Speculations 20 and finance 102 Handling disagreements between countries Current relations between the USA and China : Since the two World Wars, the US has become the world9s foremost economic power, with a leading role in international institutions like the UN and NATO. The rise in economic power of China, however, is challenging the global influence of the country. To protect American businesses from China9s unfair trade practices, such as patent theft, the US have imposed tariffs on Chinese goods. In this way, they hope to make Chinese goods more expensive and less attractive to consumers than domestic produce. Wars have been 3 and still are 3 fought for several reasons, including competition over land, religion, nationalism, and economic power. Even though clashes between countries have decreased since the end of World War II, today there are more than 180 armed conflicts across the world, some of which started recently, while others have lasted for more than 50 years. Brexit impact on relations between the EU and the UK : Brexit has deeply affected the UK9s economic relationship with the EU, resulting in a 15% decrease in total trade volumes compared to the time when the UK was a member state. Despite agreements to eliminate tariffs and quotas for compliant goods, tensions persist, and future relations remain uncertain amid current geopolitical changes. Economic warfare : Concerns about potential world conflict leading to planet destruction have prompted countries to explore non-military strategies. Economic warfare represents a means by which some of the strategic goals achieved in the past using military force can be achieved by weakening the economy of opponent countries. Examples of actions intended for this purpose include trade embargoes, boycotts, sanctions, the suspension of aid and the prohibition of investment. 1 VOCABULARY Match the words with the correct definition. 1 Tariff 2 Patent 3 Quota 4 Embargo 2 a A government order to stop trading with certain countries. b A fixed limit on the amount of goods a country is allowed to trade. c The official legal right to sell or use an invention. d A government charge on goods entering or leaving a country. SPEAKING CIVIC EDUCATION PAIR WORK Can you say what these common causes of conflict refer to? Can you find any historical examples? 1 Nationalism 3 Competition over land 2 Religion 4 Economic power glossary compliant: conforme foremost: principale to weaken: indebolire 3 READING WRITING CIVIC EDUCATION SPEAKING GROUP WORK Go online and find some information about one of the armed conflicts that are being fought today. Then prepare a presentation to share with the class. You should include: " Who the belligerent countries are " How long they have been fighting against each other " Causes of the conflict " What the international community is doing to stop it Unit 20 " Speculations and fnance 117