Davos 2023: World Economic Forum from great reset to great fragmentation

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<strong>Davos 2023: World Economic Forum from great reset to great fragmentation</strong>

By Corneliu Pivariu

After more than half a century from the first edition of the World Economic Forum (WEF), namely in 2023, its 53rd edition unfolded and brought together again an important part of the personalities of the political, economic and financial, and media fields and others or, briefly said, the planet’s plutocracy and its connected sectors.

I recall that if not long ago, at WEF Davos 2020, its founder, Klaus Schwab was preaching “Great Reset”, this year topic was “Cooperation in a Fragmented World”, thus acknowledging, in part at least, the failure of the 2020 assumptions.

Actually, the gathering took place on the background of developments marked by pessimism among which we mention the decline of global stocks at the end of 2022 by almost 20% while the total loss of the markets amounted to 30 trillion dollars, the greatest decline since 2008. The predictions for 2023 as well are not optimistic as it is assessed a decline of global growth marked by inflation, further markets volatility on the background of conflicts that are not prone to evolve towards a negotiated settlement.

The main topics of the Forum were: the fight against global warming and climate change, the conflict in Ukraine and economic inequalities.

We think that it is becoming more and more obvious that the Davos grouping pursue the achievement of its own agenda for the XXI century, as the topics set forth as noble purposes are hiding in fact other interests.

If we speak of economic inequality, we believe each Davos gathering scored a deepening of inequalities. A case in point is the fact that during April-July 2020 only, the wealth of the world’s almost 2,200 billionaires increased by 27.5%. 

According to Credit Suisse public data, between December 2019 and December 2021, of the newly created 42 trillion dollars in the global economy, 26 trillion dollar (63%) belong to the richest 1% of the world population while the remaining 16 trillion dollar (37%) belong to the remaining 99%. From 1995 until now, the wealth of the richest people in the world increased by 6-9% annually (at least twice compared to the world average growth) with the proviso that in 2020 it was much greater, as mentioned above.

As far as the fight against global warming and climate change are concerned, we express our reluctance regarding the real concern to this effect for which Greta Thumberg was found as an iconic figure. How come that she was chosen as a symbol for a less polluted world?

According to Oxfam research issued on November 8, 2022, the yearly pollution produced by a billionaire is one million time bigger than that produced by a person belonging to the 90% of the poorest people in the world.

What is hiding the statement that the bovine flatulence causers an important increase in CO2 emissions or the appeal of one of Siemens directors that a billion people give up eating meat (when for sure one billion people in the world do not eat meat while 20 million people are dying yearly of hunger)? What will the European Union succeed in doing if reduces carbon emissions as it proposed when that represents a tiny percentage of the global pollution? We don’t think it will be an example to follow.

The UN Secretary General António Guterres in his remarks at Davos assessed that “frustration and anger over a moral bankrupt financial system in which systemic inequalities are amplifying societal inequalities … we face the gravest levels of geopolitical division and mistrust in generations”.

With regard to the conflict in Ukraine, it is less probable that it will end in 2023, but we hope that conditions could be created so that peace negotiations begin in the second half of the year. Given that war is the successful industry of our time, we should expect that after the Big Pharma profits, the great arms producing corporations claim the gains as well.

The war in Ukraine was triggered by Russia’s error in judgement with regard to the domestic situation in Ukraine and its bet on a pale reaction of the European Union and the US. The conflict in Ukraine is more than a political conflict, is more than a conflict dominated by economic interests and, at a deeper level it has anthropological dimensions.

What does the future hold? Klaus Schwab and the elites gathering annually at Davos will continue to pursue their interests until a counterweight at these interests will be created. We see for the time being how the big corporations are subordinating the state through their different structures. We see how the state’s wealth, natural resources etc. go into possession of corporations owned by a handful of people. Romania is unfortunately an obvious example in this respect. But globalism is no longer so monolithic as it seemed ten years ago. A proof of that is Elon Musk’s reaction as he was not invited at Davos. Sovereignism seems to be a trend starting to make up ground globally. It is not yet clear how far it will advance.

We should be more concerned about education with a greater emphasis on humanistic studies. The differences between technological progress and social conscience have grown so large that they could trigger cataclysmic events.

Presentation of the author as keynote speaker at international webinar “Post Davos 2023. From the Unipolar World to a Multipolar World?“, organized by EURODEFENCE Romania and MEPEI Institute, Thursday, January 26, 2023, attended by a huge international audience from USA to Australia.

About the author: 

Corneliu Pivariu-, Ingepo Consulting. Photographer Ionus Paraschiv

Corneliu Pivariu is a highly decorated two-star general of the Romanian army (Rtd). He has founded and led one of the most influential magazines on geopolitics and international relations in Eastern Europe, the bilingual journal Geostrategic Pulse, for two decades. General Pivariu is a member of IFIMES Advisory Board. 

Published by IFIMES

Water and energy agreements between Tashkent and Bishkek – new drivers for strengthening cooperation

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Water and energy agreements between Tashkent and Bishkek – new drivers for strengthening cooperation

By Javokhir Badalov

The state visit of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the Kyrgyz Republic, which took place on January 26-27 this year, will undoubtedly go down in the history of bilateral relations.

Following the summit, the parties brought relations to the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership. 25 documents were signed, including a protocol on the exchange of instruments of ratification of an agreement on certain sections of the Uzbekistan – Kyrgyzstan state border, the Intergovernmental Program for Strategic Trade and Economic Partnership for 2023-2025, and others.

In my opinion, one of the key events of the visit was the achievement of an agreement on the construction of the Kambarata HPP-1. In particular, on the eve of the meeting of the heads of state, an investment agreement was signed between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Earlier on January 6 this year, in Bishkek, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan signed a roadmap for the implementation of the project. The construction of a dam with a height of 256 m and a reservoir with a capacity of 5.4 billion cubic meters is envisaged. The HPP is expected to generate 5.6 billion kWh of electricity per year.

