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Bonn, 06.06.2017. Das Thema „Klimamigration“ – also der Zusammenhang zwischen Klimawandel und menschlicher Migration – gewinnt in Zeiten zahlreicher Flüchtlingskrisen und der (Anti-)Klimaschutzpolitik von US-Präsident Donald Trump zunehmend an öffentlicher Aufmerksamkeit und politischer Relevanz. Bereits kurz bevor Trump den Ausstieg der USA aus dem Pariser Klimaabkommen verkündete, befürchtete Bundesaußenminister Sigmar Gabriel, dass ein solcher Schritt ein maßgeblicher Beitrag für noch größere Migrationsströme nach Europa wäre. Passend dazu diskutierte Ende Mai zum ersten Mal die Task Force on Displacement der UN-Klimarahmenkonvention UNFCCC über den Umgang mit dem Thema Vertreibung als Folge des Klimawandels. Welche Bedeutung aber muss dem Faktor Klimawandel im Kontext von Flucht und Migration eigentlich beigemessen werden und welche Schlussfolgerungen lassen sich daraus ziehen? Mit der Frage, welche Rolle der Klimawandel für Migrationsentscheidungen eigentlich spielt, beschäftigen sich die Wissenschaft und verschiedene internationale Organisationen schon länger und tun sich damit bisweilen auch durchaus schwer. Der erst vor kurzem von der Internationalen Organisation für Migration (IOM) mit herausgegebene „Atlas der Umweltmigration“ etwa bemüht sich redlich mit unzähligen, z.T. sehr aufwendig gestalteten Illustrationen, das Phänomen Umwelt- bzw. Klimamigration in seinen unterschiedlichen Facetten zu beleuchten und zu erklären. Allerdings bleibt man nach über 160 Seiten Lektüre auch etwas ratlos zurück. Haften bleibt vor allem der Eindruck, dass dies alles sehr komplex ist. Komplex ist dieser Zusammenhang in der Tat – ebenso wie die Migrationsentscheidungen selbst. Sie können von ökologischen aber sehr häufig auch von vielen anderen Faktoren und Motiven wirtschaftlicher, politischer, sozialer, kultureller oder demographischer Natur beeinflusst werden. Vieles deutet darauf hin, dass die immer noch weit verbreitete Annahme eines Automatismus zwischen Klimawandel und Migration – getreu einer Formel „weniger Regen oder mehr Dürren führt zu mehr Migration“ – stark angezweifelt werden muss. Ein solch genereller „Ökodeterminismus“ ist empirisch nicht haltbar. Menschen, die besonders unter den Auswirkungen des Klimawandels zu leiden haben, sind vor allem sehr arme Bevölkerungsgruppen in weiten Teilen des globalen Südens. Ihnen fehlen oft die notwendigen Ressourcen um überhaupt migrieren zu können bzw. diese werden durch die Auswirkungen des Klimawandels etwa in Form von Missernten noch zusätzlich erodiert. Nicht selten ist also eine fatale Immobilität statt Mobilität die Folge globaler Erwärmung. Menschliche Migration ist somit nicht unbedingt ein guter Gradmesser dafür, wie stark der Klimawandel und seine Folgen die Menschen in Afrika, Asien oder Lateinamerika treffen. Gerade auch akute Fluchtsituationen entstehen häufig aus komplexen Gemengelagen heraus. Zwar wird der Begriff des „Klimaflüchtlings“ immer noch gern und häufig benutzt, aber tatsächlich bilden bewaffnete Konflikte weltweit den Hauptfluchtgrund. Umweltfaktoren mögen neben historischen, ethnischen oder politischen Faktoren eine gewisse Rolle beim Ausbruch kriegerischer Auseinandersetzungen spielen – den Klimawandel aber als Hauptgrund etwa für den Syrien-Krieg zu bewerten, wie es immer wieder in Medienberichten zumindest angedeutet wird, ist völlig haltlos. Ebenso hängt es bei Naturkatastrophen von verschiedenen Faktoren, wie etwa dem Vorhandensein oder den Kapazitäten des örtlichen Katastrophenschutzes wie auch generell der Leistungsfähigkeit und Legitimität der staatlichen Strukturen, ab, ob es aus einer Katastrophe eine Flucht resultiert oder nicht. Bei Bemühungen um bessere Lösungen und mehr Schutz von Flüchtlingen und Migranten ist es somit zwar unabdingbar, sich mit der Rolle des Klimawandels für Migrations- und Fluchtprozesse auseinanderzusetzen. Allerdings sind beim Ringen um konkrete politische Maßnahmen Fragen danach, ob bei dieser Flucht oder jener Migration die globale Erwärmung nun der dominante Auslöser war oder nicht, aus den genannten Gründen oft nur schwer zu beantworten. Wir müssen vielmehr auch eine Antwort auf die Frage finden, was mit Menschen ist, deren Fluchtgründe definitiv nichts mit ökologischen Faktoren zu tun haben, diese aber auch nicht von der sehr engen Definition der Genfer Flüchtlingskonvention abgedeckt sind. Die Konvention bezieht sich lediglich auf individuelle oder gruppenspezifische Verfolgung. Auch für „Nicht-Konventionsflüchtlinge“ müssen bessere Lösungen gefunden und von den reichen Industrieländern des globalen Nordens getragen werden. Denn Verantwortung kann man hier nicht nur ableiten aus (historischen) Treibhausgasemissionen. Vielmehr spielen auch koloniale Ausbeutung oder unfairer Welthandel eine Rolle. Diese mögen keine Hauptgründe für Konflikte, Flucht und Migration sein. Sie tragen aber dennoch ihr Scherflein bei.

