With COVID-19 vaccines potentially available soon, what happens in conflict zones? Previous health diplomacy shows not to rely on vaccine diplomacy or medical diplomacy for peace. Even with vaccination ceasefires, wars typically re-start after. Should we actively promote disease diplomacy or separate vaccination and conflict resolution?
Background:
1. https://doi.org/10.1080/10402659.2019.1667564
2. https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.12306
More on coronavirus diplomacy:
1. Pandemic diplomacy https://www.europeansociologist.org/issue-45-pandemic-impossibilities-vol-1/political-economy-and-politics-%E2%80%93-pandemic-diplomacy-peace
2. China's coronavirus diplomacy http://polarconnection.org/china-coronavirus-diplomacy
3. Coronavirus Disaster Diplomacy https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/03/03/disaster-diplomacy-iran-coronavirus-north-korea-not-path-to-peace
4. Why no coronavirus diplomacy? https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/irdr/2020/05/07/why-no-coronavirus-diplomacy
Vaccine diplomacy in the Pacific, South-East Asia https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-10-31/federal-government-to-ramp-up-pacific-vaccine-diplomacy/12834020
Well said Dr. Hermamm G. Politics plays major role here( within, outside and among the countries). Every where corruption only and planning for vaccine business. Horrible and terrible consequences..
prof Ilan Kelman's "China's coronavirus diplomacy"
"Chinese government has been using Twitter to spread conspiracy theories that the US army brought the virus to China".
The first to spread fake news and conspiracy theories have been exactly the US (President Donal Trump called it China's virus, media as The Diplomat and Foreign Policy played also their part).
Health diplomacy like other forms of assistance is a good thing as it is one of the ways that international cooperation can be promoted. Disaster relief, Search and Rescue and other forms of help have the potential to promote peace through confidence building, promoting transparency about each others' vulnerability to natural external threats etc. The tsunami disaster that hit Indonesia to some extent helped make these kinds of cooperation to become like accepted norms. As a result, in ASEAN at least, it is easier to accept assistance from other countries even when it involves deployment of military-type assistance. The case of the numerous offers of help in the search oh MH370 is an example. Nevertheless, my emphasis is on the word "may". While I think this form of diplomacy may encourage long-term evolution of cooperative norms, I think its pre-mature to argue that it necessarily leads to peace.
Thank you, everyone, for these useful points and discussion. Looking forward to any more thoughts. With best wishes!
Aroop Mohanty Keeping them separate from each other has the potential for inhibiting disease eradication (see the references given above). How would an appropriate balance be found?
All the countries need to sit together under a common body and see to it that no politics is played in the distribution of vaccines and also stop blaming each other. The need of the hour is coming together and standing united against this deadly virus which has brought the world on the verge of extinction.
Aroop Mohanty Thank you. This is a helpful approach in theory and it has been implemented in practice through Covax. Yet we do not see all countries sitting together and we still see them blaming each other. Irrespective of the theory and practice, it is still not happening, so what would actually work? Thank you!