2011. vol. 6. No. 4

The paper presents an analysis of the G20 summit held under the French Presidency in Canneson November 3^rd and 4^th 2011. The author assesses the summit agenda and decisions made by the leaders in the key areas of coordination, including the strategy for growth and jobs, reform of the international monetary system, actions to restore financial stability and strengthen the medium-term foundations for growth, deepening of financial sector reform, fight against corruption, investing for global growth. The paper highlights the challenge of implementing two agendas: the planned and the anti crisis one. The conclusion sums up the strengths and weaknesses of the summit and the G20 summitry, reviews the features of the G20 institutionalization, makes a forecast for the sequence of presidencies after 2015, and puts forward brief recommendations for the Russian G20 presidency in 2013.

The publication is prepared within the framework of a joint project of Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) Project and International Organizations Research Institute of the HSE "Increasing Effectiveness of Russia’s Participation in G8, G20 and BRICS in accordance with Russian Priorities and National Interests".

Writing the paper on the eve of the G20 summit inCannes, the author expressed a view that except for French President Sarkozy, no one should be surprised by a disappointing outcome inCannes. More importantly the author argues that this does not mean that the world economy will not be rebalanced just because the G-20 did not ordain the solution. Unsustainable imbalances will eventually be adjusted by economic forces.  Refraining from meaningful and urgent collective action, the G-20 leaders choose to let the world rebalance itself more chaotically, with the inevitable result of making things harder for each other. This is not a collective leadership but a joint abdication of responsibility. To prove its usefulness, the G-20 must do more than help old and emerging economic powers agree to disagree.  The paper asserts that if the G20 fails the test, it is only a matter oftime when the new creditors will see it as in their individual interests to make common cause either to reform existing institutions or to create new ones free of the dominance of the debtor countries.  The author concludes that we can only hope that a new grouping of major creditors arrives as the successor to the G-20 intime to avert a replay of the 1930s.

The publication is prepared within the framework of a joint project of Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) Project and International Organizations Research Institute of the HSE "Increasing Effectiveness of Russia’s Participation in G8, G20 and BRICS in accordance with Russian Priorities and National Interests".

In this article the author talks about current changes in the international environment, that is of a certain re-balancing of international relations as between traditional actors, states and interstate structures, as well as relatively new, non-traditional participants with the current crisis situation in financial, economic, military and political sphere taken into account, and the ideological vacuum that has emerged. It is an open secret that a group of formerly peripheral countries, currently dynamic emerging systemically important economies, getting significant influence on the international relations, turning into rule-makers of the world politics, which has to be taken into account by the developed countries of the West. Thus it is important today to look again at the existing formal and informal institutions, primarily the G8, created in the middle of 1970s. To see how this mechanism is adequate to new political and economic realities, how it should adapt to changing conditions, and also what can be expected of such institutions from the point of view of international relations reform.

The publication is prepared within the framework of a joint project of Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) Project and International Organizations Research Institute of the HSE "Increasing Effectiveness of Russia’s Participation in G8, G20 and BRICS in accordance with Russian Priorities and National Interests". 

The paper presents the analysis of the G20 contribution towards the international monetary and financial system reform process,  creation of new institutions,  mechanisms and forms of collective governance and improvement of the existing ones. The author examines the dynamics of collective governance mechanisms development from the first G20 summit inWashingtonin 2008 to the G20 Cannes summit in November 2011. The international institutions (first of all, IMF, World Bank, Financial Stability Board and regional development banks) are undergoing changes in four main spheres: strengthening the system of surveillance over the member-states’ financial and economic policy, strengthening of financial instruments to support the member-states economies, provision of resources to fulfill institutions’ mandates, and  governance reform.

The author asserts that the G20 contribution relevance is underpinned by a combination of three factors: first, the G20 brings together the most significant advanced and emerging economies, second, these countries exert much influence on the international institutions, third, an informal nature of the leaders’ forum allows open discussions of the most challenging pressures and concerns. Though the paper lists some achievements in the international financial institutions reform, much remains to be done, including compliance with the commitments already made. The paper concludes that an effective international institutions system which is capable of completing the reform should include the G20.

