Redefining the International Order Established After the World Wars
US and UK Also Preparing to Resume Travel as Soon as Possible
[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will hold a bilateral meeting ahead of the Group of Seven (G7) summit.
According to foreign media including CNN, President Biden and Prime Minister Johnson will meet on the 10th in Cornwall, southwestern England, to hold talks and announce a new "Atlantic Charter" aimed at strengthening cooperation between the two countries.
The new plan is modeled after the 1941 Atlantic Charter, established by U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, which set the basic principles of the international order after World War II. The new charter is expected to include close cooperation plans in eight areas, including ending COVID-19, addressing climate change, protecting democracy, establishing fair and sustainable trade, and responding to cyberattacks.
Jake Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, told reporters, "The Atlantic Charter is 80 years old," and explained, "In a situation where free societies and their people are voicing what they believe in the 21st century, updated principles between the U.S. and the U.K. will be announced."
Foreign media reported that the two leaders are expected to agree to efforts to resume travel between the two countries as soon as possible. The British media outlet The Telegraph reported that President Biden and Prime Minister Johnson plan to announce a "Joint Travel Task Force (TF)" to prepare for the resumption of tourism through the summit. Currently, free travel between the U.S. and the U.K. is blocked due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but both governments are accelerating the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, leveraging large-scale vaccination campaigns.
President Biden is also expected to address issues related to Northern Ireland that arose after the U.K. left the European Union (EU) in January last year (Brexit). National Security Advisor Sullivan said that President Biden will emphasize the importance of the so-called Good Friday Agreement (Belfast Peace Agreement) during the talks, stating, "The President firmly believes that this agreement is the foundation for peaceful coexistence in Northern Ireland."
Since the declaration of the Republic of Ireland on the island of Ireland, Northern Ireland, which remained part of the U.K., experienced intense conflict between the Catholic faction advocating independence from the U.K. and the Protestant faction demanding to remain in the U.K. In response, the British government, the Irish government, and seven Protestant and Catholic parties in Northern Ireland negotiated for five years and reached the Good Friday Agreement in April 1998, transitioning to a peace regime.
However, Northern Ireland has recently faced internal conflicts again due to the "Northern Ireland Protocol" implemented alongside Brexit. Northern Ireland, which borders Ireland, an EU member state, remains in the EU single market after Brexit, unlike mainland Britain, according to this protocol. As a result, new customs and quarantine procedures have been applied when goods move from mainland Britain to Northern Ireland, causing some trade obstacles with the U.K. However, the U.K. and the EU agreed to waive customs inspections on food products moving from mainland Britain to Northern Ireland for three months until the end of March. The U.K. unilaterally announced an extension of this waiver until October and has expressed intentions for further extensions, leading to conflicts with the EU.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
