The sharp rise and fall in oil prices aggravated market panic. In 2008, oil prices rode a "roller coaster". Oil prices soared in the first half of this year due to factors such as financial speculation and global inflation. On the first trading day after the New Year, international crude oil futures prices exceeded the US$100 per barrel mark, reaching a record high of US$147.27 per barrel on July 11. Since then, oil prices have plummeted. Due to the financial crisis and economic recession that have not bottomed out for a long time, energy demand has continued to decline and market confidence has been severely lacking. OPEC implemented production cuts twice in September and December, but neither of them curbed the downward trend of oil prices. The price of light crude oil futures for January delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed at $40.81 per barrel on December 5, the lowest level since December 10, 2004.
The outbreak of armed conflict in Russia and Georgia has affected the adjustment of relations between major powers. From the night of August 7 to the early morning of August 8 this year, the Georgian army dispatched artillery, tanks and armored personnel carriers to launch an attack on Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia. The Georgian army's offensive immediately triggered a strong reaction from Russia. A Russian armored unit entered Tskhinvali, and the Russian-Georgian armed conflict broke out. This conflict affects the adjustment of Russia's relations with the United States and the European Union. In Europe, Russia firmly opposes the independence of Kosovo and accuses the West of adopting double standards on the South Ossetia issue; in the Middle East, Russia strengthens relations with anti-American countries such as Iran and Syria and restores its traditional influence in the Middle East and the Mediterranean; in Latin America , Russia actively promotes cooperation with Cuba, Venezuela and other countries in military and energy fields.
Two Olympic Games are equally wonderful and write a new chapter in Olympic history. On August 8 and September 6, the 29th Olympic Games and Paralympic Games were grandly opened in Beijing. 132 Olympic records and 43 world records were refreshed at the Beijing Olympics, and more than 100 world records were refreshed at the Paralympic Games. The Chinese team won 51 gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, ranking first in the gold medal list for the first time. The Beijing Olympics also set many records in Olympic history: 204 countries and regions participated, 87 teams won medals, 4,800 doping tests were conducted, 28,000 reporters participated in reporting, 4.5 billion people around the world watched the event, and 1.7 million Chinese and foreign volunteers More than 80 foreign dignitaries attended the opening ceremony. The Beijing Olympics and Paralympics have been highly praised by the international community. They have not only become an important milestone in the history of the Olympics, but also achieved the goal of being "distinctive and high-level."
The launch of the Large Hadron Collider helped solve the mystery of the universe. On September 10, the world's largest hadron collider, which took 10 years to build, was successfully launched at CERN in Geneva, with the first proton beam. Inject into the collider and achieve penetration. More than 7,000 scientists from more than 80 countries and regions, including Europe, the United States, and China, participated in the construction and experiments of the collider. It is called the "Hubble Telescope of inner space" by scientists. It helps to understand the origin of matter and how the universe was formed. It has long-standing mysteries that have troubled mankind. It has important implications for medicine, materials, national security, industrial manufacturing, computers, science and human resources are of great significance and will promote the progress and development of human society.
China has mastered extravehicular technology and achieved fruitful results in space exploration. On September 25, three Chinese astronauts successfully entered space aboard the Shenzhou 7 manned spacecraft, achieving the first extravehicular spacewalk and space science experiment mission. , returned to the ground safely on the 28th. China has become the third country after Russia and the United States to independently master the key technology of space evacuation. This year, global space exploration has achieved fruitful results. On May 25, the US "Phoenix" probe successfully landed near the North Pole of Mars after more than nine months of flight and sent back the first Martian weather report. Since then, India successfully launched its first lunar probe "Chandrayaan-1". On November 14, the lunar impact probe it carried completed impacting the lunar surface. On December 13, American astronomers released a set of photos of four newly discovered planets outside the solar system. This is the first time humans have directly captured images of planets outside the solar system. The financial crisis is coming fiercely, and the world's economic prospects are worrying. Since September 2008, U.S. financial institutions represented by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Lehman Brothers have been in trouble one after another, triggering the world's most serious financial crisis since 1929, and This has led to a global slowdown in economic growth and also led to growing calls for reform of the existing international monetary system. In order to save the financial system on the verge of collapse and prevent the world economy from falling into a deep recession, the United States, the European Union, Japan, China and other countries have spent approximately US$2 trillion to rescue the market. Major central banks around the world have joined forces to cut interest rates multiple times to boost market confidence. Although the financial and economic situation is still deteriorating, the global desire to fight the crisis together is unprecedentedly unanimous.
