Framing The World, CXXXVII Edition

Framing The World, CXXXVII Edition

HUMAN RIGHTS

ECONOMICS AND INTERNATIONAL FINANCE

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

NORTH AMERICA

LATIN AMERICA

ASIA AND THE FAR EAST

WESTERN EUROPE AND EUROPEAN UNION

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE AND RUSSIA

MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA (MENA)

TERRORISM AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

HUMAN RIGHTS

Afghanistan, new taliban restrictions limit women's rights. The Taliban government has enacted a law imposing new, severe restrictions, primarily targeting women. Among the key measures, women are banned from singing, reciting, or reading aloud in public, and they cannot travel without a male relative. Additionally, they are prohibited from forming friendships with non-Muslims. The law also requires women to fully cover their bodies and faces in public, and mandates that men maintain long beards and wear pants that cover their knees. These restrictions reflect an extremely conservative view of society and have raised international concern, with fears for the future of human rights in Afghanistan.

Bulgaria, new Anti-LGBTQ+ Law. Bulgaria has passed a controversial law banning "LGBTQ+ propaganda" in schools, drawing strong condemnation from human rights activists. The law, proposed by the far-right Vazrazhdane party, prohibits the promotion of non-traditional sexual orientations and gender identities different from biological sex in the educational system. Groups like Forbidden Colours and Amnesty International have denounced the law as an attack on fundamental rights, comparing it to the repressive laws already in place in Russia and Hungary. Bulgaria, already ranked among the lowest in Europe for LGBTQ+ rights, now risks emulating the climate of fear and repression seen in these countries.

Sofia Ena

ECONOMICS AND INTERNATIONAL FINANCE

Eu-China, immediate retaliation. Just a day after the European Union announced imports of electric cars from China to be subject to additional tariffs ranging from 9% to 36% tax on top of the existing 10%, Beijing revealed an investigation into whether dairy producers in the European Union receive unfair government subsidies. China’s Ministry of Commerce said it is focusing on 20 different subsidy programs that may benefit the dairy industry, ranging from financial support for farming equipment and supplementary income for young farmers to environmental and administrative subsidies. A preliminary review has found sufficient evidence for a complete anti-subsidy investigation, which will take up to 18 months. This is just the latest development in the tit-for-tat game on trade between Brussels and Beijing: the former has previously determined that China is guilty of dumping on solar panels and wind turbines, while the latter was already investigating the European pork meat industry and the exports of cognac.

EVs, BMW overtakes Tesla. For the first time, BMW's monthly sales of EVs in Europe (14.689) surpassed Tesla's (14.561) thanks to an increase in sales of more than 30% (month-on-month), while those of its American rival declined by 16%. Year-to-date, though, Tesla is still leading the ranking with slightly fewer than 180,000 cars sold (-12%) against BMW's 97.500 (+49%). The European market for EVs is however suffering from the end or the decrease in government subsidies and several constructors, Volkswagen and Mercedes among them, are dialing back electrification plans and delaying, in VW's case by 6 years, the release of some new electric models.

Leonardo Adelghi

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

Sudan has been hit by a deadly cholera outbreak that has infected hundreds of people in recent weeks, health authorities said. As of the start of this week, nearly two dozen people had died from the disease. The country has been ravaged by a 16-month conflict and devastating floods. The outbreak is threatening refugees and displaced communities.The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reported that the spread of the disease is of particular concern in states hosting refugees - mainly Kassala, Gedaref, and Jazirah states.

Somalia has issued a warning to suspend all Ethiopian Airlines flights to its territory due to an ongoing territorial dispute. The Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) announced on August 21, 2024, that the airline has failed to respond to concerns related to Somali sovereignty. The dispute escalated after Ethiopia signed an agreement in January 2024 with the separatist region of Somaliland, securing access to 20 kilometers of Somaliland's coastline for 50 years in exchange for recognizing the territory. Somalia views this deal as a direct violation of its sovereignty, heightening tensions between the two countries. The SCAA also expressed frustration over Ethiopian Airlines’ recent actions, including the removal of Somali destination names from its systems, which the SCAA believes undermines Somalia's sovereignty. Ethiopian Airlines has been given a deadline of August 23, 2024, to address these issues, or all flights to Somalia will be suspended.

