Introduction to International Relations’ Assignment:

Top 10 Issues in International Relations

By Reicha Aditya Dendeng
NIM: 19131030213
Batch 3A, Public Relations

I. Introduction
Interactions in this global world are very complex and now involve a number of different
actors and issues, and may occur at any moment and place in the world. How we provide
certain perceptions regarding this complexity has been the defining problem in the study of
international relations.
The study of international relation is not only about learning various theories about states
and how they behave between one another, but also about practical and research-based
studies on issues surrounding states and other actors in the scope of international relations. A
lot of issues such as international economy, human rights, religions, climate change, and
technology are main subjects in the study of international relations. By identifying those
issues, we can further learn how countries react and behave in certain situations.
II. Top 10 Issues in International Relations
Looking at many problems and controversies that are happening now around the world,
we shall learn and identify deeper about the most common or popular issues surrounding the
world today. There are 10 issues, consisting different areas and disciplines that we have to
further identify to get a good understanding of how international relations work.
1. World Financial Crisis
When we are talking about the relations between countries, we cannot avoid to mention
about the financial and economic aspects of today’s world society. Many problems relating
growth of economy, inflations, massive unemployment in different countries, are unavoidable
to discuss. The most popular one today that we can take a look, is China’s currency regime.
China’s policy of intervening in currency markets to control the value of its currency, the
renminbi (RMB), against the U.S. dollar and other currencies has been of concern for many
in Congress over the past decade or so. Some Members charge that China “manipulates” its
currency in order to make its exports significantly less expensive, and its imports more
expensive, than would occur if the RMB were a freely traded currency. Some argue that
China’s “undervalued currency” has been a major contributor to the large annual U.S.
merchandise trade deficits with China (which totaled $419 billion in 2018) and the decline in
U.S. manufacturing jobs [ CITATION Way19 \l 1033 ].
 After a decade of a steady appreciation against the US dollar, investors had become
accustomed to the stability and growing strength of the yuan, currency of China. China’s
President Xi Jinping had pledged the government’s commitment to reform China’s economy
in a more market-oriented direction since he first took office in March 2013. The most recent
example that we can see that on August 5, 2019, the People's Bank of China set the yuan’s
daily reference rate below 7 per dollar for the first time in over a decade.
This, in response to new tariffs of 10% on $300 billion worth of Chinese imports imposed
by the Trump administration, set to go into effect September 1st, 2019. Global markets sold
off on the move, including in the U.S. where the DJIA (Dow Jones Industrial Average) lost
2.9% in its worst day of 2019 to date. Because of this, The U.S. Treasury Department
officially named China a currency manipulator on August 5th, 2019. It was the first time the
U.S. had done so since 1984. While mostly a symbolic move, the naming opens the door for
the Trump administration to consult with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to eliminate
any unfair advantage China's currency moves have given the country [ CITATION Inv19 \l
1033 ].
2. End of the G7/8’s Monopoly
The Group of Seven (G7) is an informal bloc of industrialized democracies consists of
Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. They
meet annually to discuss issues such as global economic governance, international security,
and energy policy. They were once the most influential and powerful force of world’s society.
They are described by IMF as the seven largest advanced economies in the
world[ CITATION IMF17 \l 1033 ].
In recent years, however, many believe that it’s now the end of the G7’s monopoly. In
addition to its internal divisions, the G7 is no longer as influential as it once was. Some argue
that without China and other emerging global powers, the group lacks relevance. In 2018,
Jim O’Neill and Alessio Terzi of the European research institute Bruegel wrote that the G7,
“in its current formulation, no longer has a reason to exist, and it should be replaced with a
more representative group of countries.”
Many analysts also believe the power and prestige of the G20, a forum for finance
ministers and central bank governors from nineteen of the world’s largest countries as well as
the EU, has surpassed that of the G7. Emerging powers including Brazil, China, India,
Mexico, and South Africa, whose absence from the G7 was often noted, all belong to the
G20. Russia remains a member of the G20, which, Patrick says, “is much more where they
belong.” The group’s member states represent about 80 percent of global GDP (Gross
Domestic Products) and two-thirds of the world’s population [ CITATION CFR19 \l 1033 ].
3. Climate Change
To state that climate change and environment issues are becoming increasingly important
in the realm of International Relations is an understatement. Global warming, deforestations,
ocean pollutions and other environment issues are the concern of all countries in the entire
world. Mitigation and adaptation debates, strategies and mechanisms are all developed at the
international level, often demonstrating the nuances of international politics and governance.
Furthermore, the inherent complexities of climate change make it a particularly difficult
phenomenon for international governance. Yet, actions at the international level continue to
provide the most effective route to tackle the scope of climate change. Many ways have been
taken to find solutions to these issues [ CITATION Gus16 \l 1033 ]. One of the example is the
2015 Paris conference which resulted the Paris Agreement on climate change and to
accelerate and intensify the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low carbon
future [ CITATION UNF18 \l 1033 ]. This shows that the world needs to work together in
facing the problems of environmental issues.
4. Rearmament and Fragile Statehood
Relations among country are not always an easy process. Sometimes there are lots of
conflicts between countries that cannot be solved in peaceful ways but using military forces
or war. This usually leads to one country being so fragile, meaning this country has a weak
state capacity or weak state legitimacy leaving citizens vulnerable to a range of shocks.
Therefore there’s a need of cooperation between countries in this crucial time.
One example is after the Sierra Leone in 2002. The country was economically very weak
and fragile after the war, leaving thousands of deaths and hungers. The UK government
supported reforms in Sierra Leone along the principle of "security first" over the last decade,
which is believed to have improved security, increased access to and the quality of justice,
decreased corruption and positively reformed public service. Since the end of the civil war in
2002, there has been no major violence, peaceful elections were held in 2007 and there has
been enough stability to help build sustainable institutions. Yet Sierra Leone suffers severe
underdevelopment and ranked third to last on the UN Human Development Index for 2010.
This in turn has created frustration and disappointment amongst the younger generation and
poses a significant risk of a return to violence [CITATION Ali \l 1033 ].
5. Religion as a Factor
It’s not a new thing in the international realm, that religions, are often be the main cause
or factors of conflict between countries. Wars and terrors between countries had been done in
the name of religions for years. These range from Islamic extremists waging global jihad and
power struggles between Sunni and Shia Muslims in the Middle East to the persecution of
Rohingya in Myanmar and outbreaks of violence between Christians and Muslims across
Africa.
The spike in religious violence is global and affects virtually every religious group. A
2018 Minority Rights Group report indicates that mass killings and other atrocities are
increasing in countries both affected and not affected by war alike. While bloody encounters
were recorded in over 50 countries, most reported lethal incidents involving minorities were
concentrated in Syria, Iraq, Nigeria, India, Myanmar, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Hostilities
against Muslims and Jews also increased across Europe, as did threats against Hindus in
more than 18 countries. Making matters worse, 55 of the world’s 198 countries imposed
heightened restrictions on religions, especially Egypt, Russia, India, Indonesia and Turkey
[ CITATION WEF19 \l 1033 ].
6. Urbanization
Urbanization usually refers to the population shift from rural areas to urban areas. This
impacted to urban areas being overpopulated and rural areas left behind. This happened
because of imbalanced economic situation within the country, lack of job availability in rural
areas, and more promising career goals in urban areas. Ongoing rapid urbanization has the
potential to improve the well-being of societies.
Yet urbanization also presents many human development challenges. It is estimated that
nearly 40 percent of the world’s urban expansion may be in slums, exacerbating economic
disparities and unsanitary conditions. Rapid urbanization is also linked to environmental
concerns and many cities located in coastal areas or on river banks may also be vulnerable to
natural disasters such as storms, cyclones and floods. Likewise, poor urban infrastructure -
such as unreliable power systems, congested roads and poor public transport, inefficient ports
and inadequate schools - reduces cities' competitiveness and economic prospects
[ CITATION Tha17 \l 1033 ].
7. Migration
In international world, migration is a common issue. Internal Organization for Migration
(IOM) defines International migration as the movement of a person or a group of persons,
either across an international border, or within a State. It includes migration of refugees,
displaced persons, economic migrants, and persons moving for other purposes, including
family reunification [CITATION IOM06 \l 1033 ].
The reason for the recent rise in international migration and its widening global reach are
complex. The factors include growing global disparities in development, democracy, and
demography. For example refugees of Rohingya, Myanmar. They were having disparities in
their country so that they have to seek refuge in other countries nearby such as Brunei,
Malaysia and Indonesia.
8. Inequality of “life chances”
Different countries have different conditions within them either it’s socially,
economically, or safety. These factors contribute to the “life chances” of people within the
country [ CITATION Kri13 \l 1033 ]. Some countries with high GDP, great education system,
good governance usually have better chance to make the people living in long and
comfortable life. In the opposite, poor countries that dealing with poverty, social and safety
issues, usually have less chances of life.
According to World Health Organization (WHO), countries like Japan, Switzerland and
Singapore have the longest life expectancy in the world at 87 years. In the other side of the
spectrum, life expectancy for both men and women is still less than 55 years in nine sub-
 Saharan African countries such as Angola, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lesotho, Mozambique, Nigeria and Sierra Leone
[ CITATION WHO14 \l 1033 ].