This is a flagship project not only for the countries involved, but for the entire region as a whole. Its successful implementation will lay the foundation for the sustainable development of Central Asia by ensuring the economic, energy and food security of the entire region.

A characteristic feature of the HPP – it is the first of its kind joint mega-project in the recent history of the region with the participation of three countries. The parties are joining forces to use the powerful hydropower potential of Central Asia, which is 930 billion kWh a year. At the same time, despite the measures taken, to date, it has been mastered by only 11%.

Of course, the implementation of the Kambarata HPP-1 is becoming increasingly important against the backdrop of a steady increase in Central Asia’s demand for cheap and environmentally friendly energy. This is due to the dynamic growth of the economy and population, the deepening of industrial cooperation in the region.

It is expected that by 2030 electricity consumption in Kazakhstan will be 136 billion kWh (an increase of 21% compared to 2020), in Uzbekistan – 120.8 billion kWh (an increase of 1.7 times), in Kyrgyzstan – more than 20 billion kWh (growth by 50%).

In this vein, the planned HPP will ensure the creation of additional generating capacities that can be integrated into a single energy ring of Central Asia. This will increase the reliability of providing the domestic regional market with cheap electricity. Thus, one more step will be taken toward the formation of a common energy market.

Moreover, the released energy resources can be supplied to the markets of third countries. It is expected that the commissioning of the Kambarata HPP-1 will make it possible to export energy worth $234 million annually.

Last but not least, the implementation of the project will become an important factor in ensuring food security in Central Asia. Irrigation needs will be met through more efficient management of the water resources of the Norin River. This is particularly relevant in summer, when there is a shortage of water due to high temperatures.

Moreover, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have recently been developing agro-industrial cooperation. Today, both countries are taking measures to implement joint projects for the cultivation of fruits and vegetables, the supply of cattle, and others. The implementation of the project will play an important role not only in providing irrigated lands with water, but also in the uninterrupted supply of industrial facilities with electricity.

The construction of hydroelectric power plants, which are a source of cheap and clean energy, is also a requirement of the times. All over the world, control over the environmental friendliness of goods (primarily the presence of a carbon footprint in them) is being strengthened. In particular, the EU plans to introduce a tax on goods produced with a high level of carbon dioxide emissions in 2026. In this regard, the generation of electricity at hydroelectric power stations will allow Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan to bring competitive products made from clean energy to the markets.

The investment agreement on the construction of the Kambarata HPP-1 is also a logical continuation of the high dynamics of cooperation between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan in the water and energy sector.

Despite the issues that have taken place, Tashkent and Bishkek have developed mutually acceptable mechanisms for cooperation in this area. A seasonal energy exchange was established between the countries, according to which Uzbekistan supplies electricity to a neighboring country in spring and autumn, while Kyrgyzstan returns it in summer.

As a result, agriculture in Uzbekistan receives the necessary amount of water, and in Kyrgyzstan – the possibility of accumulating water for its use at the right time.

To more effectively coordinate these and other processes, the Joint Water Commission began its work in August 2022. It is noteworthy that already at its first meeting, an interdepartmental Agreement on cooperation on water management issues was signed.

Moreover, our country is actively involved in the supply and transit of electricity to Kyrgyzstan. Thus, Uzbekistan not only supplies electricity to Kyrgyzstan, but also through its energy networks ensures the transit of electricity from Turkmenistan, the volume of which in 2021-2022 exceeded 1 billion kWh.

There is no doubt that the tripartite project for the construction of the Kambarata HPP-1 is evidence of a new regional dynamic. Earlier, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan began construction of two hydroelectric power stations on the Zarafshan River. All this shows that mutually beneficial cooperation in the water and energy sector in Central Asia can serve as a unifying factor.

The parties demonstrate the ability to constructively resolve even the most complex issues by finding mutually acceptable compromises. Such cooperation can become an exemplary model for other regions experiencing similar problems.

In general, the agreements reached following Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s state visit to Kyrgyzstan are unprecedented. They will certainly open a new page in relations between the two fraternal countries and peoples, contribute to ensuring security, stability and sustainable development throughout the Central Asian region.

About the author:

Javokhir Badalov is a Leading Researcher at the ISRS, under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Jihadism in Europe: What to Expect

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Jihadism in Europe: What to Expect

By Patricia Pazos, Ph.D

Jihadism in Europe: Unpredictable and Difficult to Identify

The jihadist threat in Europe is alive and evolving. Terrorist attacks in Spain, France, and Germany in the past months have shown common characteristics: low preparation, low planning, and poor but efficient execution. This leads us to a conclusion: the jihadist threat is evolving, is alive, and it is difficult to prevent.

Let’s give some context:  we have seen a decrease in terrorist attacks and terrorist activity after the fall of “the Califate” of ISIS, and, as we know, terrorism is a threat that comes in waves, and all signs indicate that we might be starting a new wave or stage that needs lots of attention, and, more precisely, adaptation.

Lone Actors

Lone actors continue to be a major cause of concern. As in past years in the EU, lone actors carried out every successful jihadist terrorist attack. When it comes to gender, the three confirmed jihadist attackers in 2021 were all men; they were not natives of the nations where they struck, but they were allowed to live there legally.

The Strategy of ISIS and its Impact in Europe

ISIS believes that in order to revive its caliphate, one strategy must be pursued: an attempt to free 10,000 of its fighters from Syrian jails and labor camps. ISIS members, their spouses, and children are housed in jails and camps administered by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

Let’s remember that ISIS controlled 40% of Iraq and a third of Syria during its most successful period. Some experts clarify that the high number of ISIS members now in jail willing to escape -or be freed- would pose a serious security threat to the region and the world. History has shown that this is a clear danger that cannot be underestimated.

