eq3 Flashcards
What are the 4 types of geopolitical interventions?
- development aid
- trade embargoes
- military aid
- military action
What is development aid?
money given to other countries to help them.
EXAMPLE- The UK department for international development gave over 350 million pounds to Pakistan in 2018/2019 for 51 projects. - on education programmes, transport infrastructure.
Bilateral aid- delivered one to one basis from doner to recipient country.
mulilateral aid- given to an international organisation such as world bank and then they choose how to distribute the money.
What are trade embargoes?
These are a type of sanction imposed on a country as “punishment” or to try influence change.
EXAMPLE- the EU has used embargoes against Russia, which invaded Ukraine and restricted their natural gas supplies, thereby restricting the Ukrainian’s people freedom.
The EU used embargoes against Venezuela, due to the loss of democracy and poor human rights there
They can be put in place by international gov organisations.
What is military aid?
It may be technology and equipment but it sometimes is peacekeeping forces. It is given to a developing country to help them protect their borders.
EXAMPLE-USA is an active donor and has a military funding programme for “security assistance” and “training” with israel and egypt
What is miliary action?
- most governments consider this as a last resort.
-Indirect action- providing military and political assistance- EXAMPLE- 2017, British army where training Nigerian forces, to help improve countries security.
-Direct action- air strikes or troops on ground.
-This intervention is usually backed by the UN, which authorises countries such as the UK and the USA to get involved.
How do IGOS promote interventions?
-The UN set a target of 0.7% of GNI to be given as aid by developed countries (UK being one)
- The United Nations environment programme has promoted the need to consider protection of ecosystem services within aid projects.
-In 2014, the EU decided that aid would mostly be given to poor places.
-The IMF attaches conditions to its loans, such as deregulation and privatisation, in the belief that these are best for boosting economies.
How do national gov promote interventions, examples?
Russia and China use their UN security council to block interventions against their allies.
USA promoted UN and NATO intervention in Libya
How do NGOS promotes interventions?
Amnesty international- campaigns to highlight where it believes action is needed e.g- Iran for imprisonment of human rights campaigners and Germany for victims of racial violence.
Oxfam international-campaigns, researches and operates development projects related to poverty and injustices in 90 countries.
What is sovreignty?
The idea that each nation has a right to govern itself without interference from other nations.
What did the UN say in 2009 about countries suffering with human rights and accepting help from other countries?
There may be times when countries should respond collectively when a country has failed to protect the welfare or allow human suffering of its citizens. In these situations, some argue that a country sacrifices its sovereignty.
why is humanitarian aid justified?
Direct intervention is necessary in order to keep citizens alive and healthy after a natural disaster.
EXAMPLE- Haiti
Why are sanctions/ embargoes justified?
Banning exports and imports from a country puts pressure on the government to change actions.
EXAMPLE-Venezuela
Why is military action justified?
in order to prevent genocide or ethnic cleansing or to prevent an authoritarian state from abusing rights of its citizens
EXAMPLE-Libya
Why is military aid justified?
International peacekeeping and monitoring forces can be sent in order to try prevent innocent people from killed.
National sovereignty LIBYA:
- Libya has the world’s tenth largest oil reserves and its capital was once one of Africa’s wealthiest cities.
-Colonel Gaddafi seized power in 1969 and ruled unchallenged for 42 years.
-However, in 2011, many Libyans began to protest against his government.
-Hundreds of the protesters were killed and injured the UN urged the Libyan government to “meet its responsibility to protect citizens”.
-When Libya failed to do so, the UN authorised the use of force to protect the civilian population.
-Bombing rains by Britain and France in support of civilans and rebel forces.
-arms embargoes and air strikes supported rebel troops to defeat the government forces. - Despite the threat to human rights in Libya, the international intervention wasn’t widely supported.
-Russia, China, Brazil, India and Germany astained from the vote because:
1) There was insufficient evidence to justify interfering in Libya’s national sovereignty.
2)This intervention action might set an example for the intenational community to have a say how they should treat their own populations.
In the end caused more conflict
What are charitable gifts?
People in developed countries give these freely to NGOS, for example for welfare aid to improve children’s health or provide clean water.
What is emergency help?
Given by NGOS or IGOS in response to a natural disaster, for example help for emergency shelter, food, water
What are loans of money?
Gov or IGOS provide these, but this economic conditions may have conditions attached. They are usually for specific projects that a country can’t afford.
Development aid in Haiti:
Haiti earthquake:
- 13.5 billion donated- 75% from donor countries, 25% from charities.
-US donated 1.3 billion in humanitarian assistance.
-Oxfam funded for reconstruction.
-Christian aid (NGO) - helped at the rural community- provided 237,000 hot meals, 10,000 hygiene kits, 2500 families with emergency shelters, helped construct 550 earthquake- proof homes.
What were the issues with aid in Haiti?
-500,000 still living in temporary shelters.
-In 2015, only half the promised aid has been received.
-aid was unequally distributed
What are the benefits of development aid in terms of diseases?
-Effective response to life threatening situations- eradication of diseases such as malaria
MALARIA-
- tropical disease spread by mosquitos
-Donor nations increased their funding in order to provide:
-free insecticide
-free access to new medicines
6.2 million deaths have been prevented since 2000
EXAMPLE- 2015- 611 million was allocated to Ethiopia for malaria
What are the benefits of development aid in terms of human rights and gender equality?
- much aid is given to improve people’s lives, including basics such as clean water and farming, health and education and gender equality
-In 1975 the UN launched the “UN decade for women” to highlight issue of gender inequality
-By 2014, over $US 30 million of aid money was being targetted specifically at programmes with gender equality.
-There has been noticable success, maternal mortality rates have fallen as a result of the MDGS.
-However gender inequality still occurs, especially in developing countries.
What does aid dependency mean?
A country is considered to be “aid dependent” if it cannot perform many of the basic functions.
Aid dependency can hinder economic and political development.
Government may rely on aid for money rather than helping local industries develop.
Can leave the country at risk if aid suddenly stops.
Donor countries often say how and where the aid money should be used.
How does economic development impact the natural environment?
- Economic development has been encouraged by colonial superpowers and the dominant superpower, the USA. However these economic aims often overlooked the effect of development on the environment.
-Many economic nations, USA, CHINA,EU look to developing countries for supplies of resources, however the extraction of these natural resources has caused damage to the natural environments, and ecosystems due to spills.
