This is ‘Global Village Today’, which delivers major news from various countries around the world.
Moderator) What news do you have today?
Reporter) Yes. The leaders of the 20 major countries (G20) have agreed to limit global warming. However, it failed to set a specific deadline for ‘carbon neutrality’. In Japan’s House of Representatives general election, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party succeeded in securing a majority of seats. We will continue with the news that the Sudan military has announced that it will soon appoint a prime minister who is a professional bureaucrat.
Host) This is the first news from the global village today. The G20 summit came to an end last weekend. Did the leaders agree to limit global warming?
Reporter) Yes. On the 31st of last month, at the end of the summit, a joint declaration (communique) was issued. Leaders agreed in the declaration that the impact of climate change is less when the global average temperature rises within 1.5°C than when it is within 2.0°C, and that meaningful and effective actions and commitment are needed to achieve the 1.5°C target. I did.
Moderator) The temperature mentioned in the joint declaration is the temperature targeted by the Paris climate agreement, right?
Reporter) Yes. The Paris Agreement, signed in 2015, aims to keep the increase in global average temperature within 2.0°C, ideally within 1.5°C, compared to pre-industrial levels in this century.
Moderator) So, is this joint declaration reaffirming the goals of the Paris climate agreement?
Reporter) That’s right. It is a reaffirmation of the goals set forth by climate change and the will to make efforts to realize them.
Moderator) The international community is promoting so-called ‘carbon neutrality’ in order to achieve the goals set out in the Paris Agreement. Did you agree on specific measures in this regard at this summit?
reporter) No. Regarding carbon neutrality, attention was focused on whether a deadline for realizing carbon neutrality would be set before the summit. The Joint Statement only mentioned “until the middle of this century”.
Moderator) What is the concept of carbon neutrality?
Reporter) Yes. It means taking measures corresponding to the amount of carbon emission and making the actual emission ‘0’.
Moderator) Advanced countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, set 2050 as the carbon-neutral deadline, right?
Reporter) Yes. These countries have set a goal to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2050. Russia and China, on the other hand, have a later deadline of 2060.
Moderator) Then, at this summit, there was no agreement on setting a specific deadline for carbon neutrality, right?
Reporter) That’s right. It seems that the member states could not resolve their differences and eventually compromised with the phrase “until the middle of this century”.
Moderator) Another important item related to climate change at this summit was the issue of coal power generation. What agreement has been reached on this issue?
Reporter) Yes. Until the end of this year, member states have agreed not to finance new coal power projects overseas. As you well know, coal power generation emits a lot of greenhouse gases that cause global warming.
Moderator) So the issue of stopping coal power generation was also raised on the agenda at this meeting, right?
Reporter) Yes. There was discussion of a plan to set a deadline and completely suspend coal power generation. In the end, this plan also did not reach an agreement and ended by stopping the provision of new funds for overseas coal power plants within this year.
Moderator) Did you know that there are countries that use a lot of coal even within the G20?
Reporter) That’s right. China, Russia and India are such countries. Several media outlets reported that these countries opposed the time-limited phase-out of coal-fired power generation.
Moderator) What other agreements have been reached regarding climate change?
Reporter) Yes. Included in the declaration is a statement that advanced countries will fulfill their promise to support developing countries by raising $100 billion annually by 2025 to help developing countries respond to climate change.
Moderator) What are the responses of the G20 leaders to the climate change agreement?
Reporter) Yes. Positive and negative crossed. First, US President Joe Biden criticized China and Russia for not attending the meeting, calling them “disappointing”. However, it was evaluated that great progress had been made at this meeting. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Twitter that “the hopes they have brought are leaving Rome unfulfilled.” However, environmental groups criticized the results of the G20 summit.
Moderator) Aside from climate change, are you curious about what agreements were reached at this G20 summit?
Reporter) Yes. First, they agreed to a minimum corporate tax rate of 15% for multinational corporations operating in the country.
Moderator) This is called the minimum corporate tax rate, is it one of the measures to prevent tax evasion?
Reporter) Yes. Multinational corporations tend to look for countries with no or cheap taxes. To prevent this, all countries should introduce minimum corporate tax rates. The issue of countermeasures against the novel coronavirus was also an issue. The leaders have agreed to achieve 40% of the global coronavirus vaccination rate by the end of this year and 70% by the middle of next year.
Moderator) The G20 summit is over, but an important international conference started right in the UK, right?