Aurelia Puliafito and Giulio Ciofini

NORTH AMERICA

Canada, Railroads on Lockout. The two largest Canadian freight railroad operators, Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, have suspended operation after multiple rounds of negotiations with labor unions failed, resulting in more than 9300 workers being locked out of work. The two railways own more than 80% of all railway tracks in Canada and are estimated to transport $1-billion worth of goods a day. The cost of the work stoppage on the Canadian economy is estimated at $341 million per day, more than 4% of Canada’s GDP , according to Moody’s, with agriculture, farming and paper and wood industries hit hardest. Given the economic importance of the sector, the government announced its intention to issue back-to-work orders, thus pushing Canadian National, but not Canadian Pacific, to end the lockout already on Thursday evening.

Leonardo Adelghi

LATIN AMERICA

Mexico, Lopez Obrador's contested justice reform. The reform of the now former Mexican president aims to make the offices of federal judges and the Supreme Court elective, a body with which Obrador has repeatedly clashed trying to implement some of the measures of his political programme. On the one hand, the president wants to combat the endemic corruption in the Mexican state system, on the other hand there is the real risk of extreme politicisation of the judiciary. Against this reform, strikes and demonstrations have been called by the Association of Federal Judges and Magistrates together with the unions representing the workforce employed in the federal judiciary.

Michele Magistretti

ASIA AND THE FAR EAST

China, still bad news. Chinese Industrial production grew 5.1% in July, just lower than the 5.2% economists expected and below June's result (5.3%), the slowest pace in four months, and unemployment registered its first increase since February, rising from 5.0% in June to July's 5.2%. Despite the government intervention over the summer, moreover, the real estate sector, one of the leading contributors to the Chinese economy, is still in dire straits; in July new home prices decreased 4.2% year-on-year, and secondhand homes 8.8%. This continues to put pressure, among others, on the global steel market, which, given the lack of demand coming from the construction sector, is suffering from oversupply, with prices sitting at lows since 2020.

Leonardo Adelghi

WESTERN EUROPE AND THE EUROPEAN UNION

France, the consultations for the new government continue. Nearly two months after the elections, French President Macron last Friday began meeting with the leaders of the parties and parliamentary groups to reach an agreement leading to the appointment of a new prime minister. The climate is tense and the leader of ‘La France Insoumise’ has also called for the impeachment of the president, a move that leads to further hostility among the left. The ‘Nouveau Front Populaire’, which brings together the radical left, ecologists, communists and socialists, has proposed Lucie Castets as first minister, but her appointment faces several obstacles, including the lack of an absolute majority and a potential no-confidence motion from the ‘Rassemblement National’ and the right. On Monday Macron will meet with the party of Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella. There is no definite date for Macron to appoint a new prime minister, who will also have to consult the president of the National Assembly and the president of the Senate. This is an unprecedented political paralysis in France: never has it taken so long to appoint a new prime minister after the legislative elections.

(Bianca Franzini)

EU, monkeypox is not a health emergency in Europe at the moment. The European Union's Health Security Committee has stated that monkeypox is not a health emergency in Europe at the moment; the spokesman for Green Deal and public health issues stated that a ‘closely coordinated approach’ on the virus had nevertheless been agreed and that ‘we have learned from Covid that we need to be prepared. Hera has concluded contracts for joint purchases of 2 million doses of Mpox vaccines and treatments for 100 thousand doses'. In recent weeks, the World Health Organisation (WHO) had declared the monkeypox wave an international emergency. In Europe, one case was reported in Sweden and Spain.

(Bianca Franzini)

EU, uncertainty remains over commissioners for the 2024-2029 term. As the late August deadline approaches, only five EU countries, including Italy, have yet to nominate their candidate for the new European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen. The other 21 member states have already named their representatives for the 2024-2029 term. New faces have been put forward by several member states, including Magnus Brunner (Austria), Teresa Ribera (Spain), and Kaja Kallas (Estonia), while six commissioners, such as Dubravka Šuica (Croatia) and Thierry Breton (France), have been confirmed for a new term. With a majority of male candidates, achieving gender balance in the new Commission will be a challenge. After the College is presented, the designated commissioners will undergo parliamentary hearings starting in late September, where their nominations could be either confirmed or rejected.

(Sofia Ena)

Bianca Franzini and Sofia Ena

CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPE AND RUSSIA

Ukraine, Indian PM Narendra Modi in Kiev. The Indian leader arrived on Ukrainian soil by train from Poland. It is the first visit by an Indian premier to Ukraine since the country gained independence from the Soviet Union. Modi met with President Volodymyr Zelensky and opened a dialogue aimed at discussing the concrete situation of the war on the ground. Modi said he was ‘firmly in favour of peace’ and invited the Ukrainian leader to start a diplomatic channel with the Moscow administration. The Indian premier said he was formally prepared to undertake any mediation function by guaranteeing all necessary humanitarian aid to Kiev, even if India continues to maintain a neutral position in the conflict.

