Category: Timely Commentary & Analysis

Urbanization in Latin America

By Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center

Cities are global leaders whose innovative policies are increasingly transcending boundaries to shape domestic and international trends. The relative power of cities to influence the global agenda will only increase in the coming decades. More than half of the world’s population lives in urban areas; by 2050, 70 percent, or more than six billion people, […]

Asian Ex-Officials Map Path to Peace In and Around Afghanistan

A team of sixty former officials and other experts from Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and neighboring countries is lobbying those governments to stabilize the region by restoring Afghanistan’s strategic neutrality at the center of Asia. The group, including ex-ministers, diplomats and legislators, as well as scholars, has drafted a roadmap to defusing regional conflicts that, if […]

On the Road To Medellín: Urban Innovation at Home and Abroad

Cities are at the forefront of global leadership. Not only are cities where all global trends—such as increased diffusion of power, individual empowerment, and the complex interplay of the food-water-energy nexus—come together, but local governments and their partners are already addressing this century’s great global challenges and finding innovative solutions.

Policy Workshop on NATO in an Era of Global Competition

The year 2014 will be pivotal for NATO as it draws down from the mission in Afghanistan, prepares for the 2014 summit in Wales, and grapples with new political challenges to the transatlantic community, from the crisis in Ukraine to the ongoing Syrian civil war. While NATO remains a manifestation of the values and commitments […]

Munich Security Conference Luncheon

The Munich Security Conference was first launched over five decades ago with a clear purpose: to be the world’s foremost annual gathering for the international security community. While the Munich Security Conference has remained the world’s preeminent international security conference since its inception, the contours of the international security landscape have changed dramatically in the […]

Spotlight Brazil

By Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center

What Will be the Legacy of the 2014 World Cup for Brazil? From June 12 to July 13, Brazil will host the 2014 FIFA World Cup across twelve cities. During the tournament an estimated 600,000 foreign visitors and 3 million Brazilians are expected to travel across the country of more than 200 million people. Over […]

Trends, Actors, and Factors in India’s 2014 Elections

“Five months ago debates in India were centered around the predictions on who will win the upcoming election, but today, the discussions are more about how a BJP government [will] look,” said Milan Vaishnav, associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s South Asia Program, at an event hosted by the South Asia Center. The […]

After Ukraine: Moscow’s Next Offensive

By Marik String

While the outcome of Ukraine’s upheaval may not be clear, this much is: Russia has successfully used sanctions, a pile of cash and natural gas discounts to set back Ukraine’s effort to build itself a European future. Even as Russia shifts focus to ensuring the safety and prestige of next month’s Sochi Olympics, the Euro-Atlantic […]

State of the Union 2014: Any Foreign Policy Strategy There?

As Barack Obama began the sixth year of his presidency with a State of the Union address tilted heavily toward domestic issues, how well did he reflect a clear strategic vision on the global challenges to US interests? Not too well, says Atlantic Council Vice President Barry Pavel. Not too badly, say Council member Jane […]

The Danger of Divergence: Transatlantic Financial Reform and the G20 Agenda

The United States and the European Union cannot afford to follow separate paths on financial reform, according to Senator Christopher Murphy (D-CT), EU Ambassador to the US João Vale de Almeida, and a number of leading experts from the Department of the Treasury, the SEC, the European Commission, the private sector, and academia.  Following the […]