Policy Power
Cambodian independence, Foreign interference, Great Power elephants, Invisible trillions, pandemic response negotiations, Indonesia's electric future
UPDATE: Cambodia’s recent successful conclusion as ASEAN Chair, booming economy, infrastructure upgrading, smart diplomacy and responsible fiscal and monetary policies are empowering its independent foreign policy. Preventing outside interference in the internal affairs of small states such as Cambodia is key to protecting independence.
Many states in the global south are seeking to avoid great power tussles and calling for a renewal of non-alignment. Global capitalism is operating beyond the rule of law contributing to the extreme inequality that threatens liberal democracies.
WHO members begin negotiations on global agreement to protect world from future pandemic emergencies.
Indonesia has begun construction of the Mentarang Induk hydropower plant, which will complement the new future capital city Nusantara and overall development of Kalimantan.
Cambodia edges towards an independent foreign policy
Taking the baton for the third time as the ASEAN chair in 2022, Cambodia’s diplomatic tenacity was tested by the war in Ukraine, Myanmar’s political upheaval, cross-Strait tensions, COVID-19 and US–China competition. Despite this precarity, Cambodia steered ASEAN through geopolitically choppy waters. The outlook for 2023 promises to be just as demanding for Cambodia’s foreign policy.
Sitting at the heart of Southeast Asia, Cambodia will continue to hedge between external powers to protect its sovereignty and pursue an independent foreign and security policy. Two countries that matter immensely in this formula are Japan and China due to their roles in Cambodia’s socioeconomic development.
Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn wrapped up his first foreign trip of 2023 to Japan, where he met Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties, which have been upgraded to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2022.
Coinciding with the 70th anniversary of Cambodia-Japan relations in 2022, the two countries are seeking to upgrade their channels of consultation from the senior official level to deputy minister level, indicating a mutual desire for deeper engagement amid growing regional strategic uncertainties.
Meanwhile, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen visited China in early February to discuss new infrastructure deals and to reiterate the two countries’ ‘ironclad’ friendship.
Besides China and Japan, Cambodia’s ties with other powers also factor into in its hedging strategy. This includes the European Union and the United States, which are Cambodia’s largest export markets, and long-time partners like India and Australia, whose ties with Cambodia are steadily growing though still leave room for improvement.
Read full article here.
Ministry decries foreign ‘interference’
Preventing outside interference in the internal affairs of small states such as Cambodia is key to protecting independence, said the foreign ministry in response to comments made by the US embassy in Phnom Penh regarding the Kingdom’s current political sphere.
In a recent statement, the embassy urged Cambodian authorities to strengthen democracy in the run-up to the July general election, citing as its concern the recent arrest of Thach Setha, vice-president of the opposition Candlelight Party (CP).
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said authorities are only implementing the law, while affirming that Cambodia will maintain its national sovereignty and not accept any interference by any foreign power.
“The best way to ensure independence for a small country like Cambodia is to prevent a foreign power from interfering in its internal affairs or supporting one side against the other,” it said in a January 21 statement.
Setha was arrested on January 16 on the order of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on charges of issuing dud cheques back in 2019. Some commentators have suggested that there may have been political motivations behind the arrest, while the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) have taken the position that it is purely a criminal case.
The foreign ministry said democracy and human rights come with certain obligations, which are set out in the national laws and constitution of all nations. Non-compliance with those obligations can lead to serious consequences, he said, offering the example of the raid on the US Capitol in 2021 and the recent riots that destroyed the presidential palace and parliament buildings in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil.
Kin Phea, director of the International Relations Institute at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, said the US’ call was not uncommon.
“The self-proclaimed father of democracy issues these calls to many countries, including Cambodia. The arrest of Setha is a totally separate case,” he said. He said the foreign ministry’s response served as a very important reminder of how seriously Cambodia takes its independence and sovereignty.
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Two elephants: non-alignment and great power rivalries
“when two elephants fight, it is the grass underneath that suffers”.
Many states in the global south are, therefore, seeking to avoid getting caught in the middle of any future battles between the US and China. Instead, they are calling for a renewal of the concept of non-alignment. This was an approach employed in the 1950s by newly independent countries to balance between the two ideological power blocs of east and west during the era of the Cold War
The new non-alignment stance is based on a perceived need to maintain southern sovereignty, pursue socio-economic development, and benefit from powerful external partners without having to choose sides. It also comes from historical grievances during the era of slavery, colonialism and Cold War interventionism.
These grievances include unilateral American military interventions in Grenada(1983), Panama (1989) and Iraq (2003) as well as support by the US and France for autocracies in countries like Egypt, Morocco, Chad and Saudi Arabia, when it suits their interests.
Many southern governments are particularly irked by America’s Manichaean division of the world into “good” democracies and “bad” autocracies. More recently, countries in the global south have highlighted north-south trade disputes and western hoarding of COVID-19 vaccines as reinforcing the unequal international system of “global apartheid”.
A return of non-alignment was evident at the March 2022 UN General Assembly special session on Ukraine. Fifty-two governments from the global south did not support western sanctions against Russia. This, despite Russia’s clear violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, which southern states have historically condemned.
Read more here.
