Dear MEL School’s
Topic Readers,
June 2014: Echoes
of June 1914?
Just a century ago
from this month, the crown prince of Austria-Hungary Archduke Franz Ferdinand
and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated by Serbian
nationalist Gavrilo Princip. The assassination led Austria-Hungary to declare
war on Serbia, triggering a chain of events that brought other nations into the
four-year war.
In 1914, Germany,
Russia and the United States were key "rising nations", power has shifted
from the global North to the South with Asian countries, especially China, the
most benefitted revisionist today. There are already territorial disputes with neighboring
countries such as Japan and the Philippines, close allies of the other super
power, the United States.
And this very
week, China’s special envoy made a historic visit to Taiwan, where China regards
and maps as part of its territory. He had been warmly welcomed by the Taiwanese
government and expected to open dialogues for closer economic ties for the two
Chinas until angry “nationalists” threw paint on him.
Fortunately, it
wasn’t bullets but just paint. However, there are much more nationalists,
extremists and militants today who are way more informed, networked and armed
than in 1914. Who could say the situations are so different now from then.
Never say never.
Enjoy reading and
learning about how different and close 2014 and 1914 are.
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