International Political Climate Research Articles

Economic Future of BRICS Countries

This article examines the economic prospects of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) against the backdrop of the current international political climate. The global economy has undergone significant changes in recent years, and the emergence of new political and economic powers has disrupted the traditional balance of power. BRICS countries have emerged as significant players in the world economy, representing over 40% of the world’s population and accounting for nearly a quarter of the world’s GDP. However, the global political landscape is becoming increasingly complex, with trade tensions, political instability, and geopolitical conflicts threatening to derail the economic growth of these nations. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russian special military operation in Ukraine has further exacerbated these challenges, caused widespread economic disruptions and altered the course of global trade and investment. Thus, the article explores the economic policies and strategies adopted by the BRICS countries to navigate this shifting geopolitical landscape. The author examines the macroeconomic indicators and trends of these nations, highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. We also discuss the impact of global events such as the US-China trade war and the rise of protectionism on the economic prospects of these countries. Overall, this article provides a comprehensive analysis of the economic future of BRICS countries and offers insights into the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. The findings of this study can inform policymakers, investors, and businesses on how to navigate the current international political situation and tap into the potential of these emerging economies.

A clinical approach to an unidentified aerosolized bioterrorism agent: a narrative review for emergency providers.

The current heightened international political climate is accompanied by increased risk of chemical or biological agent weaponization. Historical accounts of biochemical warfare are extensive, and considering the recent use of such agents for targeted attacks, clinicians need to recognize and manage these cases. However, agent properties such as the color, odor, ability to be aerosolized, and long incubation period can introduce difficulties in the diagnostic and management approach. We searched PubMed and Scopus for a colorless, odorless, aerosolized substance with an incubation period of at least 4 hours. Data from articles were summarized and reported by agent. Based on data from the available literature, we included agents such as nerve agents, ricin, botulinum toxin, anthrax, tularemia, and psittacosis in this review. We also highlighted potential chemical and biological agents that could be weaponized and the optimal strategies for the diagnosis and treatment of patients exposed to an unknown aerosolized biological or chemical bioterrorism agent.

Pengaruh Kepentingan Nasional Dalam Pelaksanaan Politik Luar Negeri Bebas Aktif

The implementation of Indonesia's foreign policy in the form of "Free and Active Politics" in its development since the founding of the Indonesian state was influenced not only by the domestic situation but also by the growth of the international political climate that occurred at that time. The rapidly changing international political climate must be followed and analyzed continuously for the sake of national interest. Furthermore, the steps to respond to these changes must be decided in the implementation of foreign policy to achieve the national interest. The use of the concept of national interest here is to explain the noble ideals that Indonesia wants to achieve with a free and active foreign policy. This paper aims to highlight the dynamics of the meaning of "free and active" in Indonesia's foreign policy in terms of domestic conditions at that time and how Indonesia's foreign policy was able to respond to international political challenges that have occurred since the early days of independence until now, which are none other than policies. It was made in the national interest in order to maintain the state of Indonesia as an independent and sovereign state in the midst of a turbulent world

International political uncertainty and climate risk in the stock market

This paper investigates how political uncertainty interacts with an international firm’s climate risk in affecting the stock market. Using firms from 34 countries, we employ the presidential election events in the United States and those in other countries that have stock markets as a proxy for political uncertainty. We find that the global stock markets respond significantly to political uncertainty induced by the U.S. presidential elections but not to elections in their home countries. Although we observe a marginally significant change in stock return for firms with different levels of climate risk during periods of political uncertainty, we find that firms with high climate risk experience high return volatility and return correlation amid uncertainty associated with U.S. presidential elections. The results are consistent with literature that indicates U.S. presidential election is an indicator of international political uncertainty. Further, we present new evidence on how political uncertainty affects the riskiness of firms with high exposure to climate risk.

