. The paper reviews a strategic global partnership model used to expose students to health issues and health systems using study abroad learning. A three-year case study between partner institutions in North and South America is examined. The findings identify critical factors and best practices needed for sustaining global health partnerships.

Sustainable Development Goal 17 is the “operative” SDG, calling for a revitalization of global partnerships to help implement the SDGs as a whole. Global partnerships are a form of international cooperation that are nested within broader structures and networks of global governance, from international organizations to informal networks among private actors. This chapter identifies pre-twentieth century antecedents of global partnerships, sketches the genealogy of the concept of sustainability, and outlines the global social governance issues for which successful global governance partnerships emerged in the twentieth century. It examines significant forms, goals, modalities, and models of global partnerships that have developed from the nineteenth century until the mid 1990s with the World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen and the publication of the UN Commission on Global Governance’s report, Our Common Neighbourhood. The chapter concludes with an analysis of different forms of strategic cooperation between public and private actors; the use of benchmarks, blueprints, targets, and other “indicators for the global community”; the concept of capacity building as a key goal of global partnerships; the role of international organizations and networks as problem-solving fora; and the significance of international conferences and international law (both treaty and customary law) as sites and modes of international cooperation.

Asia's growing share of the global economy provides one of the strongest themes in contemporary analysis of international affairs. The remarkable economic achievements of Japan, Korea, and Taiwan over the past 50 years have been compounded more recently by the rise of the Chinese and Indian economies. While the significance of this change in the way international wealth is shared was beyond doubt before the onset of the current global financial crisis, many commentators expect that when the world eventually emerges from the crisis Asia's share of the global economy will have grown even further. This shift clearly has strategic importance: economic decisions made in Asia, whether by governments or business, are now more important for the rest of the world than they have been for centuries. If military power were moving in the same direction, and at the same pace, the strategic consequences would be even greater. This paper examines trends in Asian military spending and modernisation. It begins with a summary of defence spending among Asian countries.1 It next considers the nature of the capabilities and equipment they are acquiring, and comments on the way in which forces are being structured, commanded, and managed. It then comments on the range of different factors that are driving military spending and modernisation in Asia, and offers particular comment on China in this regard. The paper then concludes with brief comments on United States and Australian military spending and development.

The next American president's foreign policy will be conducted in the face of two main challenges. One is the legacy of George W. Bush: Iraq in particular, and a substantially weakened US strategic...