China has published its own “white paper” in response to the US white paper that outlined a US military “pivot” from Europe to East Asia. Not surprisingly, China believes that the US shift of military resources to the Pacific is a destabilizing move, and that it plans to counter the US move with a build-up of its own military. Tensions are undeniably on the rise in that region, with nationalism resurfacing in Japan and South Korea, the nuclear ambitions of North Korea, and the new assertiveness on the part of the Chinese military. We should hope that these changes can be slowly assimilated into a new equilibrium in the region.
Five separate UN agencies issued a plea for an end to the carnage in Syria. The joint plea was unprecedented and intended to put pressure on the political decision-making of the UN. The five agencies are all charged with providing humanitarian assistance to war-torn regions, and they warned that they could no longer guarantee that they could discharge their responsibilities in Syria. It’s not clear what action the agencies proposed, and it is unlikely that the Security Council will act in any different way because of the plea.
Twice a year, the IMF issues a report on its expectations for economic growth. This time, the IMF is predicting markedly slower growth for the world, and for the European Union in particular. The news is grim because the economic forecasts have been steadily lowered each time over the last three years. There is no reason to expect that this time the IMF will be any more accurate, and economic growth will probably be lower than that predicted by the IMF.
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