Politics & Diplomacy

President Gauck: Germany Must Contribute More to Regional and World Security

By Joachim Gauck, Office of the President of Germany

Germany is globalised more than most countries and thus benefits more than most from an open world order.

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 […]

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 […]

1914 – The Failure of and the Need for Diplomacy

By Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Guardian

The history of the outbreak of war 100 years ago and of the collapse of the fragile balance of power in Europe in the summer of 1914 is a disturbing tale of the failure of the governing elites and the military, but also of diplomacy.

Defense Minister: Germany Needs to Take More Responsibility Around the World

By René Pfister and Gordon Repinski, Spiegel

New Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen says that it is time for Berlin to take more responsibility. She also dreams of a European army.

The Collapse of the Phrase ‘Constitutional Pragmatism’

By Amr Hamzawy

Some of the political groups, parties and public personalities that raised the banner of democracy and supported the constitutional draft issued by the appointed Committee of 50 worked to encourage participation in the recent referendum, calling on citizens to vote ‘yes.’ As part of this campaign, they employed a hollow and misleading phrase: ‘constitutional pragmatism.’

Finnish Defense Minister: EU will Never Become Europe’s Primary Defense Forum

By Jorge Benitez, Atlantic Council

During his trip to Washington to meet with Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Finnish Defense Minister Carl Haglund sat down for an exclusive interview with Director of NATOSource Jorge Benitez.

Vershbow: European Allies Moving Too Slowly to Address Defense Capabilities Gap in NATO

By Alexander Vershbow, NATO

[W]e need NATO. The European Allies need NATO; but so do Canada and the United States. We all need a proven, permanent framework in which we can discuss these issues, find a common strategy, and act upon the decisions we take.

Getting US Policy Right in Egypt: Where Does Democracy Promotion Fit?

Since the July 3 ouster of former President Mohamed Morsi, many have questioned whether efforts to transition to democracy in Egypt are working and whether democracy promotion should be part of US policy towards Egypt. On January 23, 2014, the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East hosted Shibley Telhami, Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace […]