- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
- Trump returns to site of failed assassination
- Careless Leverkusen held to Bundesliga draw
- O'Brien's 'superstar' Kyprios posts landmark win on Arc weekend
- Liverpool suffer Alisson injury blow
- Habosi helps Racing beat Vannes before Auradou's playing return
- Thousands march in London in support of Palestinians, 1 year after Oct 7
- Israel readying response to Iran missile attack
- Schutt, Mooney help Australia beat Sri Lanka in Women's T20 World Cup
- Liverpool extend Premier League lead with win at Palace
- Djokovic 'shakes rust off' to make third round of Shanghai Masters
- 'Imperfect' PSG fighting on all fronts - Luis Enrique
- Struggling Pakistan look to thwart adaptable England
- Child 'trampled to death' in asylum seekers' Channel crossing: minister
- Gauff fights back to set up Beijing final against Muchova
- Guardiola claims Premier League won't delay season for Man City
- Israel to mark October 7 attack as Gaza war spreads
- Gauff fights back to reach China Open final
- Recovering Stokes ruled out of first Pakistan Test
- Hezbollah battles troops on border as Israel pounds Lebanon
- Alcaraz, Sinner breeze into third round of Shanghai Masters
- Bagnaia wins Japan MotoGP sprint to cut Martin's lead
- Alcaraz breezes into third round of Shanghai Masters
- Gaza cultural heritage brought to light in Geneva
- 'Bullet for democracy': Trump returns to site of rally shooting
- Italy targets climate activists in 'anti-Gandhi' demo clampdown
- South Korean cult-horror series 'Hellbound' returns at BIFF
- Nepalis fear more floods as climate change melts glaciers
- Honduras arrests environmentalist's alleged murderer
- Padres pitcher Musgrove needs elbow surgery
- Supreme Court lets stand rules to curb mercury, methane emissions
- Boston beat Denver in NBA exhibition season opener, but Jokic says omens are good
- Chagos diaspora angry at lack of input on islands' fate
- Biden says 'not confident' of peaceful US election
- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- Lukaku stars as Napoli beat Como to hold Serie A top spot
At Davos, war, climate and 'de-globalisation' take centre stage
Top politicians and world business leaders are set to meet for the annual Davos summit in the Swiss Alps next week under the shadow of war in Ukraine, a climate crisis and global trade in disarray.
For half a century, the World Economic Forum has brought together executives and policymakers to sing the praises of globalisation, but that process is seen as unwinding as new geopolitical fault lines harden around the world.
The Covid-19 pandemic, growing US-China hostility and Russia's invasion of Ukraine have led some politicians and experts to even speculate about "an end to the era of globalisation", which began in earnest in the decade after the first Davos meeting in 1971.
The agenda for this year's meeting in the snow-deficient Alps, starting next Monday, reflects this gloomy reality.
"The theme of the meeting is 'cooperation in a fragmented world'," executive chairman and founder of the WEF, Klaus Schwab, told journalists this week.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and UN chief Antonio Guterres are among the most prominent figures attending the forum, alongside nearly 400 government ministers and policymakers, 600 CEOs and an array of media, NGO and academic figures.
One session will discuss whether we are living through "de-globalisation or re-globalisation", while others will ponder the impact of trade wars, real wars, the cost-of-living crisis and the planet's heating climate.
"There's no doubt that our 53rd annual meeting in Davos will happen against the most complex geopolitical and geoeconomic backdrop in decades. So much is at stake," said Borge Brende, a former Norwegian foreign minister who is now president of the meeting.
Russia is not expected to be officially represented, underlining the sea change since 2021, when President Vladimir Putin addressed delegates via video link, or 2009 when he attended in person.
China has not yet announced its presence.
"There were a few years where there was a tone of hope that we would go back to the old normal, this sort of globalised world," said Karen Harris, an economist at the consulting firm Bain & Company.
"I think there's an acknowledgement now that that era is ending."
- Ukrainian lobbying -
The conflict in Ukraine and its cascading effects on global energy and defence policies will be a prominent theme throughout the five-day meeting.
It is expected to dominate the opening day on Tuesday as well as Wednesday, when NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg takes the stage with Polish President Andrzej Duda, who argues for a more forceful Western response to Moscow's invasion.
It is unclear if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will give a video address as he did at last year's meeting in May.
But several Ukrainian ministers, military leaders and soldiers will be among a large delegation that is expected to lobby for more weapons and financial support from the West.
Climate change has also been announced as a top issue, with organisers keen for discussion to help prepare the next round of global talks, COP28, that will take place in the oil-producing United Arab Emirates from November 30.
Activists are planning on using the meeting to remind rich countries and energy companies of the need to finance the energy transition of developing nations and pay for the damage caused by climate-induced natural disasters.
"Young activists will be reminding oil and gas executives of the bill they must pay," Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate said ahead of her third visit to the World Economic Forum.
A demonstration has been called in Davos on Sunday by a left-wing Swiss youth group calling for a wealth tax for billionaires and debt relief for developing countries.
- 'Absurdity' -
Like every year, much of the most significant activity in Davos will take place behind closed doors in five-star hotels where CEOs and investors seize the opportunity for face-to-face deal-making and networking.
Critics of the meeting see the open sessions tackling global affairs as mere window-dressing for this backroom corporate speed-dating.
"In four days in a private suite they can do more business than they could do in several months of flying around the world," said Peter S. Goodman, author of the recent book "Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World."
He said the most important contribution Davos could make would be to push for global tax reform in an effort to reduce economic inequalities.
"The idea that these people, who are the ultimate beneficiaries of the status quo, are committed to improving the state of their world just looks like a greater absurdity than ever," he said.
"And it's always looked like an absurdity."
L.Henrique--PC