It has only been 17 days after we ring in the year of 2020, but there have been so many things happening around us.
Several cities in Indonesia suffered from flash floods at the beginning of this year with Jakarta being one of the worst affected cities. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency has estimated that the flood had cost the capital more than US$ 730 million, or more than 30% higher than the costs paid for the damage from the floods in 2013.
Nurul Fajar Januriyadi of Universitas Pertamina writes that the cost may increase up to fifth fold in 2050 as a result of the climate crisis and Jakarta’s urban development.
After facing nature’s wrath, Indonesia had to deal with threats from China, whose fishing vessels had again trespassed into Indonesia’s water territory around the Natuna Islands.
Yet, Indonesia downplayed this threat. And it is not the first time, Yohanes Sulaiman, associate lecturer of Universitas Jendral Achmad Yani, states.
He argues that Indonesia’s classic move against China derives from the country’s military strategic culture which focuses on domestic threats.
I have also picked up great analyses from The Conversation global editions on the latest incidents around the globe, including bushfires in Australia, US-Iran conflict as well the plane accident related to that conflict.
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A resident sits inside a styrofoam box as he wades through a flooded area in Jakarta in early January.
Mast Irham/EPA
Nurul Fajar Januriyadi, Universitas Pertamina
Indonesia's capital Jakarta will face escalating flood costs by 2050.
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Indonesian President Joko Widodo (central) visiting a military base in the Natuna islands, near the South China Sea, Indonesia, January 8, 2020.
Agus Soeparto (handout, made available by Indonesian Presidential Palace))/EPA
Yohanes Sulaiman, Universitas Jendral Achmad Yani
Indonesia's response to China's 2016 incursion into its exclusive economic zone was short-lived. And again, it's sending mixed signals in the Natuna sea dispute.
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From our international editions
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Gabriel da Silva, University of Melbourne
Bushfire smoke accumulating over Australian cities contains a complex chemical mix which does all sorts of things to the human body.
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Ben Rich, Curtin University
In recent decades, most nations have agreed on certain norms to ensure peace, including an end to assassinations. Trump's move to kill an Iranian general upends this carefully balanced system.
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Aurel Braun, University of Toronto
Flight PS752 is more than just a terrible tragedy. It's also revealed the potential future costs of Iran's irresponsibility.
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