“Crimes against sovereignty”

Building on anthropological observations of the Chinese state’s specific strategies and practices in the field of international diplomacy and engagement with the media, this article describes how the Chinese state aims to influence and shape the international court of opinion about its measures in Xinjiang. As such, it examines changes in the international political climate and the framework of human rights in which the discussion of adversities in Xinjiang unfolds. In doing so, it draws attention to several important processes of Chinese statecraft and foreign diplomacy, and identifies the reasons why the Uyghur crisis is met with so much ambiguity and uncertainty by the international public.

International Political Uncertainty and Climate Risk Premium

International Political Uncertainty and Climate Risk Premium

Blind Loyalty? The Menzies Mission to Cairo during the 1956 Suez Canal Crisis

ABSTRACT This analysis questions the dominant view of the role played by Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies in the early stages of the 1956 Suez Canal crisis. Tasked with the responsibility of discussing a peaceful settlement to the crisis with Egyptian President, Gamal Abdel Nasser, Menzies’ mission to Cairo failed. Previous accounts overwhelming consign the collapse to Menzies’ blind loyalty to the British Empire. However, the reasons for the negative outcome were more complex. Rather than merely acting out of devotion to Britain, Menzies also placed significant importance on United States policy, causing him to miscalculate the international political climate. Additionally, other factors like the divide between Menzies and Nasser’s ideological beliefs, Menzies’ legal background, and his wartime experiences shaped the outcome of the discussions. However, failure lays not solely with Menzies. The actions of other Powers also affected the proceedings; in particular, American and British hidden agendas and on-going Anglo-French military operations helped seal the fate of Menzies’ mission.

Soviet Recognition of Foreign Higher Educational Credentials in the 1950-90s

This article studies USSRs unique experience in recognizing credentials issued by foreign educational institutions. It pays particular attention to the special circumstances of the countrys involvement in education internationally in this respect. Because its definitions of basic terms in higher education did not correspond with those of its Western partners, cooperation between the USSR and foreign countries was mostly limited to UNESCOs standards, as well as bilateral agreements with friendly states. In addition to analyzing the evolution of its legal aspects, the authors also study the evolution of the administrative apparatus for recognizing foreign degrees. Beginning in the 1970s, special units of Patrice Lumumba University and the Scientific Research Institute of Higher School Problems have made important contributions in this regard. The authors consider cooperation between the USSR and the leading international organizations, such as UNESCO and the Council of Europe, as well. At the same time, they also study the Soviet Unions first steps in recognizing foreign educational standards in light of changes in the international political climate. In short, the article discusses the challenges of recognizing foreign higher education qualifications in the Soviet Union as well as the institutions charged with the task from 1950 to the early 1990s.

The ASEAN climate and energy paradox

This article carries out a multisectoral qualitative analysis (MSQA) and policy integration analysis of six sectors important for climate mitigation in Southeast Asia in order to assess the status of the climate-energy nexus in the region. It concludes that Southeast Asia will be heavily affected by climate change but the mitigation efforts of the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are incommensurate with the threat they face. Their nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement are modest, they have a low proportion of renewable energy in their energy mixes, a modest target for raising the share of renewable energy and they are not likely to reach this target. The ASEAN countries have also been slow to adopt electric vehicles and to accede to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), while continuing to burn their forests, channel subsidies to fossil fuels and invest in new coal power plants. If ASEAN accelerated decarbonization, it could seize business opportunities, secure its standing in the international political system and climate justice discussions, and increase its chances of reaching the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Evolution of South Sudan’s Culture

South Sudan’s struggle for independence from historic Sudan has profoundly shaped the culture and the values of its people. This struggle led to the development of a martial culture that values military service, but also normalizes extreme levels of violence against civilians. Fighting – beginning in 1983 with the first of the independence movements and continuing today with an ongoing civil war – has displaced more than four million Southerners, undermining, and in some cases destroying, traditional tribal systems of governance, social traditions, and economic livelihoods. It has also contributed to distrust of the north and feelings of victimization. The independence movement also played a key role in creating the unstable political system of South Sudan. Seeking international support, John Garang – the leader of movement – first adopted implemented Marxist ideas and then Western democratic principles as the international political climate changed, retaining key aspects of each and creating an uneasy combination. This – combined with economic forces - prevented the development of strong institutions. Corruption remains rampant, destroying public trust in the government. Tribal rivalries—although temporarily abated by Garang’s movement—haven torn the country apart in a new civil war, deepening existing cleavages. Nonetheless, there have been some positive developments. The spread of Christianity and the development of an indigenous church has been a powerful counterforce against government corruption and a violent, martial culture. In addition, the South Sudanese people have found ways of coping with chaos, mass atrocities and starvation, demonstrating their extraordinary resilience to adversity.

