Global Pandemic Strategy: Project Syndicate

The world confronts a common enemy in COVID-19, and choices made today will shape individual communities and the world in the months and years ahead, explains Josep Borrell for Project Syndicate. A natural instinct is to fend for one’s self. “Going it alone all but guarantees that the fight will last longer, and that the human and economic costs will be far higher,” he writes. “Although the enemy has triggered nationalist reflexes, we can defeat it only with cross-border coordination – in Europe and beyond.” He urges solidarity on multiple levels: joint procurement of medical equipment, coordinated economic stimulus, coordination of border openings based on health advice, organized repatriation of citizens, pooled resources, reliance on science and best practices, swift responses to disinformation as well as support for social-distancing, isolation and treatment in ways that discourage manipulation and concealment. COVID-19’s spread into war zones like Afghanistan and Yemen, Africa’s poorest nations, and refugee camps presents security challenges. Advanced economies must provide targeted aid and guidance to prevent power grabs and reduce conflict. – YaleGlobal