The spirit of change won the hearts of the people. Obama was elected President of the United States. The 2008 U.S. election was voted on November 4. Democratic candidate Barack Obama overwhelmingly defeated Democratic candidate John McCain. Successfully elected as the 44th President of the United States, he will become the first African-American president since the founding of the United States. Obama's historic victory in the White House in January next year shows that his slogan of "change" is in line with the changing American mentality and voters' dissatisfaction with the Communist Party's eight years in power. It also marks the future of the United States' domestic and foreign affairs. Entering a new policy adjustment period.
Somali pirates frequently hijack multinational warships heading to the Gulf of Aden. On November 15, Saudi Arabia’s 318,000-ton giant oil tanker “Sirius” was hijacked by Somali pirates. The piracy problem worsened by years of war in Somalia has Threats to international maritime security are becoming increasingly serious. Since the beginning of this year, nearly 70 commercial ships have been hijacked in waters near Somalia, including Ukrainian arms ships carrying 33 T-72 main battle tanks. Within six months, the United Nations Security Council passed three resolutions on combating Somali piracy, authorizing foreign military forces to enter its territorial waters to combat piracy with the consent of the Somali government. Warships from the United States, France, Denmark, Russia, India and other countries have entered the waters near the Gulf of Aden one after another. The accumulation of many troops in the area has caused uneasiness in neighboring countries. The confrontation between Somali pirates and multinational regular armies is affecting the world's nerves.
The Mumbai explosion shocked the world and the international counter-terrorism situation was grim. On November 26, a terrorist attack occurred in Mumbai, India, killing at least 174 people and injuring hundreds. Since the beginning of this year, such terrorist attacks have been repeated in various places. On May 13, a series of explosions occurred in Jaipur, the capital of the western Indian state of Rajasthan, causing more than 200 casualties; on July 27, two explosions occurred in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, causing more than 100 casualties; on September 21, Pakistan A suicide bombing attacked the Marriott Hotel in the capital Islamabad, killing more than 300 people. Terrorist attacks in Iraq and Afghanistan still cause severe suffering to the local people. The international counter-terrorism situation remains grim.
The conflict between the two major forces has caused turbulence in Thailand's political situation. On December 2, Thailand's Constitutional Court dissolved the People's Power Party led by Prime Minister Somchai and the other two parties in the six-party ruling alliance on the grounds of vote bribery. Somchai's government became the second government to fall due to a court ruling this year, after the Samak government. Thailand's political situation has been chaotic for several months this year, and its root cause is the struggle between the forces supporting former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and those opposing Thaksin Shinawatra. From the end of May, the anti-government People's Democratic Alliance began to launch anti-government demonstrations and occupied the Prime Minister's Office on August 26. At the end of November, they occupied two major airports in Bangkok, paralyzing Bangkok's civil aviation passenger and cargo transportation. About 100,000 people foreign tourists stranded in Bangkok. (Thailand’s new Prime Minister may be elected in the near future)
Sanlu Milk Powder Incident
On June 28, 2008, the First Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army in Lanzhou City admitted the first patient with “kidney stones” According to reports from parents of infants and young children suffering from the disease, their children have been eating Sanlu infant milk powder produced by Sanlu Group in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province since birth. In mid-July, after the Gansu Provincial Health Department received a report of infant urinary stone cases in the hospital, it immediately launched an investigation and reported it to the Ministry of Health. In just over two months, the number of infants admitted to the hospital quickly expanded to 14.
Since then, hundreds of cases of negative reactions due to consumption of Sanlu dairy products have been reported across the country. The seriousness of the situation is shocking! On September 13, the Party Central Committee and the State Council made arrangements to seriously deal with the Sanlu brand infant milk powder incident, immediately launched a first-level response to major national food safety accidents, and established an emergency response leading group. On September 15, the Gansu Provincial Government Information Office held a press conference and stated that the deaths of two infants and young children in Gangu and Lintao were confirmed to be related to Sanlu milk powder.
As the investigation into the problematic milk powder incident continues to deepen, milk source as the most important link in adding melamine has attracted more and more attention from all walks of life. According to medical experts, melamine is a low-toxic chemical product. Ingestion of large amounts by infants and young children can cause urinary system diseases. At present, infants and young children suffering from urinary system stones are mainly caused by consuming Sanlu brand infant formula milk powder containing a large amount of melamine. Most children can pass the stones on their own by drinking more water and urinating frequently. If symptoms such as cloudy urine and difficulty urinating occur, you need to go to the hospital in time. When acute renal failure occurs, children can recover if treated promptly.
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