Tuesday, September 22, 2009

[RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, September 21, 2009

 

From the Council on Foreign Relations

September 22, 2009

View this newsletter as a web page on CFR's website.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

-UN meeting on climate change.
-President Obama hosts talks on Mideast peace.
-Afghan police oppose increase in U.S. troops.
-Ousted President Zelaya returns to Honduras.

Top of the Agenda: UN Leaders Focus on Climate

World leaders meet today at the United Nations to work toward a global treaty to curb climate change (WashPost) in preparation for December's international conference on the issue in Copenhagen. The leaders of the world's two biggest carbon emitters, Chinese President Hu Jintao and U.S. President Barack Obama will address the summit.

Hu is expected to say that China will include a reduction of carbon use (China Daily) in its economic blueprint for 2011-2015, but will not commit to absolute caps on its emissions (WSJ).

Ahead of the conference, a group of multinational conglomerates, including General Electric, BP and Coca-Cola, signed a statement urging governments to agree to implement carbon regulations (Bloomberg), create a global carbon market, and cut emissions by 85 percent by 2050.

Analysis

CFR's Michael Levi discusses the challenges of reaching a new international climate deal before the Copenhagen conference in December.

CFR's Stewart Patrick says Obama's first appearance before the General Assembly is an opportunity to reassert U.S. leadership at the world body on an array of issues.

The New York Times says momentum on an international climate change pact may be hampered by the fact that global temperatures have been stable for a decade, even though scientists say the climate stability does not impact long-term warming effects of greenhouse gases.

In an interview with CFR, Indian Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh says India plans to outline unilateral greenhouse gas emissions cuts soon. But he says rich states must commit to greater cuts of their own before developing countries can agree on binding global targets.

CFR's Elizabeth Economy says it would not be "unreasonable" to seek binding commitments from China and India on emissions that would take effect a decade from now. She also recommends decoupling China from other developing nations in climate negotiations.

Background

Reuters reports on the pressure Obama faces from international powers and domestic environmental groups to more aggressively push for a global climate deal.

MIDEAST: Netanyahu, Abbas to Meet

All parties involved have downplayed hopes (VOA) for today's meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in New York. White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs said the Obama administration has "no grand expectations" from the talks.

A CFR interactive Crisis Guide looks at the roots of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the current challenges of Mideast peace.

Iran: Human Rights Watch and the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran urged the United Nations to appoint a special envoy to investigate allegations of human rights abuses in the aftermath of Iran's June elections.

SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA: Afghan Police Question U.S. Surge

Police officials from some of Afghanistan's most dangerous areas said the United States should not increase troop levels (AP) in the country, and called instead for more U.S. resources to be put into bolstering local security forces. The officials, responding to the public release of General Stanley McChrystal's review of U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, said an increase in troops would feed the impression of the United States as an occupying power.

A new CFR Daily Analysis Brief looks at the mounting debate over Afghanistan's importance to U.S. security.

UN: Afghan President Hamid Karzai will not attend the UN General Assembly meetings (al-Jazeera) in New York this week. His office said he decided to cancel the trip due to continuing political uncertainty in the country.

PACIFIC RIM: Piracy Spikes in Asia

An international piracy monitoring agency, the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia, says piracy in the South China Sea has hit a five-year high (Xinhua) so far this year. In the latest such attack, on Saturday, six pirates robbed the crew (BBC) of a tanker off Indonesia.

China: Newsweek says China has been hoarding minerals needed for the development of green technologies.

AFRICA: Sudan Violence

At least one hundred people were killed (BBC) when armed men from the Lou Nuer ethnic group attacked the village of Duk Padiet in Sudan's Jonglei state. Some two thousand people have died in similar attacks this year.

Guinea: The African Union will impose sanctions (AFP) on Guinea's junta leader, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara. Camara declared his intention to run in impending presidential elections, despite a previous pledge not to enter the race.

AMERICAS: Zelaya Returns

Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya has returned to the country (Reuters), taking refuge in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa to avoid arrest by the interim regime. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for peaceful behavior on both sides and dialogue between Zelaya and the de facto government.

Interim Honduran President Roberto Micheletti defends the coup in an op-ed in the Washington Post.

Immigration: The Wall Street Journal looks at a report that the number of immigrants in the United States dropped in 2008 for the first time since at least 1970 due to the recession.

EUROPE: Closing Calais Migrant Camp

France will shut down a camp (NYT) in Calais, on the country's northern coast, where hundreds of migrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and elsewhere have long stopped on their attempted journeys to Britain. The camp's closing this week is meant to shut down the network of smugglers that has been transporting undocumented migrants into Britain.

Russia: Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said Russia hope negotiations surrounding its entry into the World Trade Organization will be complete by 2010 (WSJ). Shuvalov addressed the issue after a meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk in Washington. Russia is the world's largest economy that is not a WTO member.

TRANSNATIONAL: Delta Crisis

Most of the world's river deltas (MSNBC) are sinking due to human activity, a new study shows. Some five hundred million people in the world live on river deltas.

 

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