Res Ipsa Loquitur (“The Thing Speaks for Itself”)

This past year has been momentous in many ways, with the war in Ukraine, economic turbulence, COVID-19 and other events stealing the headlines. In this year-end, three-part series, Wilson Center President and CEO Mark Green, shares his thoughts on several “stubborn things” that despite being under the radar are shaping our world; conditions and developments that, as law professors sometimes say, “res ipsa loquitur,” or speak for themselves.

Vladimir Kara-Murza is Still in Russian Prison.

In April of this year, Russian activist and author Vladimir Kara-Murza was arrested and thrown into prison for “discrediting” the military and “spreading deliberately false information.” This fall, the Kremlin announced it was investigating him for “high treason” for speaking out against Putin’s war on Ukraine, a crime that carries a 20-year sentence. But even as he sits in prison, he has continued to write essays critical of the Putin regime.

There are No Fewer than 12 UN Peacekeeping Missions Currently Deployed Worldwide.

The oldest UNTSO (UN Truce Supervision Organization), based in Jerusalem, was first set up in 1948, and has remained in the region ready to “monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating and assist other UN peacekeeping operations….”

Africa Accounts for Less than Three Percent of World Trade.

Even though Africa is the second largest continent (roughly 17 percent of the world’s population), the youngest continent (median age of 20, with 60 percent of the world’s 25 and under population), and has abundant natural resources (including important critical minerals), it only accounts for three percent of the world’s trade.

China Controls more than 40 percent of the World’s Processing Capacity of Copper, 60 percent of Lithium, and Cobalt, and 80 percent of Rare Earths.

As the International Energy Administration has put it, “China dominates production at every stage of the EV battery supply chain downstream of mining.”

More than Half of Syria’s Population has been Forcibly Displaced since 2011.

According to the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), of 22 million Syrians, more than 6.8 million have fled their country since 2011, and another 6.9 million have been internally displaced.

In the First Six Months of 2022, America Exported more Petroleum than Ever Before.

According to the US International Energy Administration, the United States became a net exporter of energy in 2019 for the first time in more than six decades, and in 2020, 2021, and early 2022, was a net petroleum exporter.

Russia Still Occupies 20 percent of Georgia.

In 2008, Russia launched a war against Georgia, in response to their strengthening ties to the West. While the fighting only lasted five days, Russian forces have occupied roughly one-fifth of Georgia ever since.

Women in Afghanistan are Now Banned from Parks.

In November, Taliban authorities banned women from all parks, pools, and gyms. During its months of negotiations with the Trump and Biden administrations, the Taliban tried to convince the world that it was a “different Taliban” than had previously ruled Afghanistan with an almost medieval flair.

Taiwan’s Largest Trading Partner is…China.

Even as tensions between the US and China rise, and countries in the region become increasingly wary of Beijing’s ambitions, many countries now rely on Chinese markets more than those from America to develop their economy.