Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), WHO
Mains level: Not Much
The World Health Assembly (WHA) took the historic decision to form a global treaty to “strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response”.
Significance of the launch
- The launch of putting together this accord is the second such initiative taken under Article 19.
- The first initiative was the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which came into effect in 2005.
About FCTC
- The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) is the world’s first modern-day global public health treaty.
- It is also the first treaty negotiated under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO).
- The treaty entered into force in February 2005.
- It was signed by 168 of the 192 WHO member states and more than 180 WHO member states have become parties to the convention.
Highlights of the FCTC
The FCTC provides an internationally coordinated response to combating the tobacco epidemic and sets out specific steps for governments addressing tobacco use, including:
- Adopting tax and price measures to reduce tobacco consumption
- Banning tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship
- Creating smoke-free work and public spaces
- Putting prominent health warnings on tobacco packages
- Combating illicit trade in tobacco products
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: JCPOA
Mains level: US sanctions on Iran
As Iran has refused to hold direct talks with the U.S., European officials will shuttle between the Iranian and American delegations, exchanging talking points and seeking common ground over the nuclear deal.
Do you know how the enmity between Iran and the US came into reality? We hope you have watched the Argo (2012) movie for sure!
Context
- After a gap of five months, Iran, Russia, China and the European countries resumed negotiations in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
- The 2015 JCPOA agreement sought to cut Iran off a possible path to a nuclear bomb in return for lifting of economic sanctions.
What is JCPOA?
- The Iran nuclear agreement, formally known as the JCPOA is a landmark accord reached between Iran and several world powers, including the United States, in July 2015.
- Under its terms, Iran agreed to dismantle much of its nuclear program and open its facilities to more extensive international inspections in exchange for billions of dollars’ worth of sanctions relief.
Expected outcomes of the deal
- Curb on nuclear program: Proponents of the deal said that it would help prevent a revival of Iran’s nuclear weapons program.
- Increasing regional engagement: It would thereby reduce the prospects for conflict between Iran and its regional rivals, including Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Background of the JCPOA
- Iran had previously agreed to forgo the development of nuclear weapons as a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which has been in force since 1970.
- However, after the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979, Iranian leaders secretly pursued this technology.
- In 2007, U.S. intelligence analysts concluded that Iran halted its work on nuclear weapons in 2003 but continued to acquire nuclear technology and expertise.
- Prior to the JCPOA, the P5+1 had been negotiating with Iran for years, offering its government various incentives to halt uranium enrichment.
Issues with the deal
(1) US withdrawal
- The deal has been in jeopardy since President Donald Trump withdrew the US from it in 2018.
- In retaliation for the US, Iran resumed some of its nuclear activities.
(2) Iran’s insistence over sanctions removal
- In 2021, President Joe Biden said the US will return to the deal if Iran comes back into compliance, though Iran’s leaders have insisted that Washington lift sanctions first.
- Iran now has indicated that he will take a harder line than his predecessor in nuclear negotiations.
Who are the participants?
- The JCPOA, which went into effect in January 2016, imposes restrictions on Iran’s civilian nuclear enrichment program.
- At the heart of negotiations with Iran were the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) and Germany—collectively known as the P5+1.
- The European Union also took part. Israel explicitly opposed the agreement, calling it too lenient.
- Some Middle Eastern powers, such as Saudi Arabia, said they should have been consulted or included in the talks because they would be most affected by a nuclear-armed Iran.
What did Iran agree to?
- Nuclear restrictions: Iran agreed not to produce either the highly enriched uranium or the plutonium that could be used in a nuclear weapon.
- Monitoring and verification: Iran agreed to eventually implement a protocol that would allow inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog.
What did the other signatories agree to?
- Sanctions relief: The EU, United Nations, and United States all committed to lifting their nuclear-related sanctions on Iran. However, many other U.S. sanctions on Iran, some dating back to the 1979 hostage crisis, remained in effect.
- Weapons embargo: The parties agreed to lift an existing UN ban on Iran’s transfer of conventional weapons and ballistic missiles after five years if the IAEA certifies that Iran is only engaged in civilian nuclear activity.
How has the deal affected Iran’s economy?
- Prior to the JCPOA, Iran’s economy suffered years of recession, currency depreciation, and inflation, largely because of sanctions on its energy sector.
- With the sanctions lifted, inflation slowed, exchange rates stabilized, and exports—especially of oil, agricultural goods, and luxury items—skyrocketed as Iran regained trading partners, particularly in the EU.
- After the JCPOA took effect, Iran began exporting more than 2.1 million barrels per day (approaching pre-2012 levels, when the oil sanctions were originally put in place).
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Matosinhos Manifesto
Mains level: Not Much
The European Space Agency (ESA) has approved a Matosinhos Manifesto to accelerate the use of space in Europe.
Matosinhos Manifesto
- At the Intermediate Ministerial Meeting that was held in Matosinhos, Portugal.
- The Council of Ministers unanimously adopted this resolution that lays down a vision for the continent in terms of maintaining and expanding its activities in space.
- The large-scale nature and fast pace of the climate crisis and other challenges means that no European nation will be able to effectively address them alone.
