Insights, analysis and must reads from CNN's Fareed Zakaria and the Global Public Square team, compiled by Global Briefing editor Chris Good Seeing this newsletter as a forward? Subscribe here. October 3, 2021 On GPS, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET on CNN:
First, Fareed gives his take on America's economic advantages—and its one big weakness.
Almost all major world economies face fundamental challenges, Fareed says. China's export-driven growth has slowed with rising wages, and its working population is aging. Germany has lagged the digital revolution, the UK scored an own-goal with Brexit, and India has yet to meet growth expectations.
Only the US is well positioned on all fronts: Its firms dominate globally, its Covid-19 recovery looks strong, it leads in most advanced technologies, and the US dollar is the world's reserve currency of choice.
America's broken political system, however, is squandering these economic strengths. Congress fails to raise the debt limit and avoid a national credit default without "high drama," Fareed points out; it has not passed a regular budget in 25 years and is struggling to pass a popular infrastructure package. "America has been dealt the world's best hand by far," Fareed says. "But as any poker player knows, if you play badly, you can still lose everything."
After that: Has America finally "pivoted" to Asia, 10 years after the Obama administration announced it would? And what will happen to Europe as the US turns its attention farther east? Fareed talks with Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer, New America CEO Anne-Marie Slaughter, and Council on Foreign Relations President Richard Haass.
Next: Is Africa the next global terrorism hotspot—and why does Russia seem to be getting involved there? Fareed talks with Amy Mackinnon, who covers national security and intelligence at Foreign Policy.
Finally: What has Covid-19 taught us? Fareed asks CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta—author of the new book "World War C: Lessons from the Covid-19 Pandemic and How to Prepare for the Next One"—what we've learned about America's preparedness and China's crisis response. China Wrestles With Capitalism Chinese President Xi Jinping "is waging a campaign to purge China of capitalist excesses," declares a new Economist cover story. Xi "sees surging debt as the poisonous fruit of financial speculation and billionaires as a mockery of Marxism. Businesses must heed state guidance."
Noting Ant Group's blocked IPO and the market-capitalization-shrinking cybersecurity review of rideshare app Didi, the magazine nods to recent regulatory crackdowns. Pointing to the troubles of heavily-indebted real-estate developer Evergrande, it wonders if China's private companies are ready for more of the party-state's heavy hand. China is grappling with the same inequality problem as the West, but The Economist wonders if Xi's ideological response will trip up the country's economy. Germany's Centrism Could Be Europe's, Too After Germany's center-left Social Democrats barely eclipsed the center-right Christian Democratic Union of outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel in last Sunday's vote, Martin Kettle writes for The Guardian that it seems "German voters are searching for better and more progressive centrist solutions," as are other Europeans. Should the Social Democrats' Olaf Scholz become Chancellor, "he will join centre-left heads of governments in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Spain, Portugal, arguably France, and potentially soon Norway."
Noting Germany's importance in steering Europe, Robert Smith and Joel Weickgenant write for Big Think that observers should be relieved that voters tacked to the center and that no boats were rocked. What's next for the Chinese tech giant Huawei, now that it's been cut off from American-developed microchip technology by US restrictions? At the Financial Times, Kathrin Hille, Eleanor Olcott, and James Kynge write that the company is reinventing itself, pivoting to cloud computing, smart cars, microchip development, and basic-science research that may not pay off in the short term but could undergird bigger breakthroughs down the line.
"We allow [Huawei's chip-development unit] to continue to scale the Himalayas," they quote founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei as telling staff in August. "The majority of us others will stay down here to grow potatoes, herd livestock and keep sending provisions to the climbers, because you can't grow rice on Mount Everest." 'The Seductiveness of Net-Zero Pledges' With the COP26 international climate conference scheduled to begin Oct. 31 in Glasgow, Scotland, Kelly Sims Gallagher writes for Foreign Affairs that plenty of countries have pledged to reach net-zero emissions, but few have domestic laws aimed at getting there.
"Of the 132 countries with net-zero targets, only 12 have enshrined them in legislation, and just four others are considering doing so," Gallagher writes. By Gallagher's count, among top emitters China, the US, the EU, India, Russia, Japan, Brazil, Indonesia, Iran, and Canada, "all but India, Russia, and Iran have net-zero targets—but only Japan, Brazil, and Canada have climate legislation. The EU is expected to pass a climate law in the coming months."
Net-zero pledges might feel good, Gallagher writes, but they're "seductive" in that they can distract from real action. They also obscure a more immediate objective, per Gallagher: getting global emissions to peak by 2025, on the way to net-zero at midcentury. |
