World Today, The

Iran

Looking for a Thaw

[...] must be the credible prospect, endorsed by China and Russia and many other major trading countries, as well as the EU, of a big freeze in Iran's relations with outside powers including wider sanctions, especially on arms, if it remains obdurate on key issues, such as coming clean on all its past activities and applying the Additional Protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to its safeguards agreement, or if it were to cheat on a negotiated agreement. * at the end of the day, th...

China And The Economic Crisis

Cold Winter

China's traditional development strategy emphasises export growth and foreign direct investment inflow, and this has led to an expanding trade surplus and the accumulation of those huge foreign exchange reserves. If we want to improve the resiliency of the Chinese economy, we should put more effort into stimulating domestic demand, investing more in human capital and building stronger social safety nets.

Economic Crisis And The Delayed Arrival Of A New American President

Transition Trauma

The initial defeat of the Bush administration's bank rescue plan in the House of Representatives was affected by Congressmen facing re-election who were reluctant to be seen by their constituents as saving the skins of unpopular Wall Street fat cats. Incoming presidents enter the White House on January 20 to empty offices, with papers and computer records removed to await the opening of their predecessor's presidential library.

Japan And The Economic Crisis

Been There, Done That

With a public debt to gross domestic product ratio of some 170 percent, highest by far in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries, and interest rates at a rock bottom 0.5 percent, analysts are worried that the government does not have effective policy options.

Anatomy Of A Global Financial Crisis

Not Dancing Now

Hence a full package of measures may need to consist of most, or all, of the following: * Coordinated interest rate cuts by all major world economies. * Guaranteeing all bank deposits, at least for individuals, but quite possibly for all depositors, for a significant period - a year or more. * Guaranteeing that no bank anywhere will be allowed to fail for at least the next several years - whether by the authorities recapitalising any failing bank, or at least providing liquidity in the event ...

Russia And The Economic Crisis

No Safe Haven

To add to the negative signals, the stock market began to slide, investors unsettled by Putin's crude attack on the chief executive of the Mechel metal and coal company and the ongoing TNK-BP affair. By the end of the year, almost $7 billion is to be used for this purpose by the Development Bank, chaired by Putin, but no selection criteria have been revealed; $50 billion to help companies refinance foreign loans; $37 billion in long-term loans to leading banks, and improved protection for pe...

Economics Crisis And Human Rights

End of Intervention?

Especially since the end of the Cold War, international interventions to aid the victims of natural and man-made disasters have focused not only on emergency relief, but have sought also to address the social and political structures which cause suffering among vulnerable populations. In the decade following the collapse of the Soviet Union, a doctrine emerged in the United Nations and the broader international community which placed the rights of civilians caught up in natural disaster and ...

Ghana

Following the Gentle Giant

In the early stages of his presidency he signed up to the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) to secure a package of aid and debt relief. The recent scandal over the authenticity of the electoral lists - revealed to be heavily bloated in some areas - has prompted religious leaders, opposition parties and trade unions to demand the Commissioon get its house in order and redraw the lists to ensure the credibility of the elec...

Cote D'Ivoire And Zimbabwe

Poisoned Chalice?

Charles Konan Banny, who was until last year premier of war-divided Côte d'Ivoire, had the not-altogetherpleasurable experience of running the West African country alongside a president who, like Mugabe, was under pressure from the international community and domestic opponents. Banny and Gbagbo began implementing a 'roadmap' peace plan paving the way for presidential elections by October 2006, by which time Gbagbo would already have overstayed his five-year term by a year. The plan involve...

Competing Energy Sources

Generating Change

According to the International Energy Agency's 2050 scenarios, to meet carbon dioxide reductions in line with an acceptable two degrees Celsius increase in mean global temperatures, the current use of nuclear power could be scaled up from around 370 gigawatts today to around 2,000 gigawatts.