International Politics

Competing trade agreements and planned infrastructure investments are dilemmas that ASEAN can only successfully solve if they approach the challenges as group that lets go if its consensus decision-making and allows for countries´ flexible participation.

When the 19 member countries and the EU gathered in Hamburg for the G20 Summit one important topic was not on the agenda: from China to Mexico, Turkey to Russia, Saudi Arabia to India – the respect for fundamental human rights can no longer be taken for granted.

We all come into contact with it, especially when shopping for fresh fruit and vegetables, hardly anyone is aware of it: many hours of ‘invisible’ labor – often by migrant workers from Africa, Latin America, Asia and Eastern Europe toiling in agriculture in the Mediterranean region.

On 22 June 2017 international experts Gerald Knaus, Rebecca Vincent, and Berit Lindeman spoke with Anar Mammadli and other representatives of Azeri civil society about the critical human rights situation in the country, ways to potentially solve it, and European strategies.

On Tuesday, 13 June, Hungary’s National Assembly passed a law that requires NGOs which receive foreign funds above the annual threshold of 24000 EUR to register and label themselves as “foreign-funded organisations” on their websites and in their publications.

The Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union invites young Europeans from all Member States and the UK to Brussels in order to discuss with each other.

African governments need to put policies in place that recognise that their economic vibrancy is shifting to internal consumption and manufacturing and services, away from commodities alone. And they must tax accordingly.

Three months after the ground-breaking ceremony for a superhighway in Nigeria’s Cross River State the opposition grew. People were wary of not being compensated for losing their land.

China's interests in Zambia are very much dependent on the infrastructure of the country: The G20 summit in Seoul placed infrastructure development squarely on the international agenda.

Sixty years after the signing of the Treaties of Rome, Europe finds itself at a crossroads. Understanding what this wake-up call means for a liberal Europe was the subject of discussion at an international conference titled “Moving Forward with Europe!”.

Corporate lobby groups have created a broad network of influence channels around the G20, with the Business20 (B20) at its core. At the G20 Sherpa meeting in Frankfurt on 23-24 March the B20 presents its policy recommendations to the governments. It is time to counterbalance the corporate influence in the G20.

Apart from the G20’s apparent lack of effective strategy and implementation of its own pledges, its growth vision lacks full coherence with sustainable development. Instead of wishfully hoping to retrace an economic growth trajectory of the past, the G20 should advance coherent sustainable development.

An interview with migration expert Amr Taha. He is heading the office of International Organization of Migration in Egypt. In the interview, he talks about Egypt as a host country of migrants and refugees, as well as a point of departure for migrants heading to Europe.

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For those who have held the U.S. as the bastion of all things good and right, this may be a wake-up call.

The G20 is promoting a new investment paradigm for itself and inviting the world to follow suit. What are the stated G20 goals and commitments in relation to this topic? What does “investment” mean? What is the progress so far and what are the challenges in relation to this topic? What is the desired future direction of the G20 with respect to the topic?

The G20 Hamburg Summit in July 2017 will be about nothing less than how globalization should be governed in the future. The G20 countries will have to respond to the key question of our times: How should a globalized world economy be coordinated for the benefit of all humanity against the backdrop of economic uncertainty, higher levels of inequality, climate change, refugees and migration?

The scale of the infrastructure and PPP initiative championed by the G20’s national and multilateral banks could privatize gains and socialize losses on a massive scale. The G20 should take steps to ensure that this scenario does not unfold.

Trade has contributed to inequalities in many countries. Therefore the G20 should ensure that its trade agenda does not conflict with that of the WTO or the United Nations. Many processes need to be revised to reduce so inequalities can be reduced.

Seven “Engagement Groups” circle around the G20 and attempt to influence its decisions. However, their relative power to influence outcomes differs greatly.