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TheCOVID-19 pandemic has affected international relations and has caused diplomatic tensions, as well as resulted in aUnited Nations Security Council resolution demanding aglobal ceasefire.
Some scholars have argued thatthe pandemic necessitates a significant rethinking of existing approaches tointernational relations, with a greater focus on issues such as health diplomacy,[1] the politics ofcrisis,[2] and border politics.[3] Others have argued that the pandemic is unlikely to lead to significant changes in the international system.[4]Diplomatic relations have been affected due to tensions around trade and transport of medicines,diagnostic tests,vaccines and hospital equipment related to mitigating the impact ofCOVID-19.[5][6] Leaders of some countries have accused others of not containing the disease or responding effectively.[7][8]
Muzaffar S. Abduazimov mentions that currently, diplomatic practice experiencing "six major trends caused by the pandemic are namely:acceleration of ICTs penetration;reappraisal ofinformation security; ensuring thereliability of public diplomacy; furtherdiversification of responsible duties; thegrowing role of psychology; and, the emergence of thehybrid diplomatic etiquette and protocol."[9]
TheChinese government has been criticized by theUnited States for its handling of the pandemic, which began in the Chinese province ofWuhan.[10] InBrazil, CongressmanEduardo Bolsonaro, son of PresidentJair Bolsonaro, caused a diplomatic dispute with China when he retweeted a message saying: "The blame for the global coronavirus pandemic has a name and surname: theChinese Communist party." Yang Wanming, China's top diplomat in Brazil, retweeted a message that said: "The Bolsonaro family is the great poison of this country."[11]
Statepropaganda in China has been promoting a narrative that China'sauthoritarian system is uniquely capable of curbing the coronavirus and contrasts that with the chaotic response of theWestern democracies.[12][13][14] European Union foreign policy chiefJosep Borrell said that "China is aggressively pushing the message that, unlike the US, it is a responsible and reliable partner."[15]
To counter its negative image,China has sent aid to 82 countries, theWorld Health Organization, and theAfrican Union.[16][17][18] According to Yangyang Cheng, a postdoctoral research associate atCornell University, "The Chinese government has been trying to project Chinese state power beyond its borders and establish China as a global leader, not dissimilar to what the U.S. government has been doing for the better part of a century, and the distribution of medical aid is part of this mission."[18] Borrell warned that there is "a geo-political component including a struggle for influence through spinning and the ‘politics of generosity’."[15]
The Chinese government, officials, and state-run media have attempted to deflect criticisms by pushing theconspiracy theory that the coronavirus originated in the United States and that theU.S. Army initiated the coronavirus epidemic in Wuhan; there is no evidence to support these claims.[19] The U.S. State Department summoned the Chinese ambassador on Friday to protest conspiracy theories spread byZhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry.[19]
Because of China's perceived mishandling of the coronavirus epidemic, the largest tabloid newspaper of Germany put together a 130 billion euros damage that they would like for China to pay to Germany. China responded that this act stirs up xenophobia and racism.[20]
Spain, Turkey and the Netherlands announced that thousands of testing kits and medical masks exported from China are below standard or defective. The Dutch health ministry recalled 600,000 face masks, Spain encountered problems with 60,000 test kits and Turkey had problems with accuracy of some test kits.[21]
The United States has come under scrutiny by officials from other countries for allegedly diverting shipments of crucial supplies meant for other countries.[22][23][24]
Jean Rottner, thePresident of France'sRegional Council of Grand Est, accused the United States of disrupting face mask deliveries by buying at the last minute.[25] French officials stated that Americans came to the airport tarmac and offered several times the French payment as the shipment was prepared for departure to France.[23] Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada, askedBill Blair, thePublic Safety Minister, andMarc Garneau, theTransportation Minister, to investigate allegations that medical supplies originally intended for Canada were diverted to the United States.[26] German politicianAndreas Geisel accused the United States of committing "modern piracy" after reports that 200,000 N95 masks meant for German police were diverted during an en-route transfer between airplanes in Thailand to the United States,[27] but later changed his statement after he clarified that the mask orders were made through a German firm, not a U.S. firm as earlier stated, and the supply chain issues were under review.[28]
Due to shortages in coronavirus tests, Maryland GovernorLarry Hogan had his wifeYumi Hogan, who was born in South Korea, speak with the South Korean ambassador. Afterwards, multiple South Korea companies stated that they would send tests to Maryland.[29]
On 2 April 2020, President Trump invoked theDefense Production Act of 1950 to halt exports of masks produced by3M to Canada and Latin America.[30] Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that it would be a mistake for both their countries to limit trade of essential goods or services, including medical supplies and professionals, and remarked that this moves in both directions.[30] The Canadian government has turned to China and other places for crucial medical supplies, while they seek a constructive discussion about the issue with the Trump administration.[31]