The manifesto defines three “accelerators” to further advance Europe’s space ambitions:
- The first of these accelerators is for the ESA to start working towards the “Space for a Green Future”
- The second accelerator is called “Rapid and Resilient Crisis Response” to support governments to act decisively on crises facing Europe, from flooding and storms to wildfires
- The third accelerator mentioned in the resolution is “Protection of Space Assets”, whose objective is to safeguard ESA astronauts and assets from interference by space debris and space weather
A brief history of the ESA
- The ESA is an intergovernmental organization that was formed in 1975 with the aim of developing Europe’s space capabilities.
- The organization has 22 member states — Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.
- Slovenia, Latvia and Lithuania are Associate Members.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Global State of Democracy Report, 2021
Mains level: Decline of Democracy
The number of countries moving towards authoritarianism in 2020 was higher than that of countries going in the other direction, towards democracy, a/c to the Global State of Democracy (GSD) Report, 2021.
Note: The Global Democracy Index is released by the Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU). One may get confused over this two.
About GSD Report
- The GSD report is released by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International-IDEA).
- The International-IDEA, is an inter-governmental organization supporting democracy, is chaired by Australia and includes India as a member-state.
- The report aims to influence the global debate and analyses current trends and challenges to democracy, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.
- It offers specific policy recommendations to spark new and innovative thinking for policymakers, governments and civil society organizations supporting democracy.
GSD framework
Highlights of the report
- The US and three members of the European Union (EU) [Hungary, Poland and Slovenia] have also seen concerning democratic declines.
- The pandemic has prolonged this existing negative trend into a five-year stretch, the longest such period since the start of the third wave of democratization in the 1970s.
- Democratically elected Governments, including established democracies, are increasingly adopting authoritarian tactics.
- This democratic backsliding has often enjoyed significant popular support.
India’s performance
- The report highlighted the case of Brazil and India as “some of the most worrying examples of backsliding.
- India is the backsliding democracy with the most democratic violations during the pandemic.
- Violations include- Harassment, arrests and prosecution of human rights defenders, activists, journalists, students, academics and others critical of the government or its policies; internet obstructions etc.
Resilient democracies
- The report pointed out that many democracies had proved to be resilient to the pandemic.
- Despite pandemic restrictions on campaigning and media, the electoral component of democracy has shown remarkable resilience.
- Countries around the world learned to hold elections in exceedingly difficult conditions and they rapidly activated special voting arrangements to allow citizens to continue exercising their democratic rights.
Democracy is good. I say this because other systems are worse.
– Jawaharlal Nehru
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), IAEA
Mains level: Nuclear disarmament
Iran has invited the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for talks after the UN official expressed concern over a lack of contact with Iranian authorities.
What is IAEA?
- The IAEA is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons.
- As the preeminent nuclear watchdog under the UN, the IAEA is entrusted with the task of upholding the principles of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) of 1970.
- It was established as an autonomous organization on July 29, 1957, at the height of the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
- Though established independently of the UN through its own international treaty, the agency reports to both the UN General Assembly and the UNSC.
IAEA Missions
The IAEA is generally described as having three main missions:
- Peaceful uses: Promoting the peaceful uses of nuclear energy by its member states,
- Safeguards: Implementing safeguards to verify that nuclear energy is not used for military purposes, and
- Nuclear safety: Promoting high standards for nuclear safety
What are its safeguards?
- Safeguards are activities by which the IAEA can verify that a State is living up to its international commitments not to use nuclear programs for nuclear weapons purposes.
- Safeguards are based on assessments of the correctness and completeness of a State’s declared nuclear material and nuclear-related activities.
- Verification measures include on-site inspections, visits, and ongoing monitoring and evaluation.
Basically, two sets of measures are carried out in accordance with the type of safeguards agreements in force with a State.
- Verifying state reports of declared nuclear material and activities.
- Verifying the non-diversion of declared nuclear material and providing assurances as to the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in a State.
Try this question from CSP 2020:
Q.In India, why are some nuclear reactors kept under “IAEA Safeguards” while others are not?
(a) Some use Uranium and others use thorium.
(b) Some use imported uranium and others use domestic supplies.
(c) Some are operated by foreign enterprises and others are operated by domestic enterprises.
(d) Some are State- owned and others are privately-owned.
Post your answers here.
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Back2Basics: Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
- The NPT is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
- The Treaty represents the only binding commitment in a multilateral treaty to the goal of disarmament by the nuclear-weapon States.
- Opened for signature in 1968, the Treaty entered into force in 1970.
- India is one of the only five countries that either did not sign the NPT or signed but withdrew, thus becoming part of a list that includes Pakistan, Israel, North Korea, and South Sudan.
- India always considered the NPT as discriminatory and had refused to sign it.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: S-400 Triumf system
Mains level: India's assertion for Strategic Autonomy
The arrival of the $5.4-billion Russian long-range surface-to-air missile defence shield “S-400” is expected next month, which is likely to generate more international headlines.
About S-400
- The S-400 is known as Russia’s most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system, capable of destroying hostile strategic bombers, jets, missiles and drones at a range of 380-km.
US reservations against S-400 purchase
- The US has made it clear that the delivery of the five S-400 systems is considered a “significant transaction”.
- Such deals are considered under its Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) of 2017.
- It could trigger sanctions against Indian officials and the Government.
About CAATSA
- The CAATSA is designed to ensure that no country is able to increase military engagement with Iran, North Korea and Russia without facing deterrent punitive action from the US.
- The sanctions are unilateral, and not part of any United Nations decision, and therefore no country is bound to accept them.
- Section 231 says the President shall impose no fewer than five different sanctions on any Government that enters into a significant defence or intelligence deal with Russia.