Domestic Courts and the Paris Agreement's Climate Goals: The Need for a Comparative Approach

AbstractDomestic courts enjoy generous attention in international political and legal climate change literature. As a result of the reluctance of national governments to pursue climate protection measures, courts are called on to enforce international climate goals. This article assesses two domestic climate change cases (theThabametsi Caseand theVienna Airport Case) in the light of Anthea Roberts’ functional understanding of the role of domestic courts in international law. It argues that domestic courts play a pivotal role in linking international obligations of conduct with national obligations of result. This role depends on domestic contexts and, therefore, requires a comparative approach.

Diplomacy ‘in Business’ and the Business of humanist Diplomacy

Today’s global community relies increasingly on the corporate sector to find innovative and sustainable solutions to key international challenges, such as geopolitical shocks, terrorism, cybersecurity, politically motivated trade restrictions, climate change and migration. Combined efforts from the social, private and public sectors are necessary to mobilize coalitions or networks to react to societal expectations. In order to respond to this widely expected enlargement of the purpose for transnational companies towards societal concerns, the two-pronged approach of Corporate Diplomacy is suggested as global software for change management: Firstly, it supposes a re-orientation of mindset in the global entrepreneurship for corporate communication and proactive engagement, secondly, this will lead to an adjustment of appropriate behavioral practices in management for sustainable problem-solving via cooperation.Using diplomatic mindfulness in business can greatly help corporations to shape geopolitical and other non-commercial risks in order to influence politics and international relations as well as to strengthen economic security and the international political climate. This nascent partnered practice of corporate diplomacy as an alternative approach to traditional ways of solving public problems involves a mutually beneficial cross-fertilization between the two systems, adding value and creating shared values according to private and public social needs.This practitioner-scholar’s policy essay adds an economic management narrative for a change of paradigm to humanist diplomacy: it is time to reorient our thinking and reimagine practice.

Can the Intellectual Property-Human Rights Framework Bridge the Gap Between Vietnam’s Legal Reality and Rhetoric?

