At Davos, war, climate and ‘de-globalisation’ take centre stage
, 2023-01-13 11:34:57
The world’s political and business elites will gather for the annual Davos summit next week to promote “cooperation in a fragmented world”, with war in Ukraine, the climate crisis and global trade tensions high on the agenda.
For half a century, the World Economic Forum in the Swiss Alps has brought together executives and policymakers to sing the praises of globalisation, but that process is seen as unwinding as new fault lines harden around the world.
The Covid-19 pandemic, growing US-China hostility and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have led some politicians and experts to even speculate about “an end to the era of globalisation”, which began in earnest in the decade after the first Davos meeting in 1971.
The agenda for this year’s meeting in the snow-deficient Alps, starting next Monday, reflects this gloomy reality.
“There’s no doubt that our 53rd annual meeting in Davos will happen against the most complex geopolitical and geoeconomic backdrop in decades. So much is at stake,” said Borge Brende, a former Norwegian foreign minister who is now president of the meeting.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and UN chief Antonio Guterres are among the most prominent figures attending the forum, alongside nearly 400 government ministers and policymakers, 600 CEOs and a smattering of celebrities, including actor Idris Elba.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will appear by video link on Wednesday for a live interview.
Other sessions will discuss whether we are living through…
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