Donald Trump warned India for retaliation if the government did not releasehydroxychloroquine medicine to the US.[32][33] Following this, India lifted the temporary export ban on the drug paving the way for shipping it to the United States.[34]
AReuters 2024 report revealed that the United States government launcheda covert propaganda and disinformation campaign that aimed to erodeFilipinos' trust in vaccines developed by China and Russia amidst tenseUS-Philippine relations under Philippine PresidentRodrigo Duterte, who sought closer ties with the two countries.[35]
The Spanish Prime MinisterPedro Sánchez stated that "If we don't propose now a unified, powerful and effective response to this economic crisis, not only the impact will be tougher, but its effects will last longer and we will be putting at risk the entire European project", while the Italian Prime MinisterGiuseppe Conte commented that "the whole European project risks losing its raison d'être in the eyes of our own citizens".[36] From 4 to 19 March, Germany banned the export ofpersonal protective equipment,[37][38] and France also restricted exports of medical equipment, drawing criticism from EU officials who called for solidarity.[39] ManySchengen Area countries closed their borders to stem the spread of the virus.[40]
Debates over how to respond to the epidemic and its economic fallout have opened up a rift betweenNorthern andSouthern European member states, reminiscent of debates over the 2010sEuropean debt crisis.[41] Nine EU countries—Italy, France, Belgium, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and Luxembourg—called for "corona bonds" (a type ofeurobond) in order to help their countries to recover from the epidemic, on 25 March. Their letter stated, "The case for such a common instrument is strong, since we are all facing a symmetric external shock."[42][43] Northern European countries such as Germany, Austria, Finland, and the Netherlands oppose the issuing of joint debt, fearing that they would have to pay it back in the event of a default. Instead, they propose that countries should apply for loans from theEuropean Stability Mechanism.[44][45] Corona bonds were discussed on 26 March 2020 in aEuropean Council meeting, which dragged out for three hours longer than expected due to the "emotional" reactions of the prime ministers of Spain and Italy.[46][47] European Council PresidentCharles Michel[45] andEuropean Central Bank headChristine Lagarde have urged the EU to consider issuing joint debt.[47] Unlike theEuropean debt crisis—partly caused by the affected countries—southern European countries did not cause the coronavirus pandemic, therefore eliminating the appeal to national responsibility.[44]
Sixteen member nations of the European Union issued a statement warning that certain emergency measures issued by countries during the coronavirus pandemic could undermine the principles of rule of law and democracy on 1 April. They announced that they "support the European Commission initiative to monitor the emergency measures and their application to ensure the fundamental values of the Union are upheld."[48] The statement does not mention Hungary, but observers believe that it implicitly refers to a Hungarian law grantingplenary power to the Hungarian Government during the coronavirus pandemic. The following day, the Hungarian Government joined the statement.[49][50]
TheHungarian parliament passed the law granting plenary power to the Government by qualified majority, 137 to 53 votes in favor, on 30 March 2020. After promulgating the law, thePresident of Hungary,János Áder, announced that he had concluded that the time frame of the Government's authorization would be definite and its scope would be limited.[51][52][53][54]Ursula von der Leyen, thePresident of the European Commission, stated that she was concerned about the Hungarian emergency measures and that it should be limited to what is necessary and Minister of StateMichael Roth suggested that economic sanctions should be used against Hungary.[55][56]
The heads of thirteen member parties of theEuropean People's Party (EPP) made a proposal to expunge the HungarianFidesz for the new legislation on 2 April. In response, Viktor Orbán expressed his willingness to discuss any issues relating to Fidesz's membership "once the pandemic is over" in a letter addressed to the Secretary General of EPPAntonio López-Istúriz White. Referring to the thirteen leading politicians' proposal, Orbán also stated that "I can hardly imagine that any of us having time for fantasies about the intentions of other countries. This seems to be a costly luxury these days."[57] During a video conference of the foreign ministers of the European Union member states on 3 April 2020, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs,Péter Szijjártó, asked for the other ministers to read the legislation itself not its politically motivated presentations in newspapers before commenting on it.[58]
Japan–South Korea relations worsened as a result of the pandemic.[59] AfterJapan declared it would start quarantining all arrivals fromSouth Korea, the South Korean government described the move as “unreasonable, excessive and extremely regrettable”, and that it couldn't "help but question whether Japan has other motives than containing the outbreak".[60]
