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ILLINOIS STATE BAR ASSOCIATION APRIL 2019 VOL 56 NO. 7 The Globe The newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association’s Section on International & Immigration Law Editor’s comments Editor’s comments 1 BY LEWIS F. MATUSZEWICH Developments in development aid Professor Mark E. Wojcik of The Section newsletters. Mark has served in 1 John Marshall Law School in Chicago many capacities for the Illinois State Bar is a past chair of the International and Association, including the ISBA’s Special Case note: Muthana v. Pompeo Immigration Law Section Council of the Committee on the General Agreement 6 Illinois State Bar Association. His article, on Trade and Services, which completed “Developments in development aid” joins a recommendation to the Illinois State 50 other articles that Mark has contributed Bar Association for consideration of the to the International and Immigration Illinois Supreme Court to bring the Ethical Law, Local Government Law, Human and Procedural Rules mandated by the Rights, Bench and Bar, Alternative Dispute Illinois Supreme Court in line with the Resolution, Child Law, Government International Treaty known as GATS or Lawyers, and the Diversity Leadership Continued on next page Developments in development aid BY MARK E. WOJCIK Introduction conservative scholars.” program. Seeing those benefits, the Trump Foreign development aid helps The Trump administration does not administration reverse course and quietly individuals in some of the world’s poorest necessarily see providing foreign aid as create an international development countries. Foreign aid promotes economic an “essential instrument of U.S. foreign agency with twice the budget of its prosperity and progress toward global policy” but rather as a possible target to predecessor agency. Foreign aid remains a development goals. Foreign aid can also cut or even eliminate from the federal continuing target for budget cuts, however, help serve political goals of the donor budget. Under a policy of “America First,” because administration officials and countries. U.S. policymakers and political money was seen as being better spent on a political leaders either see little benefit in leaders have long viewed foreign aid as border wall than on promoting economic spending on foreign development or see an “essential instrument of U.S. foreign development in other countries. The the threat of cutting off foreign aid as the policy” that has also “increasingly been Overseas Private Investment Corporation only foreign policy tool. associated with national security policy.” was also a foreign aid target until the But although U.S. foreign aid “has never Trump administration observed the Development Aid been totally divorced from political benefits that the People’s Republic of “Academic researchers have studied considerations, ... tying it directly to China was reaping from its Bridge foreign aid since the establishment of loyalty remains controversial even among and Road Initiative (BRI) foreign aid Continued on next page The Globe ▼ APRIL 2019 / VOL 56 / NO. 7 Editor’s comments CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The Globe This is the newsletter of the ISBA’s Section on International & Immigration General Agreement on Trade and Services. School of Law. Law. Section newsletters are free David W. Aubrey is currently vice chair As always, thank you to our authors.n to section members and published of the International and Immigration at least four times per year. Section membership dues are $30 per year. Law Section Council and his case note, Lewis F. Matuszewich To subscribe, visit www.isba.org/ “Muthana v. Pompeo” joins ten other sections or call 217-525-1760. articles he has written for The Globe. Matuszewich & Kelly, LLP Telephone: (815) 459-3120 David also leads the International and OFFICE (312) 726-8787 ILLINOIS BAR CENTER Immigration Law Section outreach efforts Facsimile: (815) 459-3123 424 S. SECOND STREET to law schools throughout Illinois the most Email: [email protected] SPRINGFIELD, IL 62701 PHONES: 217-525-1760 OR 800-252-8908 recent being at Southern Illinois University WWW.ISBA.ORG EDITOR Developments in development aid Lewis F. Matuszewich CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 PUBLICATIONS MANAGER Sara Anderson [email protected] aid giving,” but these researchers “are contractors or consultants from the donor perplexed as to why and under what country; or that the equipment be shipped circumstances the leaders of one state via ships or airplanes flagged in the donor INTERNATIONAL & IMMIGRATION LAW SECTION COUNCIL would provide valuable resources to country.” Shama K. Patari, Chair another state.” Some countries may In addition to the categories of donor David W. Aubrey, Vice-Chair Meaghan E. Vander Schaaf, Secretary give development aid to less-developed and recipient countries, a country may also Juliet E. Boyd countries for humanitarian reasons. It’s find itself on both sides of the foreign aid Cindy G. Buys seen as the right thing to do for responsible equation: both receiving financial support Martha Delgado