Strong Korea (CBG 11.02.27)

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Oslo will host "Peace through Trade" conference

The "2009 Summit on Peace through Trade" will be held in Oslo on May 14, sponsored by the Business for Peace Foundation of the World Trade Center in Oslo, the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, and the City of Oslo. 

The website doesn't have much information yet, so I guess we have to keep checking back to see who the speakers will be and the topics they will speak on. 

The conference theme catches my eye, because peace through trade is very much in line with the thinking behind the Bering Strait Project. A link at the Bering Strait would make it possible to connect five continents (North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa) by surface transportation modes such as railroad and (sometime in the future) highway. 

Yes, there is already trade that uses ocean shipping and air cargo. But U.S. west coast ports are clogged. If there is to be a substantial jump in trade volume, a land-based link through Alaska and Siberia will be necessary. 

Central Asian countries are among those that stand to  benefit from such a link. Land-locked countries will have a much better route to ship their goods to the NAFTA market. 

High speed railroad to Asia

If Americans become more accustomed to using high speed railroad for intercity travel within densely populated regions in the lower 48 states, it can only lead to greater support for extending rail service to Alaska and beyond to Asia and Europe. 

For this reason, the White House announcement Thursday to commit funds to developing high speed railroads in ten areas around the United States is a small step toward eventual freight and passenger rail service from New York and Chicago to Beijing and Moscow. 

Some critics of the new White House plan are flabbergasted by the idea of rail service between Los Angeles and San Francisco. I have to wonder whether these were the same people who predicted that cell phones would never catch on. "Americans will never," it was said back in the days, "make phone calls while walking down a street!" 

The fundamental assumption supporting air travel is that travel time is down time, and so it is always better to choose the travel option that will minimize the time it takes to arrive at the next destination. This assumption is increasingly challenged by mobile phones and the Internet. 

We are becoming less dependent on physical location. More people are working, paying bills and pursuing academic degrees from a variety of locations -- from home, in the park, on a train to New York. Advances in smart phone technologies mean that the office and all its contents will fit into your pocket. 

Soon, more people will begin to ask, "If I can work while I travel, then what's the rush in getting there?" 

This will not make people stop traveling all together. By nature, we want to go more places, meet more people, do more things we wouldn't do at home. 

Here are some advantages to rail travel based on my travels between Washington, DC, and New York.

1. No seat belt

2. When it's time to board, keep your shoes on.  

3. Cell phone and Internet service (usually -- Amtrak needs to improve this point)

4. Get up and go to the toilet anytime -- even during "take off and landing." 

5. Better scenery

6. More leg room

7. Stations are in the city, not an hour or more away. 

8. Your ears don't pop. 

9. Crying baby in row behind you? Move to another car.

10. You'll never have to land in the Hudson. 

Tough times help Russia, U.S. be friends

There is nothing like hard times to help people understand the importance of transcending differences in pursuit of a common prosperity. 

An article in the Financial Times Wednesday describes how, in comparison with last year, a more "pragmatic" approach to bilateral relations has taken hold on both sides of the Bering Strait. Last year there was U.S. and EU criticism of over Russia's military action in Georgia. Russia was voicing strong objections to a U.S. plan to place anti-missile defense installations near its borders. 

Now, both sides are taking a calmer approach, based on an understanding that the Russia and the U.S. need each other. 

This blog's position is that a fixed transportation link between the two countries at the Bering Strait would go a long way toward stablizing bilateral relations. Linking Chicago to Yakuhtsk and Moscow to New York would provide the infrastructure needed for the two countries to vastly increase their volume of bilateral trade. 

Let's not have good relations just during hard times. Let's have them all the time. 

UIA-Approved Ideas Contest

An international contest on ideas on how to connect the continents at the Bering Strait is currently being sponsored by The Foundation for Peace and Unification in Korea, with approval from the International Union of Architects. 

According to information on FPU's website, 295 teams from 56 countries have registered to compete for the $80,000 first prize. 

The competition is open to teams headed by professional architects or students of architecture. 

Teams are scheduled to submit their ideas by May 26, and an announcement on the results is due on June 11. 

Will Hydrail Locomotives Make Diesel Obsolete?

UPI recently reported on success by a group of chemists in developing new materials that can be used to purify hydrogen by separating it from complex gas mixtures. 

This is encouraging news for the Bering Strait Project. Although feasibility studies still need to be done, it seems almost certain that the connection between the continents at the Bering Strait will be a tunnel, probably some 100 km (about 65 miles) in length from entrance to exit. That's a very long distance to have to ventilate. 

Development of hydrogen trains is now focusing on the commuter rail and transit markets. The fifth International Hydrail Conference will be held in Charlotte, N.C. June 11 to 16, sponsored by the Appalachian State University Energy Center. The conference is expected to feature innovative hydrogen technology for commuter rail applications. 

There would seem to be no reason that the applications could not be expanded in the future to include long-distance railroads, even those that run on transcontinental lines. Indeed, the Hydrail Conference website suggests as much with its motto: "Hydrail is to diesel as diesel was to steam." 

The Bering Strait Project could be used as a opportunity for developing technologies such as clean burning engines. 

Presidential Directive on U.S. Arctic Policy

The United States expects increased human activity in the Arctic region, including tourism, and is making preparations to better safeguard U.S. interests in the region. 

Shortly before his term ended, former U.S. President George W. Bush signed a National Security Presidential Directive setting out new policy guidelines for the United States in the Arctic region. 

The directive, known as NSPD-66, states: 

Human activity in the Arctic region is increasing and is projected to increase further in coming years.  

It goes on to say: 

This requires the United States to assert a more active and influential national presence to protect its Arctic interests and to project sea power throughout the region.

It then directs the Secretary of State to 

Consider, as appropriate, new or enhanced international arrangements for the Arctic to address issues likely to arise from expected increases in human activity in that region, including shipping, local development and subsistence, exploitation of living marine resources, development of energy and other resources, and tourism;

Meanwhile, Adm. Thad Allen, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, commented in a statement, saying, "This directive will guide our current operational activities in the region and guide the allocation of current and future resources to meet mission demands."

The Obama administration does not appear to have followed up on this new policy directive. It will be interesting to see what develops along these lines. 

In particular, it will be interesting to see what role will be assigned to surface transportation infrastructure in the Arctic and sub Arctic regions. The Bering Strait, the 53-mile (85-km) stretch of water between Alaska and Russia's Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, lies just below the Arctic Circle.