Quarterly Round Up
North Korea Launches Intercontinental Missile
According to the realist school of thought, the military power is considered as the sole mean of survival for a state in this anarchic comity of states. This phenomenon also testifies to the three ‘S’ regime, which talks about statism, self-help and survival. By the presence of major powers in alien regions, the other countries of that region perceive threats. Therefore, the development and acquiring of new and high percision weapons in every quarter of the century by different states is quite understandable.
The on-going tussle to maintain the balance of power (BOP) in the Korean peninsula is of worth analysis, where, a major power is trying to deter a country from developing the nuclear weapons by coercive means. Resultantly, North Korea has adopted an offensive strategy to defend its interests. Hence, to deter the major powers and secure its interests, North Korea has launched its first intercontinental missile on July 04, 2018 which, the Korean official claim, could strike ‘anywhere in the world’. For this particular crisis, certain confidence building measures (CBMs) should be taken at initial level and a peaceful political process should be initiated to address the concerns of both the parties. Otherwise; the escalation of the conflict can result the annihilation of humanity at large.
Myanmar: Rohingya Crisis
A state is an important organ of the international governance system and the permanent population is prerequisite of a state. Neither any state can survive without population nor can any nation survive without a state. To maintain international peace and security, this bond must be strong. Every citizen within a state enjoyed certain fundamental human rights regardless of the colour, creed, race or religion. The basic fundamental rights are secured through miscellaneous domestic and international laws. United Nations Human Rights Declaration (UDHR) states that every citizen has freedom of movement and residence within a state. Although the domestic laws may vary country to country but no international law permits any state to deprive of its citizens of their fundamental rights. However; Myanmar government is not only involved in the violation of human rights of its Rohingya community but also allowing its military’s counter terrorism strategy which is causing mountainous collateral damage.
Due to on-going so-called counter terrorism operations started in August, hundreds of thousands of Rohigia people have been killed and millions have migrated to neighbouring countries. This mass migration is not only causing huge humanitarian crises but also adding to the global insecurity. The United Nations human rights chief Zeid Ra‘ad al-Hussein told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, “The situation seems a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.” Condemning the government, he said, “stop claiming that the Rohingyas are setting fire to their own homes and laying waste to their own villages.” United Nations and international community should take concrete steps to resolve this issue on urgent basis. Otherwise; the future of refugees and stateless miserly people remains uncertain.
G20 Summit, Hamburg
G20 summit held in Hamburg, Germany, on 7-8 July with the theme “shaping an interconnected world”. The leaders took notice of withdrawal announcement by President Donald Trump from Paris Agreement calling that the agreement is irreversible. Despite that leaders agreed for cooperation on refugees crisis and taxation, the trade disputes have threatened the global economies. Alongwith other issues discussed, G20 Africa partnership was launched with the aim to enhance growth and jobs there.
Nationalist Movements in Middle East
The world had witnessed the new political system in 1648 renowned as Nation State System. Different nations established their own independent countries with their own nationalities. Although this system confronted many problems but claimed to be stood successful. However, the 20th century saw a new challenge to this system in the form of emergence of new separatist movements in different parts of the world. Mostly, these movements emerged due to either weak democratic governments or non-democratic regimes. In Iraq, the end of the Saddam Hussain’s kingship brought a weak democratic government in the country. This gave an excuse to long awaiting community living in Iraq to stood up for their rights and conducted a referendum to decide their future. This controversial referendum got no global recognition. It is inevitable for states to realise this emerging threat to national integration and must fulfil their responsibilities without being authoritative. If this issue is not solved timely, nation state system will be history and city state may be the coin of the day.
Panama Paper Decision by Supreme Court of Pakistan
In July, the Supreme Court of Pakistan announced its unanimous verdict to disqualify the Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. The decision came in the famouse Panama Paper case. However the decision was not praised by the ruling party and rather the disqualified Prime Minister went to public demonstrations calling the decision unfair and unjust. Mr. Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was selected as new Prime Minister of Pakistan by the ruling party. Furthermore the cases sent to National Accountability Bureau by Supreme Court, may have different impact in coming months.