What We Are Reading Today: In Covid's Wake
Authors: Stephen Macedo and Frances Lee
The Covid pandemic quickly led to the greatest mobilization of emergency powers in human history. By early April 2020, half the world's population were living under quarantine.
People were told not to leave their homes; businesses were shuttered, employees laid off, and schools closed.
The most devastating pandemic in a century and the policies adopted in response to it upended life as we knew it.
In this book, Stephen Macedo and Frances Lee examine our pandemic response and pose some provocative questions.
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Saudi Gazette
5 days ago
- Saudi Gazette
Denmark quits the Frugal Four to focus on rearming Europe, says PM Frederiksen
COPENHAGEN — Denmark has quit the so-called Frugal Four to embrace instead a "more flexible" attitude towards the European Union's seven-year budget, the country's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, has said, insisting the imperative goal of rearming the bloc against Russia should take precedence over "all other priorities". "As Danes, we will always be tough in the negotiations on the budget. We don't want money to be spent on (anything) that is not necessary for Europe. So we will be tough, but being a part of the Frugal Four is no longer the right place for us," Frederiksen said on Tuesday, speaking next to Roberta Metsola, the president of the European Parliament. "For me, the most important thing is to rearm Europe. That's my starting point, and that's my conclusion in all discussions. Because if Europe is not able to protect ourselves and to defend ourselves, then it's game over at some point," she went on. "So rearming Europe is for me number one." The Frugal Four was an informal group made up of the Netherlands, Austria, Sweden and Denmark during the bloc's budget talks in 2020. The fiscally conservative coalition, which at times was supported by Finland, pushed hard to keep common spending in check, opposing the expansionary vision espoused by France and the South. The agreement depended on unanimity, meaning one "no" was enough to block from the Frugal Four proved instrumental in reshaping the balance of the €750 billion COVID recovery fund, reducing the share of grants, which were paid collectively, and increasing the share of loans, paid back group's behind-the-scenes maneuvering was closely scrutinized by the media, further consolidating its name. Critics often accused them of being uncompromising and insensitive to the needs of countries worst hit by the years later, Brussels is gearing up for another all-out, protracted battle to approve the next common budget for the 2028-2034 period, with the European Commission expected to present the first proposal before the summer don't count on Denmark to advocate the virtues of frugality, Frederiksen said."Last time, we had a leading role in the Frugal Four. Next time, we'll have a leading role in another group, because things have changed and the world is changing rapidly. And we have to find the right answers to all these challenges in front of us," she premier argued that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine had irreversibly transformed the financial equation and that, as a result, "all other priorities and all other principles" should be decided "after" the bloc settles its rearmament month, member states agreed on a €150-billion program of low-interest loans to drastically boost military spending across the bloc. The plan, named SAFE, is the main element of a broader initiative, "Readiness 2030", to mobilize up to €800 billion."For me, the latest point will be 2030, and we are running out of time because of Russia's behavior," she said, referring to an estimated date by which the Kremlin could have the necessary capabilities to attack a NATO country."Because of Russia's behavior, because of all the threats against Europe and a very uncertain situation for Europe and a very insecure world, then we need a new budget."Denmark is not alone in shifting its and Sweden, which applied to join NATO after Russia launched its unprovoked war, have also softened their position towards the EU budget, urging the bloc to think bigger to boost defense investment and support for Netherlands, by contrast, has stood its ground to shoot down any idea of "Eurobonds" or common borrowing. Germany, which was not officially part of the Frugal Four but had similar views, has also ruled out permanent joint debt at the EU on behalf of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola agreed with Frederiksen on the need to be flexible and agile, but stressed that one political priority must not come at the expense of other crucial financial envelopes."What we would not want is that we put everything in one or two programs and forget everything else," Metsola said. "This is where we will need to come to a compromise."Denmark will take over the six-month presidency of the EU Council on 1 July. — Euronews
Saudi Gazette
10-05-2025
- Saudi Gazette
U.S. and China begin tariff talks in Geneva amid global economic concerns