- Section 235 lists 12 options, including stopping credit lines from US and international banks such as the IMF, blocking sales of licensed goods and technology, banning banks, manufacturers and suppliers, property transactions and even financial and visa sanctions on specific officials.
- However, the law also empowers the President to waiver sanctions or delay them if the waiver is in the US’s “vital national security interests”.
Has the US used CAATSA before for S-400 sales?
- The US has already placed sanctions on China and Turkey for purchase of the S-400.
- The sanctions included denial of export licences, ban on foreign exchange transactions, blocking of all property and interests in property within the US jurisdiction and a visa ban.
Types of sanctions laid
- In 2020, the US sanctioned its NATO partner Turkey, which it had warned about CAATSA sanctions for years, besides cancelling a deal to sell Ankara F-35 jets.
- The sanctions on Turkey’s main defence procurement agency, also included a ban on licences and loans, and blocking of credit and visas to related officials.
Likely impacts after India’s purchase
- The Biden administration has no firm indication on where it leans on India’s case.
- However, several senators (US parliamentarians) have called upon the Biden administration to consider a special waiver for India.
- This is on account of India’s importance as a defence partner, and as a strategic partner on US concerns over China and in the Quad.
- Other US leaders thinks that giving a waiver to India would be the wrong signal for others seeking to go ahead with similar deals.
Why is the S-400 deal so important to India?
- Security paradigm: S-400 is very important for India’s national security considerations due to the threats from China, Pakistan and now Afghanistan.
- Air defence capability: The system will also offset the air defence capability gaps due to the IAF’s dwindling fighter squadron strength.
- Russian legacy: Integrating the S-400 will be much easier as India has a large number of legacy Russian air defence systems.
- Strategic autonomy: For both political as well as operational reasons, the deal is at a point of no return.
Conclusion
- The deal is a way for the Government to assert its strategic autonomy.
- India had earlier agreed to stop buying Iranian oil over the threat of sanctions in 2019, a move that caused India both financial and reputational damage.
- Not giving in to the US’s unilateral sanctions would be one way to restore some of that.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Global Drug Policy Index
Mains level: Not Much
The first-ever Global Drug Policy Index was recently inaugurated.
Global Drug Policy Index
- It is released by the Harm Reduction Consortium, ranks Norway, New Zealand, Portugal, the UK and Australia as the five leading countries on humane and health-driven drug policies.
- It is a data-driven global analysis of drug policies and their implementation.
- It is composed of 75 indicators running across five broad dimensions of drug policy:
- Criminal justice
- Extreme responses
- Health and harm reduction
- Access to internationally controlled medicines and
- Development
Highlights of the 2021 ranking
- The five lowest-ranking countries are Brazil, Uganda, Indonesia, Kenya, and Mexico.
- Norway, despite topping the Index, only managed a score of 74/100.
- And the median score across all 30 countries and dimensions is just 48/100.
India’s performance
- India’s rank is 18 out of 30 countries
- It has an overall score of 46/100.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Freedom of Air
Mains level: Not Much
A flight from Srinagar to Sharjah had to avoid flying over Pakistan after the country denied permission to use its airspace for the said flight. With this refusal, Pakistan has violated the first freedom of air.
Freedom of Air
- Following the Chicago Convention in 1944, the signatories decided to set rules that would act as fundamental building blocks to international commercial aviation.
- As a part of these rules, initially, six ‘freedoms of air’ were decided.
- These freedoms or rights still operate within the ambit of multilateral and bilateral treaties.
- It allows to grant airlines of a particular country the privilege to use and/or land in another country’s airspace.
‘Freedoms’ accorded
- Flying over a foreign country without landing
- Refuel or carry out maintenance in a foreign country without embarking or disembarking passengers or cargo
- Fly from the home country and land in a foreign country
- Fly from a foreign country and land in the home country
- Fly from the home country to a foreign country, stopping in another foreign country on the way
- Fly from a foreign country to another foreign country, stopping in the home country on the way
- Fly from a foreign country to another foreign country, without stopping in the home country
- Fly from the home country to a foreign country, then on to another destination within the same foreign country
- Fly internally within a foreign country
Why did Pakistan deny use of its airspace?
- There has been no official explanation given by Pakistan authorities.
- Indian has approached Pakistan to raise the issue of the refusal to use its airspace for the said flight.
- Notably, other Indian airlines flying to west Asia from airports such as Delhi, Lucknow, etc have not been barred from using Pakistan airspace.
- This also raises the concern of Pakistan violating the first freedom of air.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Principles of Responsible Banking (PRBs)
Mains level: Not Much
Global banks are pledging to report annually on the carbon emissions linked to the projects they lend to in an extension to the Principles for Responsible Banking (PRBs).
What are PRBs?
- The PRBs are a unique framework for ensuring that signatory banks’ strategy and practice align with the vision society has set out for its future in the SDGs and the Paris Climate Agreement.
- It was created in 2019 through a partnership between founding banks and the United Nations.
- The framework consists of 6 Principles designed to bring purpose, vision and ambition to sustainable finance.
- Signatory banks commit to embedding these 6 principles across all business areas, at the strategic, portfolio and transactional levels:
Note: India’s YES BANK Limited is the only Indian signatory to this framework.
Significance of the PRBs
- Banks can contribute to solving the climate crisis from two angles: their lending and their investments.
