OBELA Analysis

The first tripartite meeting between ASEAN, China and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 26-27 May. Some of these countries are part of more than one minilateral body (see Table 1). This article will review the highlights of the summit and outline the possible role that the new alliance could play in the trade war between China and the US, the geopolitical tensions arising from the coup in Myanmar and the common agenda for the next BRICS summit in July.

The Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) are various scenarios of global socioeconomic changes projected by the IPCC up to 2100. These scenarios are structured around five different narratives representing possible socioeconomic evolution paths: Sustainable Development, Regional Competition, Rising Inequality, Fossil Fuel Dependency, and Moderate Development. This article will describe these pathways and what they mean.

In October 2008, following the instability and uncertainty caused by the U.S. financial crisis, the central banks of Brazil and Argentina signed a payment agreement in local currency. This was later extended to Mercosur countries. Since then, this mechanism has been replicated and extended by the BRICS. This article will analyze the alternatives that have arisen due to the instability of the dollar and the sanctions imposed by the US on 26 countries. It is an alternative to using the dollar as a means of payment and as a reserve unit.