Terrorist Organizations in the EU

Extremist and terrorist organizations are still being identified and dismantled in the EU. Here are some examples of the types of operations that security forces are facing: In a joint operation between Denmark and Germany, 14 people were arrested at first, 13 in Denmark and one in Germany. The organization intended to use IEDs (a simple bomb made and used by unofficial or unauthorized forces) and guns in a terrorist attack in Europe. Three of the accused were brothers from Syria, ages 33, 36, and 40 (two were taken into custody in Denmark and one in Germany). We also see a pattern when it comes to family. Tight bonds between family and friends are found in small terrorist cells.

Minors

Terrorist-related activities increasingly involve minors. Teenagers spend hours in front of a screen and can quickly make close friends online and in real life. Example: A 16-year-old German national was detained for incitement and threats motivated by ISIS ideology, while a 16-year-old Syrian national was detained in Germany in September 2021 on suspicion of organizing and planning an attack against a synagogue in Hagen, North Rhine-Westphalia.

Modi Operandi

In recent years, there have been a high number of violent events that used terrorist tactics but, in the end, were not categorized as terrorist attacks. Although the authors of these crimes occasionally revealed evidence of religious radicalization, they also demonstrated other motivating elements, particularly mental health problems (we have seen that the pandemic has exacerbated some of these problems). Member States carefully looked into these situations and found that they were not caused by political or ideological beliefs. However, access to jihadist messaging online may be a catalyst for the escalation of violent behavior among certain individuals.

Geographical Location

The most affected countries by jihadism now in the EU are France, Germany, Spain, and Belgium. Regarding the activities, geographical location, and individuals involved, the jihadist ecosystem in the EU has largely remained consistent over time. In geographic terms, jihadist connections in the EU continued to be centered in and near significant urban centers. The mixed online-offline interactions that make up jihadist communities, however, have an impact on their behaviors and particularly reach a wide audience. In Member States, jihadists often work alone or in small groups that are spread out and don’t have clear positions or hierarchies.

 Jihadist Cells

Jihadist cells are less frequent than in previous years. The reason varies, but mainly because of the successful work of security and intelligence forces and the cooperation among stakeholders. The second reason is behind planning: the chances of detecting a terrorist attack are more likely to happen during the planning phase.

Cells can emerge among close relatives and acquaintances, but they frequently grow outside of these networks thanks in large part to the internet and community links. Due to the lack of institutional hierarchies, certain people may hold more power than others, especially if they are older, more jihadist-minded, or perceived to know more about Islam. People who have lived in conflict areas and, curiously, people who have tried to travel there but have been stopped by criminal justice activity have also been seen to play significant roles in spreading the jihadist ideology and recruiting new members. While many jihadist organizations operate on a community scale, some have connections on a regional level, and a few on a global level. International networks can be built on the shared nationality and language of the participants.

The future of jihadism in Europe: What to Expect

Terrorism is now more difficult to predict than in recent years. Many factors may affect the current situation, including societal factors such as geopolitical and political instability. Extremist groups may use some changes in Member States to feed their narrative, promote online propaganda, and give a boost to recruitment.  The economic situation, particularly instability, also aggravates extremist narratives and fuels radicalization. We cannot forget about mental health and the misuse of technologies, the young population can be easily manipulated, and self-radicalization is becoming more common. To tackle this complex ecosystem, we should be aware of these changes, tackle terrorism using a holistic approach, promote cooperation among stakeholders, and keep up the good work in prevention.

Nations and Capital – The Missing Link in Global Expansion

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Nations and Capital – The Missing Link in Global Expansion

By Zlatko Hadžidedić

Most theorists of nationalism claim that nationalism is a modern phenomenon. However, they commonly fail to notice that the phenomenon to which they vaguely refer as Modernity is absolutely determined and defined by a very compact and precisely structured socio-economic system, that of capitalism.

This is why capitalism as a whole – rather than its particular aspects, such as Gellner’s “industrialism”, Anderson’s “print-capitalism”, Nairn’s “uneven development”, Hechter’s “internal colonialism”, Tilly’s “mass-militarisation”, or Conversi’s “Westernisation” – inevitably arises as the most adequate framework for analysis of nationalism as a historical phenomenon, offering the reasons for nationalism’s emergence and continuing existence. 

Whereas the principle of unequal exchange and accumulation of wealth in all previous systems was to provide socio-economic security and set social hierarchy, capitalism has built a mechanism which makes unequal exchange self-perpetuating, so as to make accumulation of wealth perpetual and limitless. Capitalism’s imperative for perpetual private profit, present in all its phases, both pre-industrial, industrial and post-industrial, generates particular social conditions that tend to undermine the very sustainability of the capitalist system: a perpetually widening gap between the exploiting elites on one side and the exploited masses on the other side leads to a perpetual rise of insurrectionary potentials of the latter, threatening the stability of the entire system. Bridging that gap without changing the structure of society becomes the paramount task for the capitalist system in its attempts to preserve the mechanism for incessant exploitation of labour and limitless accumulation of capital. Therefore, this system has introduced a social glue tailored to conceal, but also to cement, the actual polarisation of society. This glue has been designed as an ideal of absolute social unity, based on the assumption that both the exploiting and the exploited are born as equal, with equal rights, identical interests, and common identity, and that together they form an entirely new entity, the nation.