GENEVA — U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began talks Saturday with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Geneva, in a bid to de-escalate a deepening trade dispute that threatens global markets and bilateral commerce between the world's two largest economies. China's state-run Xinhua News Agency confirmed the start of the talks, while diplomatic sources said the delegations met for about two hours before heading to a private luncheon. The exact location of the meeting was not disclosed, though a motorcade was seen leaving the residence of the Swiss Ambassador to the United Nations. The high-stakes dialogue comes as tariffs between the U.S. and China have climbed to punitive levels, disrupting trade valued at over $660 billion last year. Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump raised tariffs on Chinese goods to as high as 145%, prompting Beijing to retaliate with levies of up to 125% on American imports. Trump has hinted at the possibility of reducing tariffs, writing on Truth Social Friday: '80% Tariff seems right! Up to Scott.'Despite widespread skepticism about a breakthrough, there is cautious optimism that even a limited reduction in tariffs could signal progress.'The best scenario is for the two sides to agree to de-escalate... even a small reduction would send a positive signal,' said Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Stimson Geneva meeting marks the first direct talks between He Lifeng and Bessent since Trump returned to the White House in has used tariffs aggressively as a trade tool, including a 10% duty on imports from nearly all countries and a 20% surcharge on China related to fentanyl trafficking.A broader 125% levy stems from unresolved issues dating back to Trump's first term, including U.S. accusations that China forces foreign firms to share trade secrets, subsidizes domestic tech industries unfairly, and engages in IP January 2020, the two nations signed a Phase One trade agreement, with China pledging to increase purchases of American goods in exchange for suspended tariff the agreement faltered amid the COVID-19 pandemic and mounting tensions over technology and supply talks in Geneva are seen as a potential step toward resuming stalled negotiations on these unresolved issues, including subsidies, forced technology transfers, and market addition to the Chinese delegation, Bessent and Greer are also scheduled to meet Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter. Switzerland, a major trading partner of both the U.S. and China, has called for restraint amid fears of collateral economic last month suspended a planned 31% tariff on Swiss exports, reducing the rate temporarily to 10%. Swiss officials warned of potential impacts on key industries including watches, coffee capsules, cheese, and chocolate.'The government is not planning to impose countermeasures at the present time,' the Swiss government said in a statement last week, while acknowledging that increased tariffs would affect import prices and domestic U.S. is Switzerland's second-largest trading partner after the European Union, with bilateral trade in goods and services quadrupling over the past two decades. Switzerland eliminated all industrial tariffs on Jan. 1, 2024, meaning nearly all U.S. goods can enter the country meetings in Geneva are expected to continue through the weekend, though no joint statement had been issued by late Saturday. — Agencies
Al Arabiya
06-05-2025
- Al Arabiya
UN warns of ‘unsettling' slowdown in development in 2024
Humanity recorded an unexpected and 'unsettling' slowdown in development in 2024 as the global post-pandemic recovery began losing steam, well before President Donald Trump dramatically cut US international aid, the UN warned Tuesday. The world had rebounded from the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic by 2023, as measured by the UN's Human Development Index (HDI), which charts living standards, health and education. But that rebound appears to be losing momentum, according to the United Nations Development Programme's annual report, released Tuesday. If that 'unsettling' slowdown becomes the new normal, achieving levels of human development once hoped for by 2030 'could slip by decades -- making our world less secure, more divided, and more vulnerable to economic and ecological shocks,' warned UNDP head Achim Steiner. Recent drastic cuts to international aid announced by several countries -- most notably the United States, where Trump has slashed programs and dismantled USAID, the country's main foreign development arm -- will exacerbate the issue, Steiner told AFP in an interview. If wealthy countries stop funding development, 'this will ultimately impact economies, societies, and yes, I think it will also register maybe a year or two down the line in the Human Development Index, lower life expectancy, declining incomes, more conflicts,' Steiner said. UNDP experts are not yet certain of the underlying causes of the slowdown observed in 2024. But they have identified one of the driving forces as a slackening of progress in life expectancy, perhaps linked to the side-effects of Covid, or to the wars that are multiplying around the world. There is a potential glimmer of hope: artificial intelligence could create the conditions for kickstarting development, the UNDP suggested. AI 'is perhaps the greatest potential pivot in putting development of individual economies, but also of maybe poor people, wealthy people, on a different trajectory. It will change virtually every aspect of our lives,' Steiner said. The report stressed that it would come down to how people use the technology, however. There are risks. Access to AI in poorer countries is not the same as in wealthier ones, and cultural biases could influence the way the tools are developed, it said. But 'we can design for reducing that risk,' said Steiner, adding that it should not be an impediment to using AI for medical research, for example. 'The future is in our hands,' the UNDP report said. 'Technology is about people, not just things. Beneath the razzle-dazzle of invention lurk important choices, by the few or the many, whose consequences will reverberate across generations.'
