The World Today: May 2008: May 2008

For forty years, from Laos to Lebanon, cluster munitions have been the weapon of choice for industrialised nations against poorer, agrarian states. Now an alliance of small and medium sized countries, supported by the Cluster Munition Coalition, a network of more than two hundred humanitarian organisations spread across fifty countries, stands poised to deliver a comprehensive ban.

This centenary of the discovery of oil in Iran, and the foundation of the oil industry in the Middle East, is an event, some would argue, of momentous consequence for the political economy of the Middle East and the world at large

The tussle in Iraq over its controversial draft oil law – already more than a year in the making – reflects battles which have long beset the industry. Who owns the oil, who pays to extract it and, above all, who takes the profit?

Climate change will be at the top of the agenda when leaders of the world’s major economies gather in Japan for the G8 Summit in July. The science is clear on the need for an ambitious and rapid response. Almost all heads of government now have a basic understanding that without climate security they will be unable to meet their economic or development goals. This makes reducing global greenhouse emissions a vital national interest and a core issue for international diplomacy.

The turmoil in financial markets, weakening growth and the shift in the centre of global economic gravity all threaten to impose huge strains on world order. There is fear of systematic collapse. International economic policy makers do not normally welcome crises. But at the World Trade Organization’s headquarters in Geneva, some are quietly hoping that instability triggered by the global credit crunch may be just what is needed to restore momentum to the beleaguered institution. Perverse as the logic may seem, history suggests it could be right.

There will be two important polls in Serbia this month. The first, on May 11, is a Serbian general election. This is followed on May 24 by the Eurovision Song Contest, which is being held in Belgrade this year. The two are of course connected, although this may not, at first glance seem obvious. This is because the second, kitsch as it may be, is symbolic of Serbia’s return to the European mainstream after so many years of isolation. By contrast the general election may reveal whether Serbs now opt to abandon the path of European integration and risk a return to isolation.