- Many bank policies concentrate their investments on securities that were focused on sustainability.
Issues with PRB
- Being a signatory to the PRBs is a limited commitment.
- Signatories have four years to comply with the principles.
- Even then, everything is voluntary and non-binding, so signatories are not penalized or even named and shamed for failing to live up to the principles.
Way forward
- When signatories to the PRBs are lending money, they are supposed to carry out environmental impact assessments and to measure the greenhouse gas emissions of projects.
- This is not a minor issue considering that such work is beyond the traditional competencies of banks and will significantly affect their operational costs.
- Signatories are also supposed to ensure that loans go to projects that are carbon neutral.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: GHGs, CO2 Equivalents
Mains level: Greenhouse Effect
The Global Methane Pledge was launched at the ongoing UN COP26 climate conference in Glasgow.
What is the Global Methane Pledge?
- Global Methane Pledge is an agreement to reduce global methane emissions.
- One of the central aims of this agreement is to cut down methane emissions by up to 30 per cent from 2020 levels by the year 2030.
- The pledge was first announced in September by the United States and the European Union.
- So far, over 90 countries have signed this pledge.
Why methane?
- According to the UN, 25 % of the warming that the world is experiencing today is because of methane.
- Methane is the second-most abundant greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, after carbon dioxide.
- According to IPCC, methane accounts for about half of the 1.0 degrees Celsius net rise in global average temperature since the pre-industrial era.
About Methane
- Methane is a greenhouse gas, which is also a component of natural gas.
- There are various sources of methane including human and natural sources.
- The anthropogenic sources are responsible for 60 per cent of global methane emissions.
- It includes landfills, oil and natural gas systems, agricultural activities, coal mining, wastewater treatment, and certain industrial processes.
- The oil and gas sectors are among the largest contributors to human sources of methane.
- These emissions come primarily from the burning of fossil fuels, decomposition in landfills and the agriculture sector.
What is Coal-based Methane?
- CBM, like shale gas, is extracted from unconventional gas reservoirs — where gas is extracted directly from the rock that is the source of the gas (shale in case of shale gas and coal in case of CBM).
- The methane is held underground within the coal and is extracted by drilling into the coal seam and removing the groundwater.
- The resulting drop in pressure causes the methane to be released from the coal.
Try this PYQ:
Q. With reference to two non-conventional energy sources called ‘coalbed methane’ and ‘shale gas’, consider the following ‘statements:
- Coalbed methane is the pure methane gas extracted from coal seams, while shale gas is a mixture of propane and butane only that can be extracted from fi ne-grained sedimentary rocks.
- In India abundant coalbed methane sources exist, but so far no shale gas sources have been found.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Post your answers here.
Why is dealing with methane important for climate change?
- Methane has a much shorter atmospheric lifetime (12 years as compared to centuries for CO2).
- However, it is a much more potent greenhouse gas simply because it absorbs more energy while it is in the atmosphere.
- The UN notes that methane is a powerful pollutant and has a global warming potential that is 80 times greater than carbon dioxide, about 20 years after it has been released into the atmosphere.
Back2Basics: CO2 Equivalents
- Each greenhouse gas (GHG) has a different global warming potential (GWP) and persists for a different length of time in the atmosphere.
- The three main greenhouse gases (along with water vapour) and their 100-year global warming potential (GWP) compared to carbon dioxide are:
1 x – carbon dioxide (CO2)
25 x – methane (CH4) – I.e. Releasing 1 kg of CH4into the atmosphere is about equivalent to releasing 25 kg of CO2
298 x – nitrous oxide (N2O)
- Water vapour is not considered to be a cause of man-made global warming because it does not persist in the atmosphere for more than a few days.
- There are other greenhouse gases which have far greater global warming potential (GWP) but are much less prevalent. These are sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and perfluorocarbons (PFCs).
- There are a wide variety of uses for SF6, HFCs, and PFCs but they have been most commonly used as refrigerants and for fire suppression.
- Many of these compounds also have a depleting effect on ozone in the upper atmosphere.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Panchamrita
Mains level: India's INDC
PM Modi has proposed a five-fold strategy called the ‘Panchamrita’ for India to play its part in helping the world get closer to 1.5 degrees Celsius on the first day of the global climate meeting in Glasgow.
What is Panchamrita?
- ‘Panchamrita’ is a traditional method of mixing five natural foods — milk, ghee, curd, honey and jaggery. These are used in Hindu and Jain worship rituals. It is also used as a technique in Ayurveda.
- The PM euphemistically termed his scheme as ‘Panchamrita’ meaning the ‘five ambrosia’.
- Under Panchamrita’, India will:
- Get its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 gigawatts by 2030
- Meet 50 per cent of its energy requirements till 2030 with renewable energy
- Reduce its projected carbon emission by one billion tonnes by 2030
- Reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by 45 per cent by 2030
- Achieve net zero by 2070
Key takeaways of PM’s speech
(a) Commitment for climate action
- India consists of 17 per cent of the world’s population but contribute only five per cent of emissions.
- Yet, it has left no stone unturned in doing our bit to fight climate change.
- At Paris, India was making promises not to the world but to itself and 1.3 billion Indians, PM said.
(b) Climate finance
- The 2015 Paris CoP where the Paris Agreement was signed was not a summit but a sentiment.
- The promises made till now on climate finance were useless.