In January 2007, Vietnam joined the World Trade Organization (WTO). It was viewed as a landmark step forward for a country having a free market only since 1986. For Vietnam, gaining membership in the WTO created an obligation to ascribe to the WTO-administered Agreement on the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS), the multilateral treaty currently guiding international IP law.1 While Vietnam has now nominally adopted TRIPS-style laws, enforcement of those laws is virtually nonexistent, making Vietnam one of the world’s foremost piracy hotspots. Although TRIPS did not create Vietnam’s piracy problems, it has done nothing to ameliorate their impact. Furthermore, it has undermined key aspects of Vietnam’s development, such as the dissemination of knowledge, access to food and medicine, and respect for the rule of law. Generally, TRIPS harms less developed countries (LDCs), spurring these countries and Non-Government Organizations (NGO’s) to speak out against the regime. However, the WTO and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the traditional international IP institution, are deadlocked because of the global growth of Intellectual Property rights (IPR) and subsequent resistance to this growth. Parties intending to weaken the TRIPS regime have turned to other forums to advance their priorities. One such forum is international human rights (HR) law. The convergence of IP and HR holds great promise for rebalancing the international IP system by allowing greater power of self- determination to LDCs. However, the flexibility embraced by the IP-HR framework requires that the unique political, economic, and cultural characteristics of each country be taken into account in developing an IP system. The many differences among LDCs could thus ultimately derail the burgeoning framework. While a patchwork of bilateral IP agreements and treaties characterized international IP before TRIPS, it is unclear whether such a framework is workable after TRIPS. This paper will use Vietnam as a test case for the nascent IP-HR framework, exploring both the international political climate and particular national characteristics that might prevent the IP-HR framework from achieving success. More specifically, this paper will focus on how Vietnam’s Confucian culture, socialist government, potential for economic growth, and eagerness to court Western investment will stress the developing IP-HR framework and may even prevent the goals of the IP-HR framework from being realized in Vietnam and elsewhere. Part II discusses Vietnam’s path to WTO membership, detailing the opening of the Vietnamese market in 1986, Vietnam’s IP and trade relations with the U.S., and the harmful effects on Vietnam of the trade- centric IP prerogative espoused by TRIPS. Part III discusses how the harms caused by TRIPS have spurred LDCs to retaliate by refocusing international IP to incorporate both proprietary and human rights concerns, leading to the development of an alternative IP-HR framework. The origins and current interpretations of the burgeoning IP-HR framework are discussed here as well as current developments emanating from the framework to provide a background for the specific application of the framework to, Vietnam. Part IV discusses implications of the IP- HR framework for Vietnam and whether Vietnam would likely welcome the framework’s goals, focusing on the country’s political, economic, and cultural characteristics. Part V concludes. [1] Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 1C, Legal Instruments – Results of the Uruguay Round [hereinafter TRIPS].

Epistemological Skepticism, Textual Skepticism, and the Role of Constitutions

In an international political climate in countries such as the United States, Egypt, and Russia, where constitutions are proving to be persistently irrelevant in raising the political level of the government and citizenry, it behooves us to take stock of what the strategic, moral, and philosophical justifications of constitutions are. The U.S. Constitution with the core liberal values that it represents in no way blocked the election of Donald Trump. In Egypt, the massive demonstrations at Tahrir Square, which expressed such deep, unquenchable democratic yearnings, failed to transform themselves into a democratic constitutional blueprint and set of practices. In Russia,…

From the Editor of Sexuality and Disability: The International Political Climate Highlights Even More the Importance of Awareness, Education, Respect and Working Together to Address Sexuality and Disability

From the Editor of Sexuality and Disability: The International Political Climate Highlights Even More the Importance of Awareness, Education, Respect and Working Together to Address Sexuality and Disability

Arms Control Arrangements under the Aegis of the OSCE: Is There a Better Way to Handle Compliance?

Preliminary Assumptions· Arms control, including conventional arms control, does not constitute an end in itself and can be seen as the outward military/technical manifestation of the inward international political climate.[1]· If conventi

A century of international affairs think tanks in historical perspective

This essay surveys the operations of foreign policy think tanks, and how they have functioned to create transnational knowledge networks, since their emergence in the early twentieth century, around the First World War. It discusses how patterns of linkages among foreign policy think tanks changed and evolved over time, and were linked to broader Anglo-American, imperial, and internationalist networks and relationships, and to the changing international political climate and configuration. It suggests some ways in which think tanks contributed to Cold War interchanges between different states, especially to Soviet bloc–Western relations and Asian–Western relations. It concludes by discussing the recent proliferation and frequent globalization of foreign policy think tanks, and suggests how such trends may develop in future.

Crimean Crisis Impact on International Economy: Risks and Global Threats

The current international economic and political climate is governed by the attendance of emerging geopolitical tensions that startedto the onset of the Ukrainian crisis that culminated to Crimean annexation to Russia and the imposition of mutual economic sanctions between the EU and Russia.Authors’ analysis has beencentered on the economic links between the Ukraine, Russia and EU, highlighting the evolution of relevant macro indicators such as foreign direct investment and trade.The paper proposes a foresight analysis in order to underline the risks and threats induced by the Crimean crisis in the field of international economic relations.

