Democratic backsliding, illiberal regimes and international cooperation under pressure

Описание: In September, images of Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong-un standing side by side during a military parade in Beijing circulated all major news outlets. At the same time, the UN is experiencing its most severe crisis in decades, unable to assert itself in conflicts in Sudan, the Middle East, and Ukraine.

In this episode of the podcast The World Stage, experts Roland Paris and Alexandra Gheciu (both University of Ottawa), along with NUPI’s Ole Jacob Sending, address the question: When familiar arenas for cooperation are under pressure, which ones should we work to uphold? And what does it mean that illiberal regimes are joining forces and challenging today’s global balance of power?

The episode explores how the UN, despite a paralyzed Security Council, still carries out important work in other areas, such as through the World Bank or smaller bodies. And could the United States’ withdrawal of funding from the UN paradoxically create an opening for necessary reform?

We also take a closer look at the state of NATO. What are the biggest challenges the alliance is currently facing? And what happens to NATO when member states such as Turkey, Hungary, and to some extent the United States, move in a more illiberal direction?

Towards the end of the episode, you’ll hear about how countries like China and Russia are joining forces as a counterweight to Western cooperation. BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation are examples of this. Are Western countries prepared for a potential shift in global power? And where will key states such as India and Brazil ultimately position themselves?

This episode is part of the NUPI led Horizon Europe project NAVIGATOR, and it provides an outlook on the world from a Canadian and Norwegian perspective. Read more about the project and its research here: https://eunav.eu/