- When we all are increasing our ambitions on climate action, the world’s ambition could not stay the same on climate finance as was agreed at the time of Paris.
(c) India’s track record
- India was fourth as far as installed renewable energy capacity was concerned.
- The Indian Railways has pledged to make itself net-zero by 2030. This will result in an annual 60 million tonnes reduction in emissions.
- India initiated the International Solar Alliance for solar energy.
- It has also set up the coalition for disaster resilient infrastructure for climate adaptation.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: BASIC Countries, Copenhagen Accord
Mains level: Not Much
The Union Environment Minister has delivered the statement on behalf of the BASIC group of countries at the UN Climate Change Conference underway at Glasgow.
Who are the BASIC Countries?
- The BASIC countries (also Basic countries or BASIC) are a bloc of four large newly industrialized countries – Brazil, South Africa, India and China.
- It was formed by an agreement on 28 November 2009.
- The four committed to act jointly at the Copenhagen climate summit, including a possible united walk-out if their common minimum position was not met by the developed nations.
- This emerging geopolitical alliance, initiated and led by China, then brokered the final Copenhagen Accord with the United States.
What is the Copenhagen Accord?
- The Copenhagen Accord is a document signed at COP 15 to the UNFCCC on 18 December 2009.
- The Accord states that global warming should be limited to below 2.0 °C (3.6 °F).
- It does not specify what the baseline is for these temperature targets (e.g., relative to pre-industrial or 1990 temperatures).
- In January 2010, the Accord was described merely as a political agreement and not legally binding, as is argued by the US and Europe.
- It is not legally binding and does not commit countries to agree to a binding successor to the Kyoto Protocol, whose round ended in 2012.
- According to the UNFCCC, these targets are relative to pre-industrial temperatures.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Blue carbon, Sunderbans
Mains level: Carbon sequestration
India’s Sundarbans National Park is among five sites that have the highest blue carbon stocks globally, according to a new assessment.
Highlights of the study
- ‘World Heritage forests’ are now releasing more carbon than they are absorbing, primarily due to human activity and climate change, according to the assessment.
- UNESCO lists 50 sites across the globe for their unique marine values. These represent just one per cent of the global ocean area.
- But they comprise at least 15 per cent of global blue carbon assests.
Try this question from CSP 2021:
Q. What is blue carbon?
(a) Carbon captured by oceans and coastal ecosystems
(b) Carbon sequestered in forest biomass and agricultural soils
(c) Carbon contained in petroleum and natural gas
(d) Carbon present in atmosphere
Post your answers here.
Carbon capacity of Sundarbans
- The Sundarbans National Park has stores of 60 million tonnes of carbon (Mt C).
- The other four sites besides the Sundarbans National Park in India are:
- Bangladeshi portion of the Sundarbans (110 Mt C)
- Great Barrier Reef in Australia (502 Mt C)
- Everglades National Park in the US (400 Mt C) and
- Banc d’Arguin National Park in Mauritania (110 Mt C)
About Sundarbans
- Sundarbans is the largest delta and mangrove forest in the world.
- The Indian Sunderbans, which covers 4,200 sq km, comprises of the Sunderban Tiger Reserve of 2,585 sq km is home to about 96 Royal Bengal Tigers (2020) is also a world heritage site and a Ramsar Site.
- The Indian Sunderbans is bound on the west by river Muriganga and on the east by rivers Harinbhahga and Raimangal.
- Other major rivers flowing through this eco-system are Saptamukhi, Thakuran, Matla and Goasaba.
Worrying scenario
- The researchers found that 10 of 257 forests emitted more carbon than they captured between 2001 and 2020.
- The reasons for included clearance of land for agriculture, the increasing scale and severity of wildfires due to drought as well as extreme weather phenomena.
- The 10 sites are:
- Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra (Indonesia)
- Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve (Honduras)
- Yosemite National Park (US)
- Waterton Glacier International Peace Park (Canada, US)
- Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains (South Africa)
- Kinabalu Park (Malaysia)
- Uvs Nuur Basin (Russian Federation, Mongolia)
- Grand Canyon National Park (US)
- Greater Blue Mountains Area (Australia)
- Morne Trois Pitons National Park (Dominica)
(Try mapping these sites)
Back2Basics: Types of Carbon
- Brown Carbon: It is brown smoke released by the combustion of organic matter.
- Black Carbon: It is also a greenhouse gas and causes more pollution than Brown Carbon. The particles leftover from incomplete combustion of fossil fuels (soot and dust). It has a greater effect on radiation transmission.
- Green Carbon: Carbon incorporated into plant biomass and the soils below. Green carbon is carbon removed by photosynthesis and stored in the plants and soil of natural ecosystems.
- Blue Carbon: Blue Carbon refers to coastal, aquatic and marine carbon sinks held by the indicative vegetation, marine organism and sediments.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: G7
Mains level: Digital Trade Principles
The Group of Seven wealthy nations agreed on a joint set of principles to govern cross-border data use and digital trade.
What are the Digital Trade Principles?
- Open digital markets: Digital and telecommunications markets should be competitive, transparent, fair, and accessible to international trade and investment.
- Cross-border data flows: To harness the opportunities of the digital economy and support the trade of goods and services, data should be able to flow freely across borders with trust.
- Safeguards for workers, consumers, and businesses: Labour protections must be in place for workers who are directly engaged in or support digital trade, providing decent conditions of work.