9. Internationalization of Science/Technology
With the significant progress in science and technology such as internet, gadgets, high-
tech inventions, new-found science and medicines, countries need to compete and collaborate
with each other so that they can stay relevant in the international world. The IT revolution
has brought about most profound changes in the way human activities and endeavours are
conducted. These fundamental changes range from newer methods in the industrial
production of goods and services, for example the use of computer-aided design (CAD) and
computer numerically-controlled machines (CNC) in the textile industry, to standardization
of patterns of consumption, social behavior and cultural expression [ CITATION Cra13 \l
1033 ].
Globalization also has brought a various new kinds of organizations. These actors in
‘global’ civil society demand the attention of social scientist which are also employers of
social scientists and producers of new kinds of knowledge. For example producers like
Apple, Windows, Samsung, Tesla and so many more, are contributing to their country
stabilization and relations to their neighboring countries.
10. New Governance Mechanisms
There are some issues that occurred in the most recent years within the scope of
International relations. These issues include:
- Democracy,
- Food, water and energy,
- Space related issues,
- Cyber and safety issues,
- International crimes,
- Social media.
All these issues are common in recent years and need specific solutions and cooperation
between countries to tackle all these problems.
III. Conclusion
In conclusion, International Relations is a study about world problems and issues
involving countries and other international actors. By maintaining relationship between
countries, can resolve lots of social, economic, and safety issues around the world.
Also, Rapid increasing globalization is forcing us to re-examine our prior understandings
about the role of the state, the non-state actors such as non-governmental organizations
(which also includes but is not limited to multinational corporations), as well as individuals,
 along with themes such as international political economy, economic global trade,
development, human rights, and so on.
By identifying all the issues above, we can better understand the main function and
objective of international relations in modern era.

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