Federico Cortese

MIDDLE-EAST AND NORTH AFRICA (MENA)

Afghanistan: The United Arab Emirates officially accepts the credentials of a Taliban diplomat. The United Arab Emirates becomes the second country in the world - following China - to officially accept the credentials of an ambassador appointed by the Taliban government. As reported by Reuters - according to some foreign diplomats - the Taliban have ‘already held informal control of the Afghan consulate and embassy in Abu Dhabi for at least a year’. Some Emirati officials stated to the same agency that they had accepted the credentials with the aim of ‘building bridges and helping Afghans’ through development and reconstruction projects.

Gaza: first recorded case of polio type 2 in 25 years. As stated by the WHO, the first case of poliomyelitis in 25 years has been diagnosed in Gaza. This case involves a 10-year-old boy who, as stated by WHO DG Ghebreyesus, has lost mobility of his left leg and is currently in a stable condition. As the war continues, several UN agencies have called for a humanitarian ceasefire to allow the vaccination of Gaza's children, while the WHO has already announced that there will be a mass vaccination campaign starting at the end of August and continuing through September. Hamas has supported the idea of a seven-day ceasefire to allow vaccinations, while Israel has expressed its intention to transport the necessary vaccine doses to the strip to immunise about one million children.

Matteo Francescucci

TERRORISM AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

Germany and Ukraine: uncertain future of assistance after the Nord Stream sabotage. Germany is considering a reduction in military aid to Ukraine, a move that could impact Kyiv's ability to resist Russian aggression. So far, Germany has provided advanced weapons and military training, but growing domestic political pressures, economic challenges, and public opposition to the conflict are driving a potential cut. This decision could have consequences for Germany's international relations and NATO unity, given Germany's central role in supporting Ukraine.

(Gonzalo Pereyra)

United Nations: Sahelian States Accuse Ukraine of Supporting Terrorist Groups. The West African juntas of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have sent a letter to the United Nations accusing Ukraine of supporting rebel groups in their regions. In the letter, they claim that Ukraine is involved in supplying weapons and assisting insurgents, thereby jeopardizing their national security and stability. These accusations come amid rising tensions in West Africa, where these juntas have recently come to power. The letter is part of a broader geopolitical struggle with various international actors involved in the region. Ukraine has not yet responded to these allegations.

(Gonzalo Pereyra)

Kiribati, diplomatic visits to the country suspended. The new government formed following last week's elections has declared the temporary suspension of diplomatic visits to the archipelago. According to the executive itself, the reason behind the decision to interrupt, in fact, external relations concerns the difficulties the latter is experiencing in forming the ruling class that is to lead the country. However, at the root of this may be the influence of China. In fact, Kiribati and Beijing, particularly during the presidency of Taneti Maamau, have become very close, even going so far as to conclude military cooperation agreements, which have caused quite a few disagreements between the archipelago and its Western allies.

(Davide Shahhosseini)

Venezuela, Maduro's victory officially confirmed. Venezuela's Supreme Court confirmed the re-election of President Nicolás Maduro in last July 28's election. The court, composed of numerous Maduro supporters, has in recent years often made decisions in support of the government. The latter also declared as false allegations posted online by opposition supporters that indicated a clear victory for Maduro's main opponent, Edmundo Gonzalez.

(Davide Shahhosseini)

Davide Shahhosseini and Gonzalo Pereyra

Framing The World is a project conceived and created by the collaboration between members of the team of Mondo Internazionale associates.

Alessandro Alloro: Central and Eastern Europe and Russia

Aurelia Puliafito: Sub-Saharan Africa

Bianca Franzini: Western Europe and the European Union

Davide Shahhosseini: Terrorism and International Security

Federico Cortese: Central and Eastern Europe and Russia

Francesco Oppia: Asia and Far East

Giulio Ciofini: Sub-Saharan Africa

Gonzalo Pereyra: Terrorism and International Security

Leonardo Aldeghi: Economics and International Finance

Lisa Pasolini: Human Rights

Lorenzo Franceschetti: Human Rights

Lorenzo Graziani: North America

Matteo Francescucci: Middle-East and North Africa

Michele Magistretti: Middle-East and North Africa

Serena Basso: Latin America

Sofia Ena: Human Rights, Western Europe and the European Union