Reporter) Yes. The 26th United Nations Conference of the Parties to Climate Change (COP26) started its full-scale schedule on the 1st in Glasgow, England. COP26 is considered the most important climate conference held since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015. Many G20 leaders also attend this meeting.
Moderator) The global village is the next news today. The Japanese House of Representatives elections were held on the 31st of last month. Did the ruling party win?
Reporter) Yes. An election was held that day with 465 seats in the House of Representatives. The LDP won 261 seats. There were 15 seats less than before. Still, the LDP alone won more than half of the seats.
Moderator) What kind of results did the LDP and the Gongmyung Party, which form a coalition government, achieve?
Reporter) Yes. Gongmyungdang took 32 seats, three more seats compared to the last time. If so, the ruling LDP-Gongmyung coalition won 293 seats in this election.
Moderator) The coalition ruling party has won a majority, what is the future?
Reporter) It seems that stable political operation is possible. This is enough to monopolize the chairpersons of all standing committees. There is no problem in handling various bills. However, it fell short of the two-thirds number of seats required for constitutional amendment.
Moderator) How did the opposition parties perform?
Reporter) Yes. The largest opposition party, the Constitutional Democratic Party, has reduced the number of seats to 96 from the previous 110. In the midst of this, the Japan Restoration Society, which shows a right-wing tendency, won 41 seats, surpassing the Gongmyung Party and rising as the third party at a glance. The Japan Restoration Society has almost quadrupled its seats this time.
Moderator) What was the issue in this election?
Reporter) Yes. This election was an election in which issues such as measures against the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), economic measures centered on bridging the gap, and diplomatic and security issues surrounding securing the ability to attack enemy bases were at issue.
Moderator) What did the Liberal Democratic Party say after winning the House of Representatives election?
Reporter) Yes. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters, “I want the government and the government to run in a solid direction according to the results of the general election.” “We will come up with a plan for economic recovery by mid-November,” he said.
Host) Global Village Today, let’s look at one more news. The news that the Sudanese military will soon appoint a prime minister, right?
Reporter) Yes. Sudan’s military leader, General Abdel Fatta Burhan, said in a recent interview with Russia’s Sputnik news agency that he would appoint a prime minister from a professional bureaucracy within this week.
Moderator) In Sudan, is the civilian government in a state of collapse?
Reporter) Yes. Sudan’s military coup d’état on the 25th of last month dissolved the Sovereignty Council and the government.
Moderator) Was the Sovereignty Commission the highest decision-making body in which the military and civilians participated?
Reporter) Yes. In 2019, after the military overthrew then-President Omar al-Bashir in a military coup, the military and civilian groups created the Sovereignty Commission.
Moderator) But what was the reason for the Sudan military’s second coup d’etat?
Reporter) Yes. General Burhan said the military had taken over the regime again to prevent inter-party confrontation from escalating into a civil war.
Host) But, do you know that there is a controversy over the timing of the coup?
Reporter) That’s right. In order to reduce the influence of the military, General Burhan was scheduled to hand over the position of the head of the Sovereignty Commission to the private sector, but a coup d’état took place a few weeks before that.
Moderator) Are there any candidates currently being talked about as prime ministers?
Reporter) Yes. The military has not yet announced the number of candidates for prime minister. Sudan’s military is known to want a non-partisan professional bureaucrat as prime minister.
Moderator) So, who appoints the new government ministers? Is the military doing it?
reporter) No. General Burhan said a new prime minister would form a cabinet. He explained that the new government would share power with the military.
Moderator) So, is Sudan still in a state where power is divided between the military and the civilian government established by the military?
Reporter) Yes. General Burhan said he would hold a general election in July 2023. If there is a general election, a new government will have to be formed. At that time, it is unclear whether the military will completely hand over the government to the private sector.
Moderator) Did the Sudanese army detain the prime minister during the coup?
Reporter) Yes. Sudanese joint forces arrested Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok and several high-ranking officials on the day of the coup. However, when the military arrested Prime Minister Hamdok, pressure from the international community poured in. So, in the end, Prime Minister Hamdok was released, who is now known to be under house arrest.
Moderator) After the coup, didn’t there be protests against it?
Reporter) Yes. Al Jazeera Broadcasting reported that at least 11 people have died so far. In particular, Al Jazeera reported that at least three people were killed in the protests on the 30th of last month.
Moderator) Yes. The global village will listen up to today.
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