Passage au crible
A short Critical Analysis of International Current Affairs
The intention of the critical analysis reports Passage au crible on international current affairs is to encapsulate and clarify the mechanisms of world affairs. Using a transnational approach, the reports are delivered in a concise and educational format each week proposing: 1) A brief and factual reconstruction of a significant event; 2) Historical context; 3) A theoretical framework which gives the non-specialist, with an interest in international relations, access to an approach which goes further than the simple empirical descriptive approach. 4) A specialist’s analysis; 5) A short bibliography providing key references – official documents, books, articles – by recognised specialists on the matter.
PAC 30 – Between Global Solidarity and Strategic Donor Competition The Catastrophe of Torrential Floods in Pakistan, July 2010
By Clément Paule
Translation: Davina Durgana
Passage au crible n°30
On October 29th, 2010, many spokespeople for the humanitarian agencies of the United Nations have reaffirmed their worries regarding the fragile situation of millions of displaced Pakistanis. These alarming statements emphasize…
PAC 29 – The Small Steps of the ICC against Impunity The Arrest in France of a Presumed War Criminal, October 11th, 2010
By Yves Poirmeur
Translation: Davina Durgana
Passage au crible n°29
On October 11th, 2010 French authorities arrested Callixte Mbarushimana, Executive Secretary of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda- Combatant forces Abacunguzi, endorsed by an arrest warrant..
PAC 28 – The Collapse of a Global Reputation BP and its condemned handling of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill
By Clément Paule
Translation: Brad Pizzimenti
Passage au crible n°28
On July 15th 2010, the engineers of the petroleum company BP (formerly British Petroleum) would be able to contain the leak of the Macondo wellhead 1500 meters below the ocean surface. Three months after the explosion…
PAC 27 – The Siege Mentality of North Korea After the Sinking of the South Korean Warship Cheonan on 26 March 2010
By Daniel Bourmaud Translation: Brad Pizzimenti
The tension observed on the Korean peninsula since the beginning of 2010 has seen a brutal resurgence with the sinking of a South Korean warship resulting in 46 deaths on the 26th of March 2010. In this case, Seoul accused…
read morePAC 26 – Globalization of Precautionary Principles vs. National Sovereignty The April 14th, 2010 Volcanic Eruption
By Yves Poirmeur
Translation: Melissa Okabe
Passage au crible n°26
On April 14, 2010, the Eyjafjallajökull Icelandic volcano burst into eruption. A cloud of abrasive ashes posed a threat to the functioning of airline jet engines…
PAC 25 – The Unachieved Integration of the Economic and Monetary Union The Crisis of the Euro Zone
By André Cartapanis
Translation by: Davina Durgana
Passage au crible n°25
Since the onset of the Greek Financial Crisis, controversy has multiplied in Europe. A policy of financial solidarity must be implemented to the benefit…
PAC 24 – The Practitioner’s Treatment of a Global Scourge The Third Malaria Awareness Day, April 25th 2010
By Clément Paule
Translation: Brad Pizzimenti
Passage au crible n°24
Instituted in May 2007 by the World Health Assembly, Malaria Awareness Day was celebrated on the 25th of April, 2010. This event united together the actors involved in the struggle against parasitic…
PAC 23 – The Transnational Future of Nuclear Terrorism Nuclear Security Summit, Washington D.C., April 12-13 2010
By Jean Jacques Roche
Translation: Melissa Okabe
Passage au crible n°23
On April 12-13 2010, United States President Barack Obama welcomed 47 heads of State and government to the Washington Summit on Nuclear Terrorism. This summit took…
PAC 22 – The Global building of Scarcity The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement Project
By Alexandre Bohas
Passage au crible n°22
After secret negotiations, the European Union, the United States and Japan, joined by a dozen of other states elaborated in April 2010 a treaty entitled ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement). The aim was to impose more restrictive norms in the field of intellectual property…
PAC 21 – The Power of China Enthroned The Shanghai World’s fair, 30th April-31 October 2010
By Jenna Rimasson
Passage au crible n°21
On 30th April 2010, the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, inaugurated the Shanghai world’s fair which will remain open until 31st October 2010. After the inauguration of the Olympic Games in August 2008, the eyes of the world are once again directed at the People’s Republic of China. Nearly 72,000…
PAC 20 – The American Influence on Humanitarian Cooperation The Negotiations Concerning the Reconstruction of Haiti
By Clément Paule
Translation: Davina Durgana
Passage au crible n°20
The International Conference of Donors for Haiti has taken place on March 31st, 2010 in New York. 9.9 billion dollars have been promised, mid-term, for the reconstruction of this Caribbean state…
PAC 19 – State control of Humanitarian Action The Calling into Question of NGOs after the earthquake in Haiti
By Philippe Ryfman
Passage au crible n°19
Measuring 7.0 to 7.3, the earthquake that occurred in Haiti on 12th January 2010 already appears to be one of the most severe in the last twenty-five years. The human toll has reached at least 230,000 dead, 300,000 wounded and 1.2 million homeless in the capital and neighbouring towns…
PAC 16 – A Foreign Policy between Innovation and Procrastination The European Union Summit of 11th February 2010
By Elsa Tulmets
Passage au crible n°16
After the failure of the Copenhagen climate conference in December 2009, the new president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, summoned the representatives of the member states of the EU (European Union) to a special summit on 11th February 2010, a summit devoted to boosting the economy. This was the first publicized event…
PAC 15 – A Multilateralism without Constraints The Commitments of the States within the Copenhagen Framework
By Simon Uzenat
Passage au crible n°15
Organised under the aegis of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), the aim of the negotiations was to reach a legally binding agreement at the 15th CP (Conference of the Parties), held at Copenhagen from 7th to 19th December 2009. The objective was to prolong and intensify the efforts programmed at Kyoto, which reach their term…
PAC 14 – Public Health at the Hour of Philanthropic Capitalism Financing of Developing Countries by the Gates Foundation
By Clement Paule
Translation: Melissa Okabe
Passage au crible n°14
On January 29, 2010, during the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Bill and Melinda Gates announced that their foundation would finance the research, development and distribution of new vaccines in developing countries…
