Important Takeaways:
- Rising global threats force ‘epoch-making’ shift in world order
- The return of great power competition across the globe is forcing countries to adapt, spurring major changes to alignment and spending from Europe to the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East.
- The change is everywhere on the map — but most evident in countries like Sweden and Japan as the nation’s make dramatic changes to meet rising threats from Russia and China.
- “I’ve described the security environment as the most dangerous I’ve seen in 40 years in uniform,” said U.S. Adm. John Aquilino, head of Indo-Pacific Command, before the House Armed Services Committee this month.
- The rise of new tensions has driven up defense spending worldwide. In an annual report this year, the International Institute for Strategic Studies found defense spending was up 9 percent worldwide last year, reaching $2.2 trillion.
- European countries collectively drove spending up from about $350 billion in 2021 to more than $388 billion in 2023, while Asian nations bumped that from more than $500 billion to higher than $510 billion in the same time frame.
- The spending bumps go hand-in-hand with public opinion. A November Ipsos poll of 30 countries found 84 percent of people believe the world is becoming more dangerous, up from 74 percent in 2018
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Important Takeaways:
- Iran and Saudi Arabia are among 6 nations set to join China and Russia in the BRICS economic bloc
- Iran and Saudi Arabia were among six countries invited Thursday to join the BRICS bloc of developing economies in a move that showed signs of strengthening a China-Russia coalition as tensions with the West spiral higher.
- The United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia were also set to enter BRICS from Jan. 1, 2024, joining current members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to make an 11-nation bloc.
- However, in a twist, Saudi Arabia’s membership appeared uncertain after Prince Faisal told the Saudi-owned broadcaster Al Arabiya later Thursday that the kingdom appreciated the invitation but would first study the details before the proposed Jan. 1 joining date and take “the appropriate decision.”
- BRICS currently represents around 40% of the world’s population and more than a quarter of the world’s GDP, with that set to increase. The potential new members include three of the world’s biggest oil producers: Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran.
- “This membership expansion is historic,” Chinese leader Xi said. “It shows the determination of BRICS countries for unity and development.”
- BRICS has a stated aim to amplify the voice of the Global South. All five current members and dozens of other developing countries represented at the summit repeatedly called this week for a fairer world order and the reform of international institutions like the United Nations, the IMF and the World Bank.
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William Penn – “If we are not governed by God, then we will be Governed by a tyrant”
Important Takeaways:
- Xi Jinping says China ready to ‘stand guard over world order’ on Moscow visit
- Chinese leader expected to position himself as peacemaker but US condemns Xi for providing ‘diplomatic cover’ for atrocities in Ukraine
- Xi Jinping said China was ready with Russia “to stand guard over the world order based on international law” as he arrived for a state visit to Moscow that comes days after Vladimir Putin was made the subject of an arrest warrant by the international criminal court.
- “We have thoroughly studied your proposals on regulating the acute crisis in Ukraine. Of course, we will have an opportunity to discuss them,” Putin told Xi, referring to China’s peace plan for dealing with the war in Ukraine. “We are always open to negotiations,” the Russian leader added.
- In a further symbolic gesture of defiance, Russia’s investigative committee said on Monday that it had opened a criminal case against the ICC prosecutor and judges who issued the warrant.
- the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin called on the ICC to avoid “politicization and double standards”.
- The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on Monday morning that the leaders would discuss the peace plan “one way or another”.
- “The topics that figured in this plan will inevitably be touched upon during the exchange of views on Ukraine” between Putin and Xi, Peskov said. “Exhaustive clarifications will be given by President Putin, so that President Xi can get a first-hand view of the current moment from the Russian side,” he added.
- Kyiv reiterated its official position that any talks would be contingent on the complete restoration of Ukraine’s territory. “The formula for the successful implementation of China’s ‘Peace Plan’. The first and main point is the capitulation or withdrawal of the Russian occupation troops,” Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s national security and defense council, tweeted on Monday.
- Xi is reported to be planning a call with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, after his trip to Moscow.
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