In response to dramatic drop in oil consumption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Saudi Arabia attempted to orchestrate a worldwide decrease in oil production to keep prices at a moderate level. However, when Russia refused to reduce oil production, Saudi Arabia triggered an oil price war in March 2020. This economic conflict resulted in a sheer drop of oil price over the spring of 2020, with the price becoming negative on April 20. Since oil production isinelastic and cannot be stopped completely, but even the lowest possible production level generates much greater supply than demand, the oil industry has nowhere to store oil and is ready to pay for it being taken away.[61][62]
Iran's regime spread a narrative that the coronavirus was a conspiracy orchestrated by the United States.[63]Hossein Salami, commander-in-chief of theIslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, suggested that the coronavirus may have been an American biological invasion.[63]
On 14 May 2020, fifty-two of the fifty-seven deputies of theLegislative Assembly of Costa Rica signed a letter addressed to the director of thePan American Health Organization (PAHO),Carissa Etienne, in which they expressed their "concern" for the situation of thepandemic by COVID-19 in Nicaragua, calling for "forceful and urgent measures to be taken in this regard" in the neighboring country, and, at the same time, warning that Nicaragua's response could have negative effects on the rest of the Central American countries. The deputies questioned the Nicaraguan government's figures of 25 coronavirus infections with eight deaths, in contrast to data from the independent Citizen Observatory, which has calculated 1,033 cases and at least 188 deaths in Nicaragua.[64]
As a result of this, the deputies of the Nicaraguan government party, theSandinista National Liberation Front, issued a statement on 15 May rejecting the act of the Costa Rican deputies, calling it as "political demands that evidently reflect xenophobic and racist positions that is not the first time that they have demonstrated against Nicaragua”.[65]
In the midst of theCOVID-19 pandemic, international actors provided several relief packages and support actions to help countries deal with the outbreak. In the early phases of the epidemic, several countries donated masks, medical equipment and money to China. Once the crisis in China stabilised, the country began sending aid to other nations. In March, China, Cuba and Russia sent medical supplies and experts to help Italy deal with its coronavirus outbreak. Some commentators raised suspicions on these moves and dubbed them as a form of propaganda.[66] To some, health diplomacy provided the opportunity to create narratives of friends and enemies in an attempt to win the hearts and minds of foreign audiences.[67][68]
The UK'sNational Cyber Security Centre, together with the CanadianCommunications Security Establishment, the United States Department for Homeland SecurityCybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency, and the USNational Security Agency in mid-July, 2020, jointly alleged that Russian state-backed hackers have been trying to steal COVID-19 treatment and vaccine research from academic and pharmaceutical institutions in other countries; Russia has denied these allegations.[69]
The COVID-19 pandemic led to a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding a global ceasefire. On March 23, 2020, United Nations Secretary-GeneralAntónio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres issued an appeal for a global ceasefire as part of theUnited Nations' response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[70][71] On 24 June 2020, 170 UN Member States and Observers signed a non-binding statement in support of the appeal,[72] rising to 172 on 25 June 2020. On 1 July 2020, the UN Security Council passed resolutionS/RES/2532 (2020), demanding a "general and immediate cessation of hostilities in all situations on its agenda," expressing support for "the efforts undertaken by the Secretary-General and his Special Representatives and Special Envoys in that respect," calling for "all parties to armed conflicts to engage immediately in a durable humanitarian pause" of at least 90 consecutive days, and calling for greater international cooperation to address the pandemic.[73]
It is uncertain whether armed conflicts have escalated or de-escalated during the pandemic. Rustad and colleagues argue that the success of COVID-related ceasefires has been very limited so far.[74] A study of nine selected countries finds that the pandemic increased conflict intensity in India, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan and the Philippines. This was the case as rebel groups tried to exploit weaknesses of the state apparatus during the pandemic, while international attention shifted away from armed groups. Even in countries where conflict intensity declined, such as Afghanistan or Colombia, rebels attempt to gain new followers by implementing their own pandemic response or by recruiting unemployed youth. However, just like governments, rebel groups also face enormous challenges due to border closures and economic recession.[75] In line with this, the overall number of battles increased after the first wave of lockdowns in the Middle East. However, there was a downwards trend in Asia, most likely related to logistical challenges for armed groups.[76] Another study on global conflict trends detects a temporary decline in protest events after the first wave of lockdowns in March and April 2020 for around six months. Battles events, by contrast, did not decline and even increased in some countries (such as Libya) because armed groups aimed to exploit pandemic-related weaknesses of their opponents.[77]