Invisible Trillions review: global capitalism operates beyond the rule of law and threatens democracy
Secrecy has become as important for corporations as transparent and taxable profits used to be, according to Raymond W. Baker in his new book Invisible Trillions. Global capitalism, he argues, operates beyond the rule of law. This contributes to extreme inequality that threatens liberal democracy.
Deals in the financial secrecy system account for half of global economic operations. This is far beyond illicit transfers of funds through corporate under-pricing and overpricing of exports and imports, or the drug and other criminal networks 50 years ago. Tax havens, “shell companies”, anonymous trust accounts, fake foundations and new digitised money laundering technologies have proliferated. Add to that falsified trade. All of this is facilitated by international lawyers, accountants and financial strategists based mostly in rich countries.
The book’s timely contribution is how financial secrecy threatens both free enterprise and political freedoms. Both are critical to dealing with current inequalities afflicting humanity and to meeting challenges in public health, climate, and elsewhere.
Baker indicts the United States as the biggest user of the financial secrecy system, and the biggest recipient of dirty money from around the world. A key indication of the cost of this is that gaps between top and average wages in the US have shot up from 20 to 1 in 1960 to 350 to one today. Had this not occurred, Baker told me he estimates, the middle class would now be better off by $50 trillion.
Read more here.
Countries begin negotiations on global agreement to protect world from future pandemic emergencies
3 March 2023, Geneva: Countries of the World Health Organization have begun negotiations on a global accord on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, using the “zero draft” as a basis for negotiating an agreement to protect nations and communities from future pandemic emergencies.
Ending Friday, discussions on the draft pandemic accord took place during the weeklong fourth meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB), which includes WHO’s 194 countries. Negotiations on the draft will continue over the next year according to a timetable laid out by the World Health Assembly.
Mr Roland Driece, Co-Chair of the INB Bureau, from the Netherlands, said: “The start of discussions of concrete language for the WHO pandemic accord sends a clear signal that countries of the world want to work together for a safer, healthier future where we are better prepared for, and able to prevent future pandemic threats, and respond to them effectively and equitably.”
Fellow INB Bureau Co-Chair, Ms Precious Matsoso of South Africa, said: “The efforts this week, by countries from around the world, was a critical step in ensuring we do not repeat the mistakes of the COVID-19 pandemic response, including in sharing life-saving vaccines, provision of information and development of local capacities.”
Ms Matsoso added: “That we have been able to move forward so decisively is testimony to the global consensus that exists on the need to work together and to strengthen WHO’s and the international community’s ability to protect the world from pandemic threats.”
WHO Member States will continue negotiations of the zero draft of the pandemic accord at the INB’s next meeting, to be held over 3-6 April, with a view to collecting all inputs necessary to develop the first draft.
According to the process agreed by governments at a special session of the World Health Assembly in late 2021, negotiations on the draft pandemic accord will aim to produce a final draft for consideration by the 77th World Health Assembly in 2024.
During the week, the senior diplomats from Israel and Morocco, who are serving as co-facilitators of the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response, briefed the INB on their preparations for the 20 September meeting, in order to ensure collaboration between the processes.
In parallel with the pandemic accord negotiations, governments are also discussing more than 300 amendments to the International Health Regulations (2005) in an effort to make the world safer from communicable diseases and ensuring greater equity in the global response to public health emergencies.
Governments have been working to ensure consistency and alignment across the INB and IHR processes. The proposed IHR amendments will also be presented to the World Health Assembly in 2024, and would together, with a future pandemic accord, provide a comprehensive, complementary, and synergistic set of global health agreements.
RELATED LINKS:
Intergovernmental Negotiating Body
International Health Regulations
Indonesia’s electric future
The Indonesian government has begun construction works for the Mentarang Induk hydropower plant, Reuters has reported. President Joko Widodo officially launched the project, which will require a $2.6bn investment.
With more than 1.3GW of capacity, the power plant will be developed by PT Kayan Hydropower Nusantara, a joint venture of PT Adaro Energy Indonesia, PT Kayan Patria Pratama Group and Sarawak Energy. Reuters noted that Mentarang Induk will be connected to a planned industrial park in North Kalimantan.
The industrial park will be home to electric vehicle and battery plants, as well as aluminium and petrochemical facilities. President Widodo was quoted by Reuters as saying: “Our hope is that Indonesia’s economic transformation would really take place toward a green economy.” Construction of the hydropower facility is expected to be completed over a period of seven years.
Indonesia is a major producer of thermal coal, which serves as the country’s main source for generating power. The country plans to shift to cleaner energy generation sources and has set a target to reach net-zero emissions before 2060. It also aims to source 23% of its power from renewables by 2025, with renewables currently accounting for 12% of the country’s energy mix.
In a separate development, the Government of India has approved the construction of a R319bn ($3.9bn) hydropower project, Dibang, in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. Bloomberg reported that the 2.8GW hydro facility will be built over a period of nine years.
It will be developed on 5,000ha of forest land near the Chinese border.
India is focusing on hydropower as part of its transition away from coal to manage disruptions caused by intermittent solar and wind supplies. Despite their benefits, hydropower projects are controversial in many local areas as their development can cause large-scale environmental damage and dislocate communities.
Read more here.