After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the world’s political and economic elites will meet again from Sunday in Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum (WEF) dominated by the war in Ukraine and a strong Latin American presence. .
The meeting last took place in Switzerland in January 2020, in a location starring former US President Donald Trump and environmental activist Greta Thunberg, amid growing concern over a little-known disease emerging in China.
Since then, the Covid-19 pandemic has destabilized the world economy, causing serious problems in supply chains and rising inflation, among other things.
With the Russian occupation of Ukraine since February, the crisis deepened, especially with the rise in food and energy prices.
The pandemic prevented the forum from taking place, as usual, in January this year, and this time it will be held without profit from May 22-26 under the theme “Date at a turning point: government policies and business strategies”. .
“Russia’s aggression … will go down in the history books as the collapse of the order born after the Second World War and the Cold War,” economist Klaus Schwab, founder of the Forum, told the media this week, reassuring that Davos will do whatever it takes. . It is possible to support Ukraine and its rebuilding.
In addition to the speech of Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky via video conference on Monday, it was announced that a large number of Ukrainian politicians are in Switzerland.
At the same time, the DEF suspended all relations with Russia, which had been at the event for years.
Excluding the Russians is “the right decision”, according to WEF chief Borge Brende.
Symbolically, this year there will be a ‘Russian War Crimes House’ in place of the so-called ‘Russia House’ in Davos, a crowded place that concentrates all the country’s activities every year. the boss of the country.
“Secret Diplomacy”
This time, the forum, which will bring together about 2,500 political, economic, business and civil society leaders, will discuss the Ukraine issue as well as issues such as climate change, gender inequality or the emergence of the metaverse.
He will be quite ready with speeches by the presidents of Latin America, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic and special sessions on the region.
The new Peruvian president, leftist Pedro Castillo, who needs congressional approval to travel to Switzerland, plans to address issues such as post-pandemic economic recovery and sustainable development in the Amazon.
Besides its official agenda, Davos is known as a diplomatic meeting place. “The (…) quiet diplomacy that the forum allows for is one of the things that is really at the heart of the forum and feels like Klaus Schwab’s greatest achievement,” said Adrienne Sorbom, professor of sociology at Stockholm University and co-author. A book on the WEF.
Despite constant criticism for its usefulness and wealth in a world of inequalities, the Davos forum continues to attract top political and business leaders.
“I believe this in Davos, this festival of wealth, we’re going to see how unequal our world has become,” said Nabil Ahmed of the Oxfam NGO, which campaigns for higher taxes for the rich and visits the forum frequently.
source: Noticias
