China reportedly suspended orders for Airbus aircraft this month in protest of the European Union’s emissions trading system. In an email interview, Miriam Schröder, managing director of the climate consulting firm Sinergi, discussed the European Union-China emissions dispute. WPR: What is the background of the dispute between the European Union and China over the EU’s emissions trading scheme (ETS), and how has it developed? Miriam Schröder: Since January 2012, aviation has been included in the EU ETS. Not only flights within Europe, but also non-European aircraft operators that fly to or from Europe have to comply with the EU ETS. [...]
Editor’s note: This is the first of a two-part series on China’s geopolitical interests in the Mekong River Basin. Part I examines the politics and impact of hydroelectric projects on the Mekong River Basin. Part II will examine the security challenges to China’s efforts toward economic integration of the Mekong River Basin. Two decades after the Paris Peace Accord that ended the proxy war in Cambodia, the Mekong Basin has re-emerged as a region of global significance. The rapid infrastructure-led integration of a region some call “Asia’s last frontier” has created tensions between and among China and its five southern [...]
Reacting to violent protests opposing the $4.8 billion Conga mining project in the state of Cajamarca, Peruvian President Ollanta Humala declared a state of emergency last week before replacing more than half of his cabinet and swearing in a new prime minister over the weekend. Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue, told Trend Lines that these developments reflect a shift in Humala’s sympathies and strategies. The president is looking to reassure foreign investors, Shifter said, even if that means isolating leftist supporters. “It is hard to interpret this any way other than as a break from the left,” he [...]
