2018.05.10 14:00 - 16:00
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Special Lecture by Thomas Weiss_lecture
#Governance
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Special Lecture by Thomas Weiss_book signing
#Governance
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Special Lecture by Thomas Weiss_panel discussion
#Governance
On May 10, Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies hosted the Special Lecture by Prof. Thomas G. Weiss, a political science professor in international relations and global governance at the CUNY Graduate Center. On this occasion, Prof. Weiss shared his valuable insights on the United Nations as depicted in his latest book, Would the World Be Better Without the UN? with an audience of more than 100. The introduction of the speaker was made by Dr. Soo Hyun Kim of UNICEF Seoul Office.
Prof. Weiss indicated two ways the UN has contributed in the world, the first in terms of ideas, norms, principles and standards, and the second in terms of concrete operations. He outlined the UN’s activities in its three main pillars: peace and security, human rights and humanitarian affairs, and sustainable development. He argued that the world will have been far worse off on several crucial junctures without the inputs from the UN system. To elaborate, he stated some of the major issues that the world has previously encountered and is currently facing, namely epidemics, climate change, and war crimes. By stating the many ills that the world is suffering from and by illustrating the different compositions of the UN that are designated to serve these ills, Prof. Weiss underlined the role of the UN in convening conversations and orchestrating actions to meet most of these threats. The UN’s comparative advantage, he pointed out, is pulling together long-term efforts in dealing with global instability and acting as a catalyst in global risk management.
Moreover, Prof. Weiss posed the question of how worse off the world would be without the UN, as well as how better off we might be with better performances by the member states, civilians, and the police and military who are serving the UN. Using these counter-factuals, he summed up his argument in the words, “the unrealized promise of multilateralism and international cooperation.”
Stating that sovereignty in the midst of globalization is no longer what it used to be, Prof. Weiss encouraged the audience to contemplate the meaning of the UN in the age of Trump and “America first”. Prof. Weiss highlighted the need to realize how US interests were once served through international cooperation including the UN and supported this by describing the wartime origins of the UN. He reminded the audience that the kind of commitment at the time of the formation of the UN was indeed necessary to ensure postwar peace, stability, and economic development.
Emphasizing the conditions and leaderships necessary to make international institutions and multilateralism relevant today, Prof. Weiss also reinforced the important role of the middle powers such as Korea and the collective action of the member states.
The lecture was followed by a discussion session with Prof. Tae Yong Jung of Yonsei University during which Prof. Weiss elaborated on the “third UN” that focuses on the role of non-state actors and NGOs, as well as on the reform and leadership of the UN. The lecture concluded with a Q&A session that opened the floor to the audience and a book signing event for the speaker’s most recent publication, Would the World Be Better Without the UN?.
Thomas WEISS, JUNG Tae Yong