A Cold War Tourist and His Camera (review)

Reviewed by: A Cold War Tourist and His Camera Jacqueline Cannata A Cold War Tourist and His Camera. Martha Langford and John Langford. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2011. Pp. 208, $39.95 Martha Langford and John Langford’s A Cold War Tourist and His Camera offers a unique analysis of images of Canada’s global presence during the Cold War. This study revolves around the sixteenth class year of Canada’s National Defence College as it learned about Canada’s national and international Cold War security strategies and later travelled through North America, Africa, and Europe in 1963. Asserting that ‘any photographic collection, amateur or professional, from the Cold War era can be interpreted contextually and imaginatively to shine light on the rhetoric and preoccupations of those times’ (4), Langford and Langford show that tourist photography at this time was an attempt to position the photographer and the audience within the Cold War and its surrounding landscape. Their treatment of the topic certainly confirms this view, as they reveal the intricate relationships between political climate, culture, personal vision, and slide photography. Part of the book’s appeal lies in its approach; rather than gathering the photos of just any National Defence College participant, the authors [End Page 516] use the slide photographs taken by their father, Warren Langford, as the basis of their study. Supplementing his 1963 slide collection are letters and postcards he wrote to his family while he travelled. This presents an opportunity to evaluate the image within its historical context and how the photos were displayed. Since the photos used in this study are slides, they were necessarily presented to other viewers – an act that Langford and Langford both remember from their childhoods and use as a fundamental piece of evidence. Consequently, they have endeavoured to organize and analyze the collection according to their father’s travel itinerary because it preserves ‘something of the photographic impulse’ (20). Important here is that the authors discuss their findings within the context of the photographer–viewer relationship, so casting the act of taking a photo as equal to its resulting image. Although using their father’s slide and communication collections is ultimately an effective and novel approach to Cold War–era photography, there were some points of this more personal account of the Cold War experience that could have benefitted from further explanation. At times, it seemed as though a familial anecdote’s meaning had been assumed but not explained. This is not to say that Langford and Langford’s approach was not objective enough – they generally successfully present their evidence and analysis without familial bias. However, that there are still some areas that need more attention does emphasize the challenges of maintaining a balance of personal histories within broader political and cultural events. Because of its emphasis on photography, Langford and Langford’s study is of particular interest to art, tourism, and cultural historians. However, the authors have made sure to situate their analysis within the historical context of the Cold War and so have provided detailed accounts of Canada’s foreign policies, its relations with other countries, and the international political climate. Consequently, by showing how these efforts were perceived by a ‘Cold War tourist’ and displayed to his family, this work presents a personal interpretation of Canada’s participation in the Cold War while simultaneously keeping a global perspective. The methodology employed by Langford and Langford is also commendable and quite useful to those working with photography collections or integrating photos within their research because of the authors’ attention to the process of taking and displaying slide photographs. The quality of the book itself enhances its use for photo historians. Not only are the images carefully chosen, explained, and analyzed, they are also reproduced with the utmost care and attention to quality. The images were not cropped and they are, where possible, organized [End Page 517] sequentially, so helping to illustrate the photographic impulse the authors incorporate within their analysis of the slide collection. In addition, the variety of photos included by the authors is partially what makes this study so important for scholars of tourism and Cold War histories because they collectively...

From “The Book of the Dead” to “Gauley Bridge”: Muriel Rukeyser's Documentary Poetics and Film at the Crossroads of the Popular Front

This essay treats Rukeyser’s attempt to adapt “The Book of the Dead” for documentary film. Between 1938 and 1940, Rukeyser worked on a film titled “Gauley Bridge,” which incorporated the documentary materials used in “The Book of the Dead.” Although Rukeyser never completed a full script for the film, her published and unpublished film sketches show how her treatment of the industrial tragedy responded to developments both within American documentary aesthetics and the changing national and international political climate during the Popular Front period. This essay argues that the unexplored formal and political differences between “The Book of the Dead” and “Gauley Bridge” not only demonstrate an important shift in Rukeyser’s aesthetics and politics, but also inform her subsequent graphics work for the Office of War Information in the early 1940s.