International Relations Weeks 6 & 7

What was Haiti’s double debt?

• in 1825 - two decades after Haiti gained independence, French King Charles X sent a fleet of warships to port au prince demanding 150 million francs to compensate former French slaveholders in exchange for recognition of Haitian independence

• The first payment was around 6 times the countries entire revenue for the year - France coerced Haiti into taking out a big loan from France bankers to make the first payment. The loan added interest and bank commissions on top of the original 150 M francs

• It took Haiti around 120 years to pay off debt to France

In 1914, which country invaded Haiti and why?

• The United States invaded Haiti in 1914. U.S had financial and business interests in Haiti. The New York City Bank specifically had been pushing for U.S control over Haiti and convinced the U.S State Department to invade Haiti and seize $500,000 in gold from its National Bank.

 In the context of Leopold’s Congo, who was the first person to use the term “crimes against humanity” (Please provide full name)?

George Washington Williams

What was the full name of the shipping clerk who identified the trade anomaly between Belgium and the Congo Free State?

Edmund Dean Morel

Who changed the name of the Democratic Republic of Congo to the Republic of Zaire?

Mobutu Sese Seko

Who was the first democratically elected leader of the DRC (Please provide full name)?

Patrice Émery Lumumba

In chronological order, what were the five major raw materials extracted from the DRC?

Ivory, Rubber, Cotton, Uranium, Colton

What was the full name of the Arabized Amazigh explorer who traveled almost five

times farther than Marco Polo, and what was the name of his famous travelogue?

Explorer: Abu Abdullah Muhammad Battuta

Travelogue: The Rihla

 Where is the oldest university in the world (city & country), what is its name, and who

was its founder (full name)?

Location: Fez, Morocco

Name: University of al-Qarawiyyin

Founder: Fatima al-Fihriya

Please explain and provide the dates for SSC 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 according to Mawdsley (2019.

1.0 - refers to decades from early 1950s to late 1990s/early 2000s, during which time, whatever the temporal and spatial variations of SSC, it tended to be couched in Third World-ist claims, was relatively less powerful as a geostrategic tool, and was largely neglected by mainstream and critical theorists of international development

2.0 - late 1990s/early 2000s until about 2015, a period in which, by any metric, SSC could be said to have boomed-in resource, visibility, ideational legitimacy and so on 

3.0 - emerged around 2015 and continues into the present. a shift towards more pragmatic, nationalistic and results-oriented cooperation, a weakening of non-interference as Southern providers intervene more to protect their national interests, and a blurring of the North–South divide as Southern providers and traditional Western donors increasingly adopt similar approaches and collaborate.

According to Asante (2018) and/or Dollar (2019), what are two benefits that accommodationists highlight and two drawbacks that critics cite for African states’ participation in the BRI?

According to Asante

Benefits:

1. Bridging Infrastructure Gap + Facilitating Trade - Chinese investments/loans help build essential infrastructure

2. Cheap imported goods benefit consumers who can’t afford alternatives

Drawbacks:

1. commercial loans tied to BRI increase African countries public debt, putting them at risk of debt crises

2. China creates unequal trade relations with African countries. Extracting unprocessed natural resources and flooding African markets with cheap manufactured goods weakens domestic industries. It takes away the raw materials to produce goods and leaves local businesses (ex: textiles) struggling to compete

What are the differences in Zambia and Uganda’s experiences with the BRI and what explains those differences (please address management and outcomes)?

• Zambia was very vulnerable to debt distress and reached an external debt of over 65% of Gross national income. China’s involvement in commercial sectors resulted in mine workers rioting over poor labor conditions

• Uganda maintained a low risk of debt distress and maintained an external debt of around 40% of GNI. Uganda received an above average logistics performance index - successfully built infrastructure to support trade

• Zambia borrowed rapidly w/out coordination, relied on expensive commercial loans and did not efficiently select and monitor infrastructure projects. Uganda borrowed strategically and sought low interest rates on loans, integrated Chinese lending into debt-management plan, and prioritized key infrastructure projects.

According to Dollar (2018), what is “debt-trapping,” and what are the debates surrounding whether the BRI is debt-trapping African states?

debt-trapping - Intentionally saddling developing nations with high-interest debt they are unable to repay, gaining leverage/political influence over the state

Critics: China intentionally debt-traps African states w/loans to gain political leverage. Chinese loans often lack transparency about repayment terms and have interest rates that may rise when global interest rates rise, putting African states at risk of debt problems.

Defenders: china does not deliberately trap states in debt. Uganda is an example of how countries can manage debt domestically. Debt problems = poor management + borrowing from multiple lenders. China often restructures or writes off debts instead of seizing assets.

What is an “Angola-Model” type loan, and does it mirror colonial approaches to Africa? If yes, why? If no, why not?

One key approach china uses to fund infrastructure for Africa. Resources-for-Infrastructure deal. China lends money to build infrastructure and African state repays with natural resources (oil, minerals)

Yes, keeps African countries dependent on exporting natural resources and receiving finished goods. This weakens local industries and creates economic dependence on China. African states cannot use their own natural resources to produce goods and must rely on china to import them.

What are two differences and two similarities between SSC and Western aid?

1. Both benefit donor countries

2. Both have been criticism for being exploitative and neocolonialist in approach, both draw on cultures/historical frames

1. SSC is framed as a partnership/horizontal, Western aid is framed in vertical terms

2. SSC, particularly in the case of BRI, may take more risks and be less transparent than western aid

 With which three countries does Brazil engage in triangular cooperation projects?

Japan, Spain, Germany

According to de Renzio and Seifert (2014), what are SSC and DAC and what is the difference between the two?

DAC (Development Assistance Committee) part of the OECD and promotes international development by reducing poverty, improving living standards and supporting sustainable economic growth. Sets standards for Official Development Assistance (ODA), the main measure of foreign aid, and collects and publishes aid data. Its long-term goal is for countries to become self-sufficient and no longer depend on aid.

SSC: Cooperation between developing countries through sharing resources, technology, knowledge, aid, loans and investment. It draws on shared colonial and post-colonial experiences and aims to promote mutual benefit, equal partnerships, and the collective development and influence of the Global South.

Main difference: DAC represents traditional North–South aid, with formal rules and often a donor-recipient hierarchy, while SSC promotes cooperation between developing countries based on mutual benefit, fewer political conditions and a combination of aid, trade and investment.

 Which foreign minister launched a doctrine of multipolarity that contributed to the rise of BRICS? (Please provide full name and country)

Yevgeni Maksimovich Primakov - Russia