- Digital trading systems: To cut red tape and enable more businesses to trade, governments and industries should drive forward the digitization of trade-related documents.
- Fair and inclusive global governance: Common rules for digital trade should be agreed and upheld at the World Trade Organization.
About Group of Seven
- The G-7 or ‘Group of Seven’ includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- It is an intergovernmental organization that was formed in 1975 by the top economies of the time as an informal forum to discuss pressing world issues.
- Initially, it was formed as an effort by the US and its allies to discuss economic issues.
- The G-7 forum now discusses several challenges such as oil prices and many pressing issues such as financial crises, terrorism, arms control, and drug trafficking.
- It does not have a formal constitution or a fixed headquarters. The decisions taken by leaders during annual summits are non-binding.
- Canada joined the group in 1976, and the European Union began attending in 1977.
Evolution of the G-7
- When it started in 1975—with six members, Canada joining a year later—it represented about 70% of the world economy.
- And it was a cosy club for tackling issues such as the response to oil shocks.
- Now it accounts for about 40% of global gdp.
- Since the global financial crisis of 2007-09 it has sometimes been overshadowed by the broader g20.
- The G-7 became the G-8 in 1997 when Russia was invited to join.
- In 2014, Russia was debarred after it took over Crimea.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Global Agricultural Productivity Report, 2021
Mains level: Agricultural Productivity
Global agricultural productivity (GAP) is not growing as fast as the demand for food, amid the impact of climate change, according to a new report.
GAP Report
- The GAP Report is released by Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
- It urges the acceleration of productivity growth from smallholders to large-scale farmers to meet consumers’ needs and address current and future threats to human and environmental well-being.
Key indicator: Total factor productivity (TFP)
- In agriculture, productivity is measured as Total Factor Productivity or TFP.
- An increase in TFP growth indicates that more crops, livestock, and aquaculture products were produced with the same amount (or less) land, labor, fertilizer, machinery, feed, and livestock.
- TFP grows when producers increase output using improved technologies and practices, such as advanced seed varieties, precision mechanization, efficient nutrient and water management techniques, and improved animal care practices.
- Using agricultural inputs efficiently to generate more output reduces agriculture’s environmental impact and lowers costs for producers and consumers.
Highlights of the report
- Total factor productivity (TFP) is growing at an annual rate of 1.36 per cent (2020-2019).
- This is below the annual target of 1.73 per cent growth to sustainably meet the needs of consumers for food and bioenergy in 2050.
- Climate change has already reduced productivity growth globally by 21 per cent since 1961, the report said.
- In the drier regions of Africa and Latin America, climate change has slowed productivity growth by as much as 34 per cent.
- The report noted that middle-income countries including India, China, Brazil and erstwhile Soviet republics continued to have strong TFP growth rates.
Agricultural productivity in India
- India has seen strong TFP and output growth this century.
- The most recent data shows an average annual TFP growth rate of 2.81 per cent and output growth of 3.17 per cent (2010–2019).
Key recommendations
- The report urged accelerating investments in agricultural R&D to increase and preserve productivity gains, especially for small farmers.
- It identified six strategies and policies that would create sustainable agricultural growth at all scales of production:
- Invest in agricultural research and development
- Embrace science-and-information-based technologies
- Improve infrastructure for transportation, information and finance
- Cultivate partnerships for sustainable agriculture, economic growth and improved nutrition
- Expand and improve local, regional and global trade
- Reduce post-harvest loss and food waste
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: FATF
Mains level: Globar terror financing
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) kept Pakistan on the grey list yet again since 2018. The FATF also announced the ‘greylisting’ of Jordan, Mali and Turkey.
What is the FATF?
- FATF is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 to develop policies to combat money laundering.
- The FATF Secretariat is housed at the OECD headquarters in Paris.
- It holds three Plenary meetings in the course of each of its 12-month rotating presidencies.
- As of 2019, FATF consisted of 37 member jurisdictions.
India and FATF
- India became an Observer at FATF in 2006. Since then, it had been working towards full-fledged membership.
- On June 25, 2010, India was taken in as the 34th country member of FATF.
- The EAG (Eurasian Group) is a regional body comprising nine countries: India, Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Belarus.
What is the role of FATF?
- Watchdog on terror financing: The rise of the global economy and international trade has given rise to financial crimes such as money laundering.
- Recommendation against financial crimes: The FATF makes recommendations for combating financial crime, reviews members’ policies and procedures, and seeks to increase acceptance of anti-money laundering regulations across the globe.
What is the Black List and the Grey List?
- Black List: The blacklist, now called the “Call for action” was the common shorthand description for the FATF list of “Non-Cooperative Countries or Territories” (NCCTs).
- Grey List: Countries that are considered safe haven for supporting terror funding and money laundering are put in the FATF grey list. This inclusion serves as a warning to the country that it may enter the blacklist.
Consequences of being in the FATF grey list:
- Economic sanctions from IMF, World Bank, ADB
- Problem in getting loans from IMF, World Bank, ADB and other countries
- Trade sanctions: Reduction in international trade
- International boycott
Pakistan and FATF
- Pakistan, which continues to remain on the “grey list” of FATF, had earlier been given the deadline till June to ensure compliance with the 27-point action plan against terror funding networks.
- It has been under the FATF’s scanner since June 2018, when it was put on the Grey List for terror financing and money laundering risks.