The nation is conceptualised as a simulated community whose homogeneity generates its power over the territory it inhabits and whose power over the territory it inhabits generates its homogeneity. In other words, the nation is designed as a community whose capacities for social homogeneity and political sovereignty stand in direct proportion: the might of homogeneity creates the right to sovereignty, the might of sovereignty creates an obligation to homogeneity. In historical, political, and social reality, the nation and nationalism always operate in accordance with this logic. The nation, by its very nature, consists of nationalism. To paraphrase Gellner, not only does nationalism invent nations where they do not exist, but nations themselves exist only in the form of nationalism: in social reality the nation operates as a fluctuating discourse rather than a fixed substantive and enduring entity. In this sense, nations function as nationalism: nations are generated and brought into being by their respective nationalisms; and nations continue to exist as long as the societies that have been politically framed as nations remain capable of perpetuating their respective nationalisms.

The nation-state arose as superior to the other forms of state characterising early capitalism – such as city-state and mercantilist empire – due to its ability to protect the domination of the capitalist class by systemically containing the potential discontent of other classes. For capitalist elites, the nation-state performs yet another important function: while populations fashioned as nations become increasingly isolated one from another by their respective nationalist ideologies, symbolic boundaries, and physical borders, and thus become increasingly powerless, capitalist elites further strengthen their position by operating across and above these ideologies, boundaries, and borders, as a powerful trans-national network. Eventually, supported by the ideology of nationalism, capitalism redesigns all states in the world as nation-states, by which they buy a must-take ticket for entrance into the global capitalist system. Reliance on nationalism, based on this must-take principle, has also been adopted by all left-wing and communist regimes, in their permanent striving for full-fledged membership in this system.

Nationalism successfully played the designated role within the capitalist system until the last decades of the twentieth century. However, the global neoliberal revolution, spread under the label of globalisation,  has widened the gap between the rich and the poor to such an extent that classical nationalism, connected with liberal-democratic principles, has ceased to be able to conceal that gap, having made the capitalist system unstable, or even unsustainable. Therefore, capitalist elites have identified a possible solution in a resurgence of nationalism in a more robust, non-democratic, authoritarian form. This form of nationalism announces a new phase in capitalism’s development, the phase of hyper-capitalism, in which exploitation of labour and accumulation of wealth tend to become absolute, supported by overtly robust, authoritarian methods of rule.

This book demonstrates that capitalism needs and generates nationalism, both democratic and authoritarian, as its structural requirement that eventually becomes a conditio sine qua non of its very existence. In other words, not only is there no nationalism without capitalism; more importantly, there is no capitalism without nationalism. 

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First published 2022 by Routledge, 4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge – 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 2022

Lahore’s Frida – Portrait of Two Artists: Frida Kahlo & Amrita Shergil

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<strong>Lahore’s Frida – Portrait of Two Artists: Frida Kahlo & <em>Amrita Shergil</em></strong>

By H.E. Mr. Suljuk Mustansar Tarar, Ambassador of Pakistan

An exhibition on art and life of Frida Kahlo held at Drents Museum, Assen in the Netherlands took me back to Lahore, my home town. I had seen Frida’s work in New York and Diego Rivera’s murals in Detroit where Frida accompanied him but the exhibition at Drents introduced me to Frida’s multiple personas and more importantly as a human trying to keep her head high amidst her collapsing physical edifice. It showed Frida’s zest for life, creativity, attention to design details for dresses, corsets, and shoes, a carefully built persona, symbols of self-love and losses, frustrations, and global connections in the early half of twentieth century, love for men and women, breaking every day norms, and touching boundaries, which even today are unthinkable among many others.

Curated by Drents Director Harry Tupan, the exhibition had Frida’s paintings, dresses, books like the Walt Whitman’s anthology that was on Frida’s side table when she died, letters, cosmetics, shoes, medicine bottles and rare photographs. On how was Viva la Frida a different exhibition from others organized Tupan said that “The exhibition Viva la Frida – Life and art of Frida Kahlo was an overall concept as we were able to showcase not only her famous artworks but also her personal belongings. The paintings, drawings and photographs along with her clothes, jewelry and medical supplies gave a layered picture of the iconic woman Kahlo was in terms of art, inclusivity, gender and politics”

Nederland – Drenthe – Assen – 11-10-2021 Drents Museum. Tentoonstelling Viva La Frida. (Frida Kahlo) Foto; Drents Museum / Sake Elzinga

As I moved in Drents through a joyous and colorful exhibition celebrating Frida’s life and works she became real and there she reminded me of Amrita Shergil – the pre-independence bohemian artist who spent her last months in Lahore, the city which opened doors to Amrita when rest of the sub-continent seemed not to be working in her favor. Amrita is at times compared with Kahlo but the more I discovered the two great women artists of early twentieth century, the more they appeared like two identical twins who had existed in two different corners of the world.

Growing up in a historic city like Lahore has its unique advantages. One is able to follow steps and stories of people who once lived and breathed there. In the Raj era and for a long time after independence, the Mall Road of Lahore was a hub of art, academic and literary activities. Amrita Shergil lived just off the Mall Road in 23 Ganga Ram Mansion one of the dozen red brick proto-type designed colonial banglows.

23 Ganga Ram Mansion.

Despite the passage of significant time the place still breaths of colonial era. When I last visited the place in June 2022, it felt that Amrita was still upstairs in her studio finishing her last painting. Her studio was in a room, commonly known as rain storage unit – barsaati, on top floor of Banglow no 23. Kahlo spent much of her life in Casa Azul (the Blue House) in Mexico City built by her father Guillermo Kahlo, a German, who had moved to Mexico from Hungary after the death of his first wife in childbirth and married a Mexican indigenous woman Matilde Calderon.

Amrita was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1913 to a Hungarian mother and an aristocratic Sikh father and died young at the age of 28 years. Frida Kahlo was born a few years earlier in 1907 in Mexico City and both had a mixed parentage. Though Frida outlived Amrita by two decades yet she too was young to die a few days after turning 47. She left behind 200 paintings and sketches including 55 self-portraits, kept a diary with details and sketches giving a window to her life. Amrita’s known works are around 143 and her early focus was on nudes which as expected created ripples. She also did self-portraits. Her work mostly remained figurative. She regularly wrote letters and articles explaining her work, which means that as an artist she knew the importance to explain her work like Frida did through her diaries and consciously built image.