Scattered across the Balkans are stunning little gems of nature or human history that are well worth making a detour to visit.

The French Navy now has at its disposal a new sea-based deep-strike capability. The first MdCN naval cruise missiles quietly entered service in February as part of the combat systems carried by the force’s first FREMM multimission frigates.

 

FREMM frigate Provence (© FRENCH NAVY)

 

Six FREMMs to carry cruise missiles by 2019

• Lire la suite de French naval cruise missile enters service

On 26 April 2016, Australia chose France as its preferred partner for its Future Submarine Program. This enormous undertaking — estimated at €34 billion over 50 years — calls for the design, construction and in-service support of 12 conventional blue-water submarines. It also aims to give the country a sovereign submarine construction industry and to supply the Royal Australian Navy with regionally superior subs that outclass those of other powers in the broader region.

• Lire la suite de DCNS groundwork for RAN sub programme

TechnipFMC avec ses partenaires JGC Corporation et Samsung Heavy Industries, tous membres du consortium TJS dont TechnipFMC est le leader, a remporté un contrat majeur auprès de CORAL FLNG SA*. Ce contrat couvre l'ingénierie, la fourniture des équipements, la construction, l'installation, la mise en service et le démarrage de l’unité Coral South FLNG. Il comprend également l’ensemble des risers et flowlines sous-marins ainsi que l'installation des ombilicaux et des équipements sous-marins.

• Lire la suite de TechnipFMC remporte un contrat FLNG au Mozambique

“Brittany Ferries first began thinking about liquefied natural gas propulsion in 2009. Since then, it’s become part of who we are” says Frédéric Pouget, the company’s fleet manager and head of maritime and port operations. Frédéric and his team have spent years investigating LNG propulsion. LNG enables ferry operators to meet international regulatory requirements regarding sulphur oxides (SOx) while reducing other emissions relative to fuel oil, including nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulates, and CO2.

• Lire la suite de Brittany Ferries orders LNG ferry

CNB Pro, a department of Bordeaux-based yacht- and boatbuilder CNB, builds passenger boats for commercial operators. CNB Pro has been particularly busy of late. In early May, the department delivered five passenger boats to UBA, an operator based at Arcachon bay on France’s Atlantic coast south of Bordeaux. These boats are 14.15 metres in length for a beam of 4.56m and carry up to 49 passengers. Powered by a pair of 280-hp Cummins QSB 6.7 engines, they offer a top speed of 18 knots and, thanks to advanced automation, can be operated by the captain unaided.

• Lire la suite de CNB Pro, enjoying strong demand for commercial passenger boats

Following its complete refurbishment and transformation to accommodate superyachts, the large drydock at La Ciotat was formally declared open for business on Monday 3 April. Originally 335 metres in length by 60 in width, the facility was commissioned in 1969 to build large ships. In 1988, shipbuilder Normed closed the drydock and yard marking the end of a long history in shipbuilding. In 2000, the yard reopened to service large yachts. Interest in the precinct’s potential revived, except that it was too big for even the biggest superyachts.

• Lire la suite de Superyacht drydock open for business

Compositeworks has completed an extensive refit of the Ulysses, a 107-metre exploration motor yacht that has been in the main La Rochelle drydock since March. This summer, the drydock will be transformed into a covered superyacht refit facility as part of a project that symbolises the Atlantic port’s commitment to refits, repairs and rebuilds for superyachts, megayachts and the like.

• Lire la suite de La Rochelle for superyacht refits

On 21 April, the Le Havre pilot station took delivery of the L’Hirondelle de la Manche, a new 12-metre pilot boat designed by the Pierre Delion naval architecture bureau in cooperation with the Sibiril Technologies boatyard. For the design and production teams she’s a “little gem”. On 17 March, the new model passed a capsize recovery test with three people aboard, which is no mean feat for a boat of this size.

 

• Lire la suite de New pilot boat is a “little gem”

French regional cluster Bretagne Pole Naval has launched a container-based shelter concept for onshore and offshore applications ranging from accommodation modules and control centres to air conditioning, water processing and power generation.

• Lire la suite de Container-based shelters from Brittany

Deux semaines seulement après Manchester, la ville de Londres a été frappée, samedi 3 juin, par un attentat terroriste faisant au moins 7 morts et une cinquantaine de blessés. Alors que l'enquête se poursuit, les élections législatives du 8 juin sont maintenues, tandis que l'impact du Brexit sur la coopération antiterroriste pose à nouveau question.

When people think about the Balkans, it is most often as the ‘powder keg’ of Europe: a region that produces more history than it can consume. But this small group of countries next door to the European Union has been trying for more than two decades to change this stereotype. After fierce ethnic conflicts during the 1990s the Western Balkans have been moving towards the prospect of EU integration.

