To address global challenges and strengthen resilience in the face of crises, this year’s meeting of the World Economic Forum was held under the motto “Cooperation in a Fragmented World.” In her special address, Ursula von der Leyen referred to the WEF’s latest Global Risks Report. Among other things, this opens up perspectives on how national priorities can be assessed in relation to global risks in order to achieve the goal of a more resilient, equitable and sustainable future.

At this year’s meeting in Davos, Professor Dr. Klaus Schweinsberg focused on concrete, feasible and rapid solutions to acute problems such as the war in Ukraine, arms supplies or inflation. Along with Ulrich Reitz, Klaus Schweinsberg sees the questioning of democratic institutions as a key challenge for implementation, as nation-state political interests can collide with long-term global goals. The economics professor hopes “that the younger generation will be brought more into the game and pushed into politics – and not just in the margins.”

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„If you are going to impose sanctions, you want to organize them so that they will be as effective as possible – and in the case of the current war, I am not sure that they have been.“ – Eric Maskin

Since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, sanctions aimed at deterrence have been increasingly used to dissuade Putin from further military expansion – until the military attack on Ukraine on February 24 reshuffled the cards worldwide. Six months after the war began, Saskia Meuchelböck of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy and Nobel laureates Oliver Hart, Eric S. Maskin and Sir Christopher A. Pissarides evaluate the effectiveness and success of ongoing economic sanctions at the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings. The use of the economic weapon aims to end the war; while Oliver Hart focuses on the punitive effect, Eric Maskin hopes for sanctions as an incentive to move Russia to the negotiating table. Even if the sanctions used weaken the Russian economy, unintended political consequences within Russia may counteract their success, as Ms. Meuchelböck confirms using recent studies. The time horizon and trade-offs put pressure on the sanctioning countries: “How long can we affort this situation?” is a question posed by moderator Klaus Schweinsberg to the invited guests.

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