Amrita Shergil

Frida was stricken by Polio at the age of six and met a devastating accident at 18 when a bus she was travelling in was hit by a metro-tram. Despite her disabilities, her immense love to draw could be seen in one of the photos at the Drents exhibition where she is lying on a bed with easel and a specially placed mirror on the roof allows her to see and draw. She married a much older and much accomplished Mexican artist of the time Diego Rivera. Their relationship remained fluid but friendly. Frida Kahlo’s persona is a key part of Mexican cultural and soft power and the Mexican Ambassador in Netherlands Jose Antonio Zabalgoita also utilizes this icon said that “Frida Kahlo is the best-known Mexican artist. Her works, her ideas and her rebellious personality certainly anticipated current principles and values for women’s rights. As Ambassador of Mexico, I rely on Kahlo’s powerful figure to underscore Mexico’s cultural identity.”

Amrita’s father Sardar Umrao Singh Majithia was a scholarly man with interest in philosophy, religion and photography. Frida’s father also indulged in photography. Amrita’s mother Marie Antionette was a musician and an opera singer. She came to India with Princess Bamba Singh, the grand-daughter of Mahraja Ranjit Singh, and a resident of Lahore’s Model Town. The Sardar married Marie-Antionete an esoteric woman after the death of his first wife.

Sardar Umrao Singh Majithia decided to move back to subcontinent after the First World War in 1921 where Amrita found early on her love for painting. She was tutored by Hal Bevan-Petman (1894-1980) a British portrait expert who stayed on in Pakistan after independence and became an important elite portrait maker in the early years of Pakistan. Shergil left India for Paris from 1929 to 1934 to study at Ecole des Beaux. At the Paris Grand Salon her painting “Young Girls” got an award. Amrita had the honor of becoming an Associate of the Salon at the age of 18. She was also exposed to the works of impressionists and became an admirer of Paul Gaugin. The influence can be seen in her different works especially her 1934 self-portrait. “Some have even suggested that she approached India as a foreigner, motivated by the same spirit of exotic discovery as was Gauguin in Tahiti.”[1] She is also at times termed as post-impressionist and considered one of the first modern painters of sub-continent.

Frida used Aztec mythology and later used Hindu mythology in her work which showed that she was in some way exposed to the subcontinent. Frida’s work is full of symbolism from her roots, her life and travels e.g. to the US. Amrita as she stayed in subcontinent was able to identify with her father’s land. Her work shows melancholic and lonely subcontinental female characters.

Kahlo was termed a surrealist but Kahlo said that she painted her own reality and did not paint dreams. Her work does seem surreal with strange stories of a woman lying in blood, animals hovering around and dream like images. The Two Frida’s and The Wounded Table were displayed at an early exhibition in Mexico on surrealism. Frida was a life-long communist and a revolutionary but led a life of privilege with Diego Garcia. Amrita’s artistic concerns or empathy for natives can also be seen from her lens of privileged life she spent. Amrita was an elitist prodigy but did struggle towards the end of her life having married her Hungarian cousin Dr. Victor Egan who could not run a successful medical practice and ended up in a small town of Suraya where Amrita’s family owned a sugar mill. That time was a period of creative dryness and marital troubles for Amrita. Both decided to move to Lahore in September 1941.

Amrita held her first single-person exhibition in Lahore in November 1937. The exhibition showed 33 works by Amrita and was organized by Dr. Charles Fabri an Hungarian Indologist and leading art-critic of the time working for the famous paper Lahore Civil and Military Gazette. It was also during this visit Amrita saw Lahore Museum and its miniature collection, and visited Harappa. Lahore was the cultural hub of sub-continent and this exposure to the life in Lahore probably led to the decision by Dr and Mrs. Egan (Amrita) to move there in September 1941 thinking that it would result in a better career move for both.

Frida held her first major show in 1938 in Julien Levy Gallery New York. Frida desperately wanted to be a mother but could not carry a child because of her medical problems. She had had miscarriages and abortions – the unfulfilled desire to be a mother is seen across Frida Kahlo’s different works like the Henry Ford Hospital (1932). Kahlo died of pulmonary embolism though some suspected of suicide. Shergil, on the other side, seemed to avoid motherhood and an abortion might have caused her early death only after two months of arriving in Lahore and looking for a breakthrough.

Frida became known to the world in early 1980’s with increased interest in feminism and decolonization and more so in this century. Amrita remained known to the subcontinent art circles but got much more attention towards the end of last century and in this century. With their mixed heritage and international exposure of the time both Amrita Shergil and Frida Kahlo invoked their “otherness” through their work and persona and “brand their otherness….in universally  recognizable terms.”[2] Kahlo wore the Mexican Tehuana and Shergil adopted the Sari as the South Asian dress. Tehuana’s colorfulness is part of Kahlo’s paintings and global image. Shergil can be seen wearing Sari in her photos and her paintings show Sari clad voiceless women. Most of all after their death Frida and Amrita have been re-explored and reinterpreted by the art world.

About the author:

H.E. Mr. Suljuk Mustansar Tarar, Ambassador of Pakistan.