The joint EU accession project remains the major inspiration for peace, stability and security in the Western Balkans, whose history, culture, society and economy are inseparably linked to those of the rest of Europe. But ethnic divides are set to remain a source of instability; the enduring legacy of ancient conflicts.

The prevailing perception of the Western Balkans is that of a divided and distrustful society. I became aware of this divide as a student in Sarajevo in 2000. Bombarded buildings show a town’s suffering much better than the bitter stories of its residents. I also saw the immense impact of ethnic conflicts on the younger generation. We mixed very little with the ‘others’ – those of a ‘different’ ethnicity – whose parents or grandparents were responsible for certain past events. The scars of conflict were still fresh. Young people, despite their energy and forward-looking nature, were not yet ready to place themselves at the head of the much-needed reconciliation process.

“Conflicts of the past have left behind prejudices and intolerance”

Many hoped that time would heal the wounds. But even the young people today who have never experienced a single day of war have grown up in divided societies. The conflicts of the past have left behind prejudices and intolerance, exploited in propaganda by nationalists who consider young people to an easy target and a Balkanised generation. We see young people fighting at football matches or singing nationalist songs; it is clear that the hoped-for reconciliation has not yet arrived. This process needs time and – more importantly – work.

Reconciliation is essential for lasting peace. Reconciliation needs simultaneous top-down and bottom-up processes. And reconciliation needs effective leadership, including the efforts of ordinary citizens and (in particular) younger generations, to propel societies away from a divided past and towards a shared future.

There are lessons from elsewhere. The Franco-German Youth Office was established in 1963 to bring the young people of these countries together after two world wars. The Western Balkans is using this model today as a source of inspiration. During the 2016 Paris Western Balkans Summit an agreement was signed to set up the Regional Youth Cooperation Office. RYCO, a joint initiative of the prime ministers of Albania and Serbia, with its seat in the Albanian capital Tirana, is designed to nurture a spirit of reconciliation and cooperation among young people in the region; to strengthen bonds and promote mutual understanding. Recently there have been positive developments in this area, particularly thanks to top-level political exchanges. But political deals alone do not have the power to boost such cooperation.

Substantial reconciliation requires regional cooperation. Good neighbourhood relations can be forged only through constructive and peaceful dialogue among citizens, young people included. At a time when nationalist and populist rhetoric is gaining ground in Europe, including in the Western Balkans, young people have a responsibility to take an active stand against it.

Politicians should reject nationalism and trust young people, allowing them to take a leading role in maintaining dialogue and building bridges of friendship. Today’s young people are tomorrow’s decision-makers: they will have responsibility for ensuring sustainable security and stability in the region, as well as continued socio-economic development and further integration into the European family.

“Good neighbourhood relations can be forged only through constructive and peaceful dialogue among citizens”

This could be a hard process in a region where the wounds of conflict have not yet healed. But there is no viable alternative. European integration is a shared goal and challenge; it serves as the motivation to achieve reconciliation. But the long waiting time to join the EU, social problems arising from unemployment, slow economic growth and the lack of trust in weak institutions combine to create disappointment among young people, who tend to view themselves as a ‘lost generation’. Our societies cannot risk wasting their potential, which would seriously threaten the region’s long-term development.

The RYCO may have just taken its first steps, but there are big expectations. This does not mean that there were no such exchanges prior to this initiative or that it will immediately solve all the problems facing young people in the region. But a regional organisation that guides and coordinates cooperation among young people would strengthen the overall reconciliation process. It has the potential to gather momentum and lend a new perspective to reconciliation. Regional cooperation can only truly become a real success story in Western Balkans when it lives in the hearts and minds of its young people.

To this end, this initiative need to be associated with new policies to stimulate economic growth, create new jobs, consolidate the rule of law and democratic institutions, ensure observance of human rights and fight against corruption and organised crime. These actions would help ensure the future that our young people deserve, bringing them closer to the promise of Europe.

For the EU, stability, security and prosperity in this region are of special interest. So Europe needs to invest in young people and keep their part of the promise. Young people in the Balkans have much to offer for the future: energy, an awareness of the past, and the ability to play an active role in building a common European future.

IMAGE CREDIT: Borodin/Bigstock

The post Young people can map a European future for the Balkans appeared first on Europe’s World.

Dr Panagiota Manoli and Dr Thanos Dokos – with the contibution of Dr  Angeliki Dimitriadi and Dr Theodore Tsakiris – wrote a paper analysing the Greek perspective of relations between the EU and Turkey.  Their report has been written in the framework of the FEUTURE research project. You can access it here.

L'Experte indépendante des Nations Unies sur la situation des droits de l'homme en République Centrafricaine (RCA), Marie-Thérèse Keita Bocoum, se rendra en RCA du 7 au 16 juin pour évaluer la situation critique des droits de l'homme et de la réponse humanitaire, a annoncé mardi le Haut-Commissariat des Nations Unies aux droits de l'homme.

Comentario Elcano 28/2017 - 6/6/2017
Gonzalo Escribano

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