(VOVWORLD) - 70 heads of state but not US President Donald Trump, will attend the Paris Peace Forum from Sunday to Tuesday. The event, which coincides with the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War, promotes cooperation in addressing global challenges.
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The Paris Peace Forum was inspired by the COP21, the UN Climate Change Conference held in Paris in 2015. Its aim is peace through better global governance and reducing international tensions.
Promoting multilateral cooperation
The Forum is part of a campaign initiated by French President Emmanuel Macron in the summer of 2017. It reaffirms the importance of multilateralism and collective action in responding to current global challenges: strategic rivalry between world powers, sectarian conflicts, terrorism, cyber crimes, regional hotbeds, and climate change. By drawing international attention to a week of commemorations of the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One, President Macron voiced his objection to nationalism, following his recent warning that the world risks forgetting the lessons of the 20th century’s major conflicts.
The Paris Peace Forum’s main five topics are peace and security, the environment, development, digital and other new technologies, and the inclusive economy. 150 projects will be outlined that contribute to making international cooperation better, globalization fairer and multilateral systems more efficient.
The attendance of dozens of states and hundreds of international organizations demonstrate the world’s desire for multilateral cooperation.
Absence of US
President Trump refused to attend because he said the Forum’s objectives do not match his “America First” slogan. The US had made a series of recent withdrawals from its international commitments - the Paris Climate Agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Iran nuclear deal, UNESCO, and the UN Human Rights Council. In a 35-minute address to the UN General Assembly session on September 25, President Trump rejected globalization and pledged to protect American interests.
Trump’s “American first” policy has received strong criticism as protectionism will lead to greater tensions.
The world faces challenges that no single country can resolve. The Paris Peace Forum is an effort to unite countries. But everything will be harder without the involvement of the US.