Suljuk Mustansar Tarar is Pakistan’s Ambassador to the Netherlands. He also writes about contemporary art and culture. He is author of All That Art – a book on Pakistani contemporary art & architecture published by Sangemeel Publications, Pakistan. He can be followed on Twitter @suljuk & Instagram @suljuktarar

[1] TILLOTSON, G. H. R. (1997). A Painter of Concern: Critical Writings on Amrita Sher-Gil. India International Centre Quarterly, 24(4), 57–72. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23002294

[2] Winther-Tamaki, B. (2014). Six Episodes of Convergence Between Indian, Japanese, and Mexican Art from the Late Nineteenth Century to the Present. Review of Japanese Culture and Society, 26, 13–32. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43945789

United Arab Emirates Continues its Policy of Modernizing Intelligence Services

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United Arab Emirates Continues its Policy of Modernizing Intelligence Services

By Corneliu Pivariu

The geopolitical evolutions in the Middle East marked by the so-called “Arab Spring”, the conflict in Yemen, the threat represented by the Iranian nuclear program and other global geopolitical developments determined United Arab Emirates (UAE) to take some important steps for modernizing and improving its intelligence services starting with the middle of the last decade[1].

As demonstrated by the evolutions of modern intelligence services, the countries enjoying considerable financial resources as it is the case of UAE are developing predominantlly their technical segments such as Signal Intelligence and more recently Artificial Intelligence (AI). This is due to the fact that getting certain important results by using technical means for acquiring information is relatively faster and safer as compared to using information gathered by human sources (HUMINT), which requires longer time for readying and exploiting such capabilities[2].

Besides enhancing its intelligence technical capabilities, UAE continued as well to encourage the development of the private sector of security especially in the cyber field, under a relatively tight government control of these activities indeed. Nevertheless, some slippages occured such as the Raven Project[3] (the Emirati company Dark Matter was embroiled among others), which triggered a FBI investigation for the use of certain activities of digital espionage leading to arresting foreign dissidents, besides a certain degree of involvement in Jamal Khashoggi’s assassination, gathering information about Gulf monarchies and other Middle Eastern countries.

UAE further enhanced the capabilities of the National College of Defence, headed presently by Maj. Gen. Aqab Shahin Al Ali, and having Thomas Drohan as Dean (he was preceded by John R. Ballard, the College’s first Dean). Joel Hayword’s name, considered an important international specialist in the field of military strategy and history of war, a New Zealander, is mentioned at one of the College’s faculties.

National Electronic Security Authority (established in 2012 with the US assistance) headquartered in Abu Dhabi was renamed Signal Intelligence Agency (SIA). The Authority is the counterpart of NSA in the US and penetrating ISIS in UAE was one of its achievements. At the same time, there were suspicions that the Authority or other Emirati intelligence services were involved in using ToTok App for recording certain conversations, relations, meetings and pictures of the general public in the Emirate.

For the 2022-2026 Five Year Plan, the UAE’s approved cyber budget amounts to 79 billion dollar, the biggest in the country’s history. According to Global Security Index 2020, UAE ranks 5th in the world.

Financial Intelligence Unit (UAEFIU) is another important institution headed presently by Ali Faisal Ba’Alawi. The name dates back to 2019 and it is in fact the continuation of an organization established in 1998 by the UAE Central Bank  as a special investigation unit of fraud and suspicious transactions, renamed Anti-Money Laundering and Suspicious Cases Unit in 2002.

Although it is not part of the established field of the intelligence services, it is worth mentioning that UAE created a ministry of Artificial Intelligence, more precisely the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications, headed by Omar Sultan al Olama.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of UAE declared that “we want UAE to become the best prepared country in the world in the field of Artificial Intelligence”, and an ambitious program for 2031 was launched to this purpose.

The program will have an important impact on the evolution of the Emirati intelligence services as well.

Last but not least, we notice a strengthening of the relations with intelligence services of other states, notably Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Israel, USA and maintaining good relations with correspondent services of countries such as Egypt, Russia, China and other.

In the development of the intelligence services activities, UAE hire experts among the specialists in the field from other countries, especially retirees in states like USA, Great Britain and other who are enticed with attractive salaries.

[1] See https:// diplomatmagazine.eu/2018/02/03/united-arab-emirates-modernizes-intelligence-services/

[2] It is generally estimated that training a HUMINT intelligece officer lasts 10 to 15 years.

[3] See https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-spying-raven/

Robert Melwitz – The Godfather of the Swedish language

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<strong>Robert Melwitz – The Godfather of the Swedish language</strong>

It all started in March 2020 when COVID-19 reached Europe. Practically the whole world was kept in quarantine, whereas Sweden, as generally known, chose another path, neither quarantine nor mandatory face masks in public places, only recommendations for both of the latter measures.

Life was more or less the same in Sweden in the midst of the corona pandemic while the rest of the world was kept in lockdown. During that lockdown period, people came up with different ways to interact and entertain each other virtually. Back then, the train operator and Swedish language teacher Robert Melwitz came up with the idea to teach people living both, in and especially outside of Sweden, the Swedish language while sitting at home in quarantine. The implementation was simple: create a Facebook group, announce it in other Facebook groups, and conduct the lessons using TEAMS software.

To his amazement, there was a much larger demand for the Swedish language than he could ever imagine. Hundreds and thousands of people from Germany, Eastern Europe, India, and North America joined his group. The Swedish language appears to be much more popular than people in Sweden might think. There is even a trend in the USA and Canada that as a result of genetic tests, many people who discover their Swedish heritage, decide to learn Swedish.

The online Swedish lessons were conducted twice a week, and there were 40 to 70 participants in each online lesson. The lessons were recorded so much more people could learn from them even if they could not partake in real-time sessions. Soon there was an entire community built up.

After a few months, in August 2021, when quarantine requirements ceased in many countries, people started to go to their offices, and return to their daily routines. Those who wished to continue learning Swedish with Robert Melwitz asked him to conduct private, intensive courses for them in order to achieve their objectives. Many medical doctors joined as they need to pass C1 Swedish level in order to work in Sweden as licensed doctors, or as permanent residents of Finland – as there is a language requirement, and Swedish is also an official language in Finland.