- FATF and its partners such as the Asia Pacific Group (APG) are reviewing Pakistan’s processes, systems, and weaknesses on the basis of a standard matrix for anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) regime.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: World Economic Outlook (WEO), IMF
Mains level: Impact of COVID on employment and economic growth
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has unveiled its 2nd World Economic Outlook (WEO) Report.
About WEO Report
- The WEO is a report by the IMF that analyzes key parts of the IMF’s surveillance of economic developments and policies in its member countries.
- It also projects developments in the global financial markets and economic systems.
- The report comes out twice every year — April and October.
- It is based on a wide set of assumptions about a host of parameters — such as the international price of crude oil — and set the benchmark for all economies to compare one another with.
Key takeaways from the October 2021 WEO
- The central message was that the global economic recovery momentum had weakened due to the pandemic-induced supply disruptions.
- It is the increasing inequality among nations that IMF was most concerned about.
- The dangerous divergence in economic prospects across countries remains a major concern.
Reasons for the slowdown
There are two key reasons:
- Large disparities in vaccine access
- Differences in policy support
What about Employment?
Ans. There is a lag.
- Employment around the world remains below its pre-pandemic levels.
- This reflects a mix of negative output gaps, worker fears of on-the-job infection in contact-intensive occupations, childcare constraints, labour demand changes due to automation etc.
- The main concern is the gap between recovery in output and employment which is likely to be larger in emerging markets and developing economies than in advanced economies.
- Further, young and low-skilled workers are likely to be worse off than prime-age and high-skilled workers, respectively.
Implications for India
Ans. Reduce India’s growth momentum
- IMF has suggested that India’s economic recovery is gaining ground.
- Some sectors such as the IT-services sectors have been practically unaffected by Covid, while the e-commerce industry is doing brilliantly.
- However, the recovery in unemployment is lagging the recovery in output (or GDP).
- This matters immensely for India as it reflects jobless growth.
- India was already facing a deep employment crisis before the Covid crisis, and it became much worse after it.
- Lack of adequate employment levels would again drag down overall demand and affect the growth momentum.
Threats to growth momentum
- Usual unemployment: Even before the pandemic, India already had a massive unemployment crisis.
- Sector-wise recovery: India is witnessing a K-shaped recovery. That means different sectors are recovering at significantly different rates.
- Unorganized sector: A weak recovery for the informal/unorganized sectors implies a drag on the economy’s ability to create new jobs or revive old ones.
- Contact-based services: Such services which can create many more jobs, are not seeing a similar bounce-back.
How informal is India’s economy?
- A NSO report titled ‘Measuring Informal Economy in India’ gives a detailed account of informal Indian economy.
- It shows the share of different sectors of the economy in the overall Gross Value Added and the share of the unorganised sector therein.
- The share of informal/unorganised sector GVA is more than 50% at the all-India level, and is even higher in certain sectors.
- It creates a lot of low-skilled jobs such as construction and trade, repair, accommodation, and food services.
This is why India is more vulnerable.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Mains level: Russia Vs. Nato
Russia has decided that it would halt the activities of its diplomatic mission to NATO after it expelled eight Russian diplomats in a row over spying.
Why such move?
- NATO had set up a prohibitive regime for Russian diplomats in Brussels by banning them from its headquarters building.
- Relations between Moscow and the West have been strained for years, but the immediate impetus for the Russian move was a spy scandal.
- Military tensions have also escalated in recent years, including last spring when Russian troops massed along Ukraine’s border (probably for invasion).
Significance of the move
- The decision will end a post-Cold War experiment, never very successful, in building trust between Russia and the Western alliance.
- It was established decades ago to contain the Soviet Union, which officials in Moscow accused of later encroaching on former Soviet territory.
About North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
- NATO is a military alliance established by the North Atlantic Treaty (also called the Washington Treaty) of April 4, 1949.
- It sought to create a counterweight to Soviet armies stationed in Central and Eastern Europe after World War II.
- Its original members were Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- NATO has spread a web of partners, namely Egypt, Israel, Sweden, Austria, Switzerland and Finland.
Why was it founded?
Ans. Communist sweep in Europe post-WWII and rise of Soviet dominance
- After World War II in 1945, Western Europe was economically exhausted and militarily weak, and newly powerful communist parties had arisen in France and Italy.
- By contrast, the Soviet Union had emerged from the war with its armies dominating all the states of central and Eastern Europe.
- By 1948 communists under Moscow’s sponsorship had consolidated their control of the governments of those countries and suppressed all non-communist political activity.
- What became known as the Iron Curtain, a term popularized by Winston Churchill, had descended over central and Eastern Europe.
Ideology of NATO
- NATO ensures that the security of its European member countries is inseparably linked to that of its North American member countries.
- It commits the Allies to democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law, as well as to the peaceful resolution of disputes.
- It also provides a unique forum for dialogue and cooperation across the Atlantic.
The Article 5
- The heart of NATO is expressed in Article 5, in which the signatory members agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all.
Why in news now?
- The relationship between NATO and Russia is at its lowest point since the end of the Cold War.
- The NATO (rather US) sees their aggressive actions, not least against Ukraine, but also the significant military buildup and violations of important arms control agreements.
- NATO suspended practical cooperation with Russia in 2014 after it annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CoP, UNFCCC
Mains level: Paris Agreement
The UK will host the COP 26 UN Climate Change Conference from October 31 to November 12.
Conference of Parties (CoP): A Backgrounder
- The CoP comes under the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention (UNFCCC) which was formed in 1994.