The paper analyses the development of global governance mechanisms in the non-banking segment of the world economy’s banking sector. Considerable changes have been taking place in this sphere, promoted by the growing activity of the key international institutions after the outbreak of the world financial and economic crisis. The objective of the analysis was to register these changes in order to identify possible ways of the global regulatory system development in the future. Reforms in five areas have been studied: over-the-counter derivatives, hedge-funds, credit-rating agencies, International Financial Reporting Standards, systemically important financial institutions. Results of the analysis suggest that development and implementation of new mechanisms face obstacles. Examination of the problems reveals their causes, which can lie both in late or inadequate actions of international institutions and inadequate compliance with the recommendations fulfillment at national level. The study allows make a forecast concerning the forms and timing of global governance changes in the non-banking segment of the banking sector of the world economy.

In the article, the authors explore the history of establishment, organizational arrangements and investment activities of one of the largest and oldest regional development banks - of the Asian Development Bank. Specific attention was given to measures of countercyclical governance, which were taken by the bank during the global financial and economic crisis of 2008-2009, to roots of capacities for such governance and to prospects on the bank’s further functioning.

The authors explore attempts of the Russian authorities on modernisation in three related areas: technological, economic and political. Mechanisms for technological modernisation and  political system reforms are analyzed. The paper also studies the role of partnerships with international organizations in facilitation of the modernisation processes.

The paper provides an analysis of the EU strategic partnershipson the basis of a review of EU documents, official and informal, as well as a certain amount of interviews with European officials.It demonstrates that strategic partnerships are not so strategic when looked at up-close for a variety of reasons, including that 1) not every partner is equally strategic; 2) the EU is not cooperating with its partners on most truly strategic issues; 3) the strategic partnership has no structural or institutional impact on the relationship; 4) or, finally, the EU itself is simply not considered as a strategic partner in many cases.

The paper concludes that the recent revival of debates on strategic partnerships is a positive step forward and that a strict implementation of the important conclusions of the 2010 September European Council is now awaited. Overall, this paper recommends reflecting on the EU’s global interests and priorities in search of the EU’s grand strategy. True strategic partnerships, as this paper brands them, could then be regarded as (sub-)strategies of the EU vis-à-vis great and emerging powers. In addition to this general recommendation, this paper makes several recommendations for the EU and itsMemberStatesto turn the existing strategic partnerships into true strategic partnerships.

The presented publication is translation of the forth chapter of the CSIS report “Key Players in Global Health: How Brazil,Russia,India,China, and South Africa Are Influencing the Game”.

The article analyses Russian policy on global and national health. The author discusses philosophy of the Russian ODA, its institutional framework and architecture.Russia’s cooperation with international organisations and future development of the Russian ODA in global health sector are also explored.

The chapter focuses on the analysis ofSouth Africachanges in health policies due to its transition from the administration of President Thabo Meki to that of Jacob Zuma. The author demonstrates that the focus of attention has shifted from active foreign policy to solving domestic problems such as fighting HIV and AIDS pandemic. However,South Africais seen as a potential continental leader on resolving global health problems and establishing dialogue with African countries and other developing countries in the framework of international organizations and on par with the world leaders.  The paper also describes current trends in cooperation between donors and recipient countries.South Africais one of the first recipient countries that starts achieving self-sufficiency and mutually beneficial cooperation with international partners.

The presented publication is translation of the sixth chapter of the CSIS report “Key Players in Global Health: HowBrazil,Russia,India,China, andSouth AfricaAre Influencing the Game”.The article discuses theSouth Korea’s role and place in international development assistance. Special attention is paid to global health and food aid.  The author highlights thatSouth Koreais the only country that transited from country-recipient to country-donor.

The presented publication is translation of the seventh chapter of the CSIS report “Key Players in Global Health: How Brazil,Russia,India,China, and South Africa Are Influencing the Game”.The author assessesSouth Korea’s activities in development national and global health in the context of G20 summit hosted bySouth Korea.The paper also analyses the place of global health in the summit agenda, prospects for its further development and theSouth Korea’s role in achieving world’s stable growth.

The presented publication is translation of the eighth chapter of the CSIS report “Key Players in Global Health: How Brazil,Russia,India,China, and South Africa Are Influencing the Game”.The article describes the evolution of G8 countries policies and commitments on global health. The role ofFranceand its priorities in international development assistance in the global health sector are highlighted. The authors also analyze the possibility of global health agenda migrating from the G8 to the G20.