Those who could not afford the language course yet were eager to learn were also welcomed to join Swedish courses. At the same time, once a week, Robert organized the online Swedish Conversation Club, a virtual language café, where people from all over the world join to talk and practice Swedish and sometimes have book reading sessions. The online Swedish language café is very popular today, with thousands of members and dozens of active members attending every session. It is also an attractive place for Swedish language researchers with Swedish as second language field.

Due to the Ukrainian crisis in the winter of 2022 many Ukrainians sought refuge in Sweden. Normally refugees in Sweden are eligible for SFI (Swedish for migrants) yet the government decided not to provide them with Swedish language courses as it was thought that the war would end soon. Robert Melwitz was one of the first to take the initiative and gathered nearly 1800 Ukrainians to conduct an online Swedish course free of charge for them. Robert’s “Swedish for Ukrainians” project caught the attention of SVT, Swedish television. Nearly hundreds of people attended to virtual life session classes and recorded lessons were also available for those who could not attend.

Robert is particularly proud of the Ukrainian doctor students who chose to pursue the entire programme and went on to even pass the Swedish TISUS examination.

In 2023 Robert Melwitz initiated a project, “Hela världen pluggar svenska” (The whole world studies Swedish), offering free Swedish classes to all universities in the world by establishing an offshore Swedish language department at universities. All universities that wish to hold Swedish courses are welcome to join the project.

For further information

Learn Swedish Online

About Robert Melwitz

Since 2020 Robert Melwitz has conducted Swedish language courses attended by hundreds of students who subsequently passed the C1 Swedish language proficiency test, TISUS in Sweden, and YKI in Finland.

Robert is so passionate about teaching the Swedish language, and making it available to everyone that one of his students called him “The Godfather of the Swedish language”.

Discover the 13 Overseas Countries and Territories of the European Union

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Discover the 13 Overseas Countries and Territories of the European Union

By Roy Lie Atjam

The Overseas Countries and Territories Association, OCTA; French: Association des pays et territoires d’outre-mer de l’Union européenne,  is an international organisation founded on 17 November 2000 during the conference of Prime Ministers of Overseas Countries and Territories in Brussels, Belgium.

The Overseas Countries and Territories Association (OCTA) is an organisation which serves as a platform, helping the OCTA members to realise their common goals by working collectively, policy dialogue, promotion of common positions and partnerships for the sustainable development of OCTA. It currently has 13 members.

The OCTA members: Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, French Polynesia, French Southern and Artic Lands, Greenland, New Caledonia, Saba, St Barthelemy, St Pierre and Miquelon, St Eustatius, St Maarten, Wallis and Futuna.

The 19th annual EU-OCTA Forum  Ministerial Conference took place on  21 November 2022, hosted by the President of New Caledonia, Mr Louis Mapou, Chair of OCTA since December 2020. Representatives of the Overseas Countries and Territories met in Nouméa, New Caledonia.

The OCTA  representatives met to set the political orientations and priorities for the future of the Association. The results of the discussions are in a Political Declaration and were presented to the European Commission.

The Ministerial Conference is the highest governing body and establishes the mandate to the executive committee for the next 12 months. The exchanges between the 13 European -OCTA members mainly focused on the evolution of governance, the results and the prospects of the partnership with the European Union post-2021.

The Executive Committee members for the coming year were elected, with the EU representative for Curaçao elected President and Sint Maarten’s EU representative elected to the position of Vice-President.

The remaining members of the executive committee are Aruba, Greenland and Wallis et Futuna. The Treasurer and Secretary will be chosen at the first meeting held by the Executive Committee in December.

The conference was updated on the status of various EU-funded programmes such as Archipel, EU, the GO programme and the Caribbean, Pacific and Indian Ocean Regional programmes under the 11th EDF.

The Minister Plenipotentiary of Sint Maarten in the Netherlands,  H.E. Minister Rene Violenus, attended the 19th annual EU-OCTA Forum and Ministerial conference in Nouméa, New Caledonia. 

The Minister also headed the delegation consisting of Ms Carol Voges, the EU representative for Sint Maarten and Director at the Cabinet of the Minister Plenipotentiary and Ms Nikima Hickinson, Senior Policy Advisor at the department of BAK.

During the EU-OCTA Forum, Minister Violenus signed the Multi-annual Indicative Programme (MIP) 2021-2027 on behalf of the Government of Sint Maarten. The focus of the MIP will be on sustainable and resilient energy, to the amount of € 7.7 million.

The 19th Overseas Countries and Territories – European Union Forum Nouméa, 22 November 2022 concluded with a 19 points joint Forum presentation.

The next OCT-EU Forum is scheduled to take place in Brussels in the second half of 2023.

New Caledonia: Terre de Parole, Terre de Partage-“Land of speech, land of sharing”(motto)

Photo New Caledonia Government

The Diplomatic Grower

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The Diplomatic Grower

By Alexandra Paucescu

Over the last three years, as I did my monthly interviews with so many diplomatic spouses from all over the world, I discovered great stories of life, interesting and accomplished people, who not only proved my theory that a brilliant career can nicely go hand in hand with the ‘diplomatic spouse’ job, but, most of the time, they even exceeded my expectations.

Dr. Yazid Manap is the perfect example of that.

He is a Mechanical Engineer and a Food Technologist by qualification and a Researcher/Academician by profession. He graduated from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA and the University of Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was for many years a professor at the University Putra Malaysia (UPM), the Dean of the Faculty of Food Science and Biotechnology (UPM) and Director of the Halal Research Institute. He recently retired (in 2021) but he is still very active and involved. ‘I am in the process of completing an academic book in my field’, he says. 

Life took him to different corners of the earth, from Malaysia to the USA, UK, Switzerland and now the Netherlands, where he is currently residing since August 2021 with his wife, the Malaysian ambassador to the Dutch kingdom.

