Munich security talks highlight global “lose-lose” concerns

It’s called the “Munich Rule.” Don’t lecture or ignore each other.

But at this year’s 60th Munich Security Conference (MSC), two of the most talked about people weren’t even here.

That includes former US President Donald Trump, whose possible return to the White House could undermine the transatlantic efforts at the heart of this premier international forum. There is sex.

And Russian President Vladimir Putin has been slammed by one world leader after another over the death of his most prominent critic, Alexei Navalny, not to mention that his full-scale invasion of Ukraine has cast a long, dark shadow across Europe. continues to drop. Beyond.

The startling news of Navalny’s death, which broke just hours before the conference began on Friday, once again underlined the dangerous unpredictability of a world divided by multiple fault lines and deep-seated interests.

Josep Borrell, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, regretted that “we live in a world of increasing conflict and decreasing cooperation.” “The world has become a more dangerous place,” he told me as the conference drew to a close on Sunday.

“Loss or lose?” That was the mantra at this year’s rally, at a time of deepening geopolitical tensions and heightened economic uncertainty.

The MSC’s annual report warned that it could lead to a “lose-lose” power relationship between governments, a “downward spiral that jeopardizes cooperation and undermines the existing international order.”

“I think this was a conference of a disorderly world,” said David Miliband, CEO and chairman of the International Rescue Committee (IRC).

“Impunity reigns in this world, the guardrail stabilizers are failing, and this is why it is so prevalent in Ukraine, Gaza, Israel, and wider places such as Sudan, where humanitarian crises remain unabated. “That’s why there’s a lot of confusion. The agenda,” he said.

The issue of impunity, one of the toughest on the political agenda, was brought to light when Mr Navalny’s wife, Yulia Navalnaya, suddenly appeared on the main stage of the conference at the luxury Bayerischer Hof hotel to criticize the Russian president. But when he addressed the assembled presidents, it suddenly turned into a painfully personal story. , I want the Prime Minister, the Defense Secretary and top diplomats to judge him.

Her remarkable calm and clarity astounded the packed room, with standing ovations that followed before and after each of her clearly pained statements.

Russia and Iran were not invited to Munich this year because organizers decided Russia was not “interested in meaningful dialogue.”

At past MSC forums, a vitriolic speech by veteran Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov enraged and agitated the audience, and Iran’s visible presence highlighted conflicts and risks that needed urgent resolution.

The imperative to continue significant Western military and financial aid to Ukraine has been repeatedly emphasized by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who hastened to address participants from one high-level meeting to the next. I strongly recommended that you do so.

“2024 demands a response from everyone in the world,” he implored delegates, speaking from the top podium.

His thoughts come as a major $60bn (£48bn) security package is pending in the US Congress and Republicans are divided over whether to continue to support the fight for Kiev. had vital support from the United States in mind.

In his homeland of Ukraine, soldiers on the front lines are running out of bullets.

The U.S. delegation in Munich, which included Vice President Kamala Harris, was at pains to insist that Harris and President Joe Biden would not abandon Ukraine or America’s leadership in world affairs.

But with the U.S. presidential election just nine months away, Trump has already created a polarizing political debate in Washington and raised fears that he could pull the U.S. out of the NATO military alliance and other international commitments. It’s being reignited.

“They know what they have to do, but they can’t get it done. That’s the gap that needs to be filled,” Mr Miliband said, adding to the commitment made by the US and its European allies in Munich. Was it evaluated?

Others offered more harsh criticism.

“Lots of words. No concrete promises,” Natalie Tocci, director of the Institute of International Studies, posted on X (formerly Twitter). “It’s a sad MSC2024.”

The divide has become even more pronounced over the devastating Israel-Gaza war that broke out after Hamas carried out a brutal attack on southern Israel on October 7.

Israeli military operations have caused alarming numbers of civilian casualties and destroyed much of this coastal area.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Shtayyeh said: “The international community and world leaders gathered here in Munich want a serious cease-fire and significant international aid for Gaza and have a very strong interest in it.” The Palestinian Prime Minister said in a statement. interview.

But Israeli representatives, including former peace negotiator Tzipi Livni, stressed the need to continue moving forward.

“I am a political enemy. [Prime Minister Benjamin] “Prime Minister Netanyahu, I support the war in Gaza,” he said in a session that also included Shtayyeh and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi.

“We support the strategic need to eliminate Hamas as a terrorist organization and as a regime,” Livni said.

This year’s MSC had record attendance, with 900 people including around 50 heads of state and government, over 100 ministers from around the world, as well as representatives from think tanks, non-governmental organizations and major corporations. More than one participated.

A top spy, a feminist foreign minister, a climate change warrior, an Iranian activist, a weapons expert, a technology wizard – everyone has their own gathering on the public stage, in private meetings and quiet gatherings. We gathered at

All of this has highlighted how the world’s understanding of ‘global security’ continues to reshape itself.

Born in 1963 during the Cold War for peace and prosperity, the forum has also been used as a forum for real-time diplomacy for decades.

But in a year marked by concerns over the “lose-lose relationship,” as the world wondered where the next blow would come from, Munich became a venue for much discussion and consideration.