The Cold War 'Triangle'
Is this a reality, or we are just
looking at power centered around countries — The US, Russia and China — as
the focal points on the new global geopolitical map. Countries should take note
of the scenario and act unanimously towards world peace.
Mark the words! The Cold War is "back with a vengeance, but with a difference”, said the UN's secretary general Antonio Guterres at a UN Security Council meeting. “I am really very concerned. I think we are coming to a situation that is similar, to a large extent, to what we lived during the Cold War but with two very important differences”, Guterres said earlier in a response to questions by reporters on the expulsion of Russian UN diplomats by the US. Such ‘strong’ statements, coming from a head of one of the world’s most powerful institution, United Nations, in the capacity of his position, as a secretary general, invokes an ‘emergency’ situation in world’s geopolitical scenario and gives clarion to nations and global leaders to revisit the past cold war days and its ramifications.
Mark the words! The Cold War is "back with a vengeance, but with a difference”, said the UN's secretary general Antonio Guterres at a UN Security Council meeting. “I am really very concerned. I think we are coming to a situation that is similar, to a large extent, to what we lived during the Cold War but with two very important differences”, Guterres said earlier in a response to questions by reporters on the expulsion of Russian UN diplomats by the US. Such ‘strong’ statements, coming from a head of one of the world’s most powerful institution, United Nations, in the capacity of his position, as a secretary general, invokes an ‘emergency’ situation in world’s geopolitical scenario and gives clarion to nations and global leaders to revisit the past cold war days and its ramifications.
The Cold War is "back with a vengeance, but with a difference”.
Let’s assume that the Cold War — geopolitical tension between the western bloc
led by the US and the eastern block led by Russia (then USSR) — that began
after the Second World War had ended with the collapse of USSR, read 1991.
Today it is a 'Triangle' - the US, Russia and China. The cold war is not just between two nations — the US and Russian. New countries are joining the 'bandwagon'.
However, with the change of leaders of nations,
rising power and changing global scenario, “new cold war” has resurfaced on the
global stage which is led by the ongoing renewed geo-political tensions, policy
hostilities, and political rivalry in countries like North Korea, Syria,
Turkey, Yemen, Afghanistan, Malaysia, other middle-east and central Asia
countries, eg Pakistan, Ukraine, that has intensified dramatically due to turn
of events across these nations. There seems to be an urge for renewed
"supremacy" among nations. Should we say, building new “blocks of
power”.
Interestingly, with Donald Trump coming to power in
the US, speculations of the possibility of a “new cold war”, beyond Russia,
with China has been added. Trump had repeatedly said during his presidential
campaign that he considered China a threat. It seems, his administration has planned
to shift the wave of “new cold war” from Russia to China, as its main
competitor. The current trade war with respect to dispute on tariff
barriers placed on goods between the two nations is a testimony to this fact.
Earlier, during his campaign, Trump had promised to fix China's
"longtime abuse of the broken international system
and unfair practices". The US believes China practices laws
which undermine intellectual property rights. It also raises concerns that
China fails to recognize legitimate patents and copyrights, and discriminates
against foreign imported technology.
However, this growing “new cold war” with China has found a lease of life with
the White House statement that both parties will "immediately begin
negotiations on structural changes with respect to intellectual property
protection, non-tariff barriers, forced technology
transfer, cyber intrusions and cyber theft”.
Although, the scenario might not been as aggressive
as though back in the ‘old cold war’ days, the concerns do require a rethink
from leaders across the countries to come together and sit across the table to
resolve differences and focus on larger global issues that concern us
all —world peace, harmony, humanity, health, poverty, climate change, and
many other such challenges.
No country can exist mutually exclusive in this 21st
century of globalization with goals of sustainable development and a better
place to live.
Also read: Henry Kissinger
- https://www.ft.com/content/926a66b0-8b49-11e8-bf9e-8771d5404543.
(Representational images: source)
Comments