He tells me: ‘I enjoyed life in all the places where we lived. Being in the diplomatic world is an enjoyable and fruitful experience. Plus that I now have plenty of time to read and write’.

Dr. Yazid Manap with his wife, H.E. Mrs. Nadzirah Binti Osman, Ambassador of Malaysia.

He also speaks about his other passion ‘… I love gardening. Sometime in the future, I’d love to be a farmer, being closer to the land, closer to the environment, specifically. I’d like to be ‘a grower’, as they call it here, in the Netherlands’.

But the way that I see it, he is already a ‘grower’… he grew a beautiful family with 6 children and 3 grandchildren, a family that he is most proud of.

He fully appreciates the life he is living, takes his time to discover the new country of residence, the Netherlands. He likes to meet new people and to make new friends. ‘I love being in different places and cultures’, he says. ‘We have a great opportunity to be very close to the culture and people of the country where we are posted’. He likes to try new foods and to play golf, whenever he has the time.

He admits that diplomatic life can sometimes be lonely and he also confesses that ‘the most difficult part is at the beginning of each diplomatic posting’. I totally agree, I am now at the beginning of our diplomatic mission in Belgium and, as much I love to discover Brussels, I still miss the familiarity of my previous residence. It always takes time, patience and perseverance and, as Dr Manap says, ‘it doesn’t help being on introvert’. You have to learn to reach out to people, to be open and friendly.

He also adds that ‘people sometimes have misconceptions about our proper role or function within the diplomatic world’. True!

He would advise younger spouses, at the beginning of this ‘diplomatic road’ to be supportive, to take care and pursue their own professional life and career, but ‘always make the time to be with the spouse’. I have often said that the full and constant family support is critical to any successful diplomatic career. At the end of the day, family is the most important. And what makes the difference in life is also a great attitude towards it…

As his life motto says, ‘always be happy and thankful!’

About the author:

Alexandra Paucescu


Alexandra Paucescu- Author of “Just a Diplomatic Spouse” Romanian, management graduate with a Master in business, cultural diplomacy and international relations studies.

She speaks Romanian, English, French, German and Italian,  gives lectures on intercultural communication and is an active NGO volunteer.

A dual identity – A Personification of a logo

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A dual identity – A Personification of a logo

By Arjen IJff

Last September, I participated in a logo design contest organised by the Embassy of the Netherlands in Hanoi and the Consulate-General in Ho Chi Minh City, on the occasion of 50 years of diplomatic relations between the Netherlands and Vietnam 1973–2023. At the beginning of October I received the news that I was selected as the winner. I was completely overwhelmed, because for me this is not merely a logo – it reflects my dual identity.

In January 1975, 48 years ago, I was born in the Mekong Delta, in the Vĩnh Long province. As a new born baby, only a few days old, I have been abandoned without any note at the Good Shephed Convent & Orphanage at the To Thi Huynh Street in the city of Vĩnh Long. This orphanage was run by Roman Catholic nuns.

After a few days, I was brought to the residence of the Dutch Embassy in Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, through Father Aarts, a Dutch priest and missionary of the Roman Catholic organization of Don Bosco, who worked in Vietnam and was a friend of the Dutch Embassy. He drove a van and brought some children to the Friends of the Children of Vietnam. This was a large orphanage in Go Vap District, also run by nuns. From there, the orphans were distributed to several adoption agencies and embassies. Father Aarts had good contacts with orphanages, especially the Sisters of the Good Shephard in Vĩnh Long.

Arjen IJff in front of the old residence of the Dutch Embassy where he has been cared the first three months of his life by Mr. and Mrs. Van Roijen.

Orphans with mixed background were ‘in demand’ at the time, partly because babies with lighter skin were favored, but partly also because these children would have a hard time growing up in Vietnam. You could be discriminated or banned from your family because of the tight and hierarchic family culture. My skin was lighter and the blue ‘birth mark’ above my buttocks – the so-called Mongolian spot that is visible in almost all Asian babies at birth – was absent.

For the first months of my life, therefore, I was taken care of in the residence of the Dutch Embassy in Saigon by Mrs. Carolina van Roijen, wife of the Dutch Chargé d’Affaires Jan Herman van Roijen.

In April 1975, just two weeks before the end of the war, Mrs Van Roijen transferred me – together with 26 other orphans – to the Netherlands. We were adopted by lovely parents and built up a good life.

Official launch identity ‘NLVN50, 50 years of diplomatic relations between the Netherlands and Vietnam 1973 – 2023’ with Kees van Baar, Ambassador, Liesje Schreinemacher, Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade & Development Cooperation, Arjen IJff, winner design contest and Daniël Stork, Consul-General.

I grew up on the countryside of Beemster Polder, a green and low lying land area below sea level, which has similarities with the Mekong Delta. That’s why the tulip and Lotus flower, which I used in the logo, not only connects both countries, but also my both backgrounds – respectively Beemster and the Mekong Delta. I always feel like a child of both countries.

Now, after almost 50 years, I have created a visual identity for the Netherlands Embassy in Vietnam. It was meant to be, the circle is almost complete. In this 50 years of ties between the Netherlands and Vietnam – and in the Year of the Cat, my Vietnamese zodiac sign – it feels like this is the ultimate chance to find my biological relatives.

Arjen IJff in front of the tamarind tree — the only witness left, along the Mekong River in the city of Vĩnh Long.

Unfortunately the orphanage in Vĩnh Long was demolished after the war. A large square has replaced it. Only a tamarind tree, between the square and the Mekong River, reminds me of the orphanage, my ‘place of birth’. This tamarind tree has now a symbolic meaning for me: it is – so far – the only witness left of my early existence.

To be continued. Chúc mừng năm mới!

www.arjenijff.nl

instagram.com/ijffoto

www.arjenijff.nl

instagram.com/ijffoto

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