SOFT POWER AT WORK

Pope Francis illustrates how to approach UN resolutions

On September 9, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) voted in favour of an Argentine initiative establishing basic principles to be followed in cases of debt restructuring. The principles — nine in total — are designed to protect debtor countries in default from illegitimate pressures or reprisals from creditors.

Of the 183 votes cast at UNGA, 135 nations voted in favour, 42 abstained and six said nay.

The government was ecstatic. President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner was quoted by this newspaper saying: “After the vultures preyed on Argentina and tried to prey on the world, an absolute majority of countries ended up supporting these basic principles.”

CFK is not alone in her views.

Last Friday, Pope Francis also referred to the IMF and similar agencies. He told the UNGA that the “international financial agencies should care for the sustainable development of countries and should ensure that they are not subjected to oppressive lending systems which, far from promoting progress, subject people to mechanisms that generate greater poverty, exclusion and dependence.”

The bad news is that, despite the majority vote, the UNGA resolutions are not binding. And the six countries that voted against the “principles” include the US, the UK, Germany and Japan. In other words, the world’s key financial markets, which are unlikely to give in to the moral pressure of a non-binding list of principles. As the pope told the UNGA, referring to multilateral organizations: “We must avoid every temptation to fall into a declarationist nominalism which would assuage our consciences. We need to ensure that our institutions are truly effective.”

The UNGA vote does not guarantee the “true effectiveness” demanded by His Holiness, but it might be a step in the right direction.

True, neither the pope, let alone Argentina, have the political, military or financial power to enforce the UNGA-approved principles. But they can exercise their “soft power,” which is the ability of a country — or, in this case, the Vatican — to persuade others to do what it wants without force or coercion, be it (again, in this case) financial or political. In fact, soft power, a given for important states, is a must for those nations lacking such attributes.

Pope Francis’ visit to the US was a perfect example of soft power at work. A case in point was his defence of immigration, delivered to a gathering of some 40,000 Latinos, which took place in Philadelphia. It was a strong message from the spiritual leader of 1.2 billion Roman Catholics, that is, 17 percent of the world’s population. Seventy million of them live — and vote — in the US. These figures should encourage Donald Trump and his followers to think twice about building walls at the borders and expelling millions of people.

Soft power is about credibility, legitimacy and picking the right fights. In the US, His Holiness got full marks on these three items.

Argentina has a sound case to put forward, based on its own experience, one that underscores its legitimacy and credibility. Its very advocacy for a solution to an issue that affects — or that may affect — many other countries is definitely a legitimate battle in which to engage.

While it’s true the government presented the UNGA victory to the Argentine people in a manner that was overly enthusiastic, and although it exaggerated the real effects of the vote — perhaps linked to enthusiasm or the needs of an election campaign — such a position is more than compensated for with the good work involved in actually securing the UNGA vote. It surely took long hours of research and legwork, as well as similarly long hours of quiet negotiating and lobbying.

The government invested a good deal of resources to get to this point. Continuity is the necessary condition to validate such an investment. If the nine principles are going to be something more than a mere statement, both the Economy and the Foreign ministries must keep working and negotiating. On the one hand, there is the need to strengthen the commitment of the nations that voted in favour of the principles. Additionally, it is necessary to use the UNGA vote as leverage to start negotiating with the four countries that voted against the principles. Some lobbying by means of lectures and public discussions, as well as press action, could prove to be quite useful.

The main bone of contention with the four negative votes is that these countries argue that the international financial institutions, and not the UN, are adequate agents with which to negotiate the issue of sovereign debt. It is indispensable to convince them that times are changing.

Given the imbalance of financial power in their favour, persuasion and negotiation seem to be a more realistic option than a shouting match. Pope Francis’ actions and speeches in his recent visit to the US seem to present the model that should be followed.

But before even considering any of this, it is important to note that on December 10 there will be a change of government in Argentina. It would be important for CFK’ successor — especially if it is not Daniel Scioli — to commit to continuity on this issue. If not, all that was done so far will have been wasted.

@andresfederman

CREDITS: BUENOS AIRES HERALD