- The UNFCCC was established to work towards “stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.”
- It laid out a list of responsibilities for the member states which included:
- Formulating measures to mitigate climate change
- Cooperating in preparing for adaptation to the impact of climate change
- Promoting education, training and public awareness related to climate change
- The UNFCCC has 198 parties including India, China and the USA. COP members have been meeting every year since 1995.
COP1 to COP25: Key takeaways
COP1: The first conference was held in 1995 in Berlin.
COP3: It was held in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, the famous Kyoto Protocol (w.e.f. 2005) was adopted. It commits the member states to pursue limitation or reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
COP8: India hosted the eighth COP in 2002 in New Delhi. It laid out several measures including, ‘strengthening of technology transfer… in all relevant sectors, including energy, transport and R&D, and the strengthening of institutions for sustainable development.
COP21: it is one of the most important that took place in 2015, in Paris, France. Here countries agreed to work together to ‘limit global warming to well below 2, preferably at 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.’
Significance of COP26
- The event will see leaders from more than 190 countries, thousands of negotiators, researchers and citizens coming together to strengthen a global response to the threat of climate change.
- It is a pivotal movement for the world to come together and accelerate the climate action plan after the COVID pandemic.
COP26 goals
According to the UNFCCC, COP26 will work towards four goals:
- Secure global net-zero by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees within reach
- The UNFCCC recommends that countries ‘accelerate the phase-out of coal, curtail deforestation, speed up the switch to electric vehicles and encourage investment in renewables’ to meet this goal.
- Adapt to protect communities and natural habitats
- Countries will work together to ‘protect and restore ecosystems and build defences, warning systems and resilient infrastructure and agriculture to avoid loss of homes, livelihoods and even lives.’
- Mobilise finance
- To deliver on first two goals, developed countries must make good on their promise to mobilise at least $100bn in climate finance per year by 2020.
- Work together to deliver
- Another important task at the COP26 is to ‘finalise the Paris Rulebook’. Leaders will work together to frame a list of detailed rules that will help fulfil the Paris Agreement.
What India could do to reach its targets?
- Update NDCs: It is time for India to update its Nationally Determined Contributions or NDCs. (NDCs detail the various efforts taken by each country to reduce the national emissions)
- Effective planning: Sector by sector plans are needed to bring about development. We need to decarbonise the electricity, transport sector and start looking at carbon per passenger mile.
- Energy transition: Aggressively figure out how to transition our coal sector
- Robust legal framework: India also needs to ramp up the legal and institutional framework of climate change.
Try answering this PYQ:
With reference to the Agreement at the UNFCCC Meeting in Paris in 2015, which of the following statements is/are correct?
- The Agreement was signed by all the member countries of the UN and it will go into effect in 2017.
- The Agreement aims to limit the greenhouse gas emissions so that the rise in average global temperature by the end of this century does not exceed 2 degree Centigrade or even 5 degree Centigrade above pre-industrial levels.
- Developed countries acknowledged their historical responsibility in global warming and committed to donate dollar 1000 billion a year from 2020 to help developing countries to cope with climate change.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Post your answers here.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Global Hunger Index
Mains level: Food and nutrition security of India
The Global Hunger Index 2021 has ranked India at 101 positions out of a total 116 countries.
Note the parameters over which the GHI is based and their weightage composition.
Global Hunger Index (GHI)
- The Global Hunger Index is a peer-reviewed annual report, jointly published by Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe.
- It determines hunger on a 100-point scale, where 0 is the best possible score (no hunger) and 100 is the worst.
- It is designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels.
- The aim of the GHI is to trigger action to reduce hunger around the world.
For each country in the list, the GHI looks at four indicators:
- Undernourishment (which reflects inadequate food availability): calculated by the share of the population that is undernourished (that is, whose caloric intake is insufficient)
- Child Wasting (which reflects acute undernutrition): calculated by the share of children under the age of five who are wasted (that is, those who have low weight for their height)
- Child Stunting (which reflects chronic undernutrition): calculated by the share of children under the age of five who are stunted (that is, those who have low height for their age)
- Child Mortality (which reflects both inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environment): calculated by the mortality rate of children under the age of five
India’s (poor) performance
- India is among the 31 countries where hunger has been identified as serious.
- Only 15 countries fare worse than India.
- Some of these include Afghanistan (103), Nigeria (103), Congo (105), Mozambique (106), Sierra Leone (106), Timor-Leste (108), Haiti (109), Liberia (110), Madagascar (111) and Somalia (116).
- India was also behind most of the neighbouring countries.
- Pakistan was placed at 92 rank, Nepal at 76 and Bangladesh also at 76.
Reasons for such poor performance
- Poor maternal health: Mothers are too young, too short, too thin and too undernourished themselves, before they get pregnant, during pregnancy, and then after giving birth, during breast-feeding.
- Poor sanitation: Poor sanitation, leading to diarrhoea, is another major cause of child wasting and stunting.
- Food insecurity: Low dietary diversity in India is also a key factor in child malnutrition.
- Poverty: Almost 50 million households in India are dependent on these small and marginal holdings.
- Livelihood loss: The rural livelihoods loss after COVID and lack of income opportunities other than the farm sector have contributed heavily to the growing joblessness in rural areas.
Issues over credibility of GHI
- India has ranked among many African countries while it is among the top 10 food-producing countries in the world.
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