Susan M. Goldberg global citizens, particularly in response to from donor countries while giving some Ralph E. Guderian humanitarian crises. Countries may give financial support to even less-developed Philip N. Hablutzel aid for strategic and political reasons, or countries. Thomas E. Howard John E. Kerley to reduce the threat of terrorism. Foreign Although foreign aid can be provided Patrick M. Kinnally aid may also be given to avert public health for purely humanitarian reasons, foreign Natalie L. Pesin Judie Lyn Smith, CLE Coordinator and environmental catastrophes that aid is an undisputed foreign policy tool Mark E. Wojcik might later affect the donor country if the that provides recipient countries with Hon. Mike P. McCuskey, Board Liaison problems are left unchecked. Foreign aid either a reward for some behavior or an Melissa L. Burkholder, Staff Liaison Deborah K. Besserman, CLE Committee can also be used to promote the economic inducement to change its behavior. Foreign Liaison interests of the donor state. aid may also follow military action to help Lewis F. Matuszewich, Associate Editor Recipient countries, for their part, ensure that a country’s foreign policy goals accept financial support from these donor are met and secured. countries, recognizing that development In various speeches at his campaign aid may be “earmarked” for particular rallies, President Trump promised to end DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for subscribers’ personal use only; redistribution is prohibited. purposes. The donor countries may or at least sharply curtail foreign aid. His Copyright Illinois State Bar Association. Statements or expressions of opinion appearing herein are expect that the recipient countries will administration and some members of those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Association or Editors, and likewise the publication enact certain laws or follow certain Congress apparently saw the expenditures of any advertisement is not to be construed as an laws and policies favored by the donor for development as wasteful and not endorsement of the product or service offered unless it is specifically stated in the ad that there is such countries. Some aid may also be “tied” supportive of the United States or of approval or endorsement. to requirements that the aid recipients American values. Some argued that money Articles are prepared as an educational service to members of ISBA. They should not be relied upon as “purchase the equipment, arms, materials, spent on foreign aid should instead be a substitute for individual legal research. supplies, parts and services, or other diverted to help pay the construction costs The articles in this newsletter are not intended to be used and may not be relied on for penalty avoidance. commodities made in the donor country of a wall along the southern border of the or from the donor’s corporations; use United States, fulfilling one of Mr. Trump’s 2 main campaign promises. U.N. General Assembly that: the BRI strategy during official visits to The United States is the world’s largest Indonesia and Kazakhstan in 2013. As of Threats to Cut Off Development Aid giver in the world by far of foreign aid, but February 2019, China had signed “Belt and Donald Trump has viewed foreign aid as few give anything to us. That is why we are Road” agreements with 152 countries and “entirely transactional,” something given for taking a hard look at U.S. foreign assistance . international organizations in Europe, Asia, something in return. And while not extolling . We will examine what is working, what is Middle East, Latin America, and Africa, the benefits of foreign aid, his administration not working, and whether the countries that spending billions of dollars in developing has used threats to cut off foreign aid as a receive our dollars and our protection also countries around the world. somewhat clumsy tool of foreign policy. have our interests at heart. Moving forward, Of course, the BRI did not appear Three situations illustrate various threats to we are only going to give foreign aid to those just suddenly. It had been Chinese cut off foreign aid. who respect us and, frankly, are our friends. policy for more than five years. But First, at the end of 2017, Mr. Trump And as a third example of threatening when China and the United States threatened to cut off foreign aid to countries to cut off foreign aid, in October 2018, Mr. entered into a trade skirmish if not a that were going to vote in support of a U.N. Trump announced that he would cut off trade war, greater attention fell on the General Assembly Resolution opposing the or substantially reduce aid to El Salvador, benefits that China was seeing from recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Guatemala, and Honduras because those its investment strategy. Israel. Mr. Trump told a press conference that countries were unable to stop migrants The of losing out to China those countries “take hundreds of millions of from leaving their countries and “coming assistance forced the Trump dollars and even billions of dollars, and then illegally” to the United States.