In this radio interview on From Washington Al Mundo of February 13, 2013, Dr. Stewart Patrick explains how and why the world is increasingly complicated as emerging democracies promote a diverse range of interests. Exploring issues of traditional power competition, cybersecurity, and the eurozone crisis, Patrick explains the current state of multilateral cooperation. He goes on to discuss the deadlock in the UN Security Council concerning the situation in Syria and explore governance issues in South America. Read more »

John Kerry’s first major address as secretary of state, delivered Wednesday at the University of Virginia, was light on specifics and priorities. But it offered a useful glimpse into his mindset as the country’s newest chief diplomat. Two themes permeated the speech: the eroding boundary between what is “foreign” and “domestic” in our global era and the risks to U.S. national security of shortchanging investments in diplomacy and development assistance. Read more »

Yesterday I got to debate the role of the Group of Twenty (G20) in global governance with some heavyweight thinkers at CFR’s New York offices. The on-the-record discussion, moderated by Anne-Marie Slaughter of Princeton University, included Ian Bremmer, the head of the Eurasia Group and author of the bestselling Every Nation for Itself, and Nicolas Berggruen, author of the new book Intelligent Governance for the 21^st Century: A Middle Way between East and West. The wide-ranging conversation explored whether the G20 was up to the task of serving as the premier steering group for the world economy—much less addressing other items on the global agenda. Read more »

Smuggling may not be the world’s oldest profession, but it must rank a close second. For as long as political authorities have sought to control borders, criminal networks have tried to circumvent them, evading customs duties and trafficking in illicit goods. Indeed, as Peter Andreas shows in his spectacular new book, Smuggler Nation: How Illicit Trade Made America, smuggling has been an enduring feature of the American experience since colonial times. It has been as important in shaping the development and global trajectory of the United States as the factors historians usually invoke—such as the liberal political principles of the nation’s Founders, the legacy of the frontier, the doctrine of American exceptionalism, the country’s geographic position, or its abundant natural resources. Once you read his fascinating account, you will never look at U.S. history the same way again. Read more »

Coauthored with Andrew Reddie, research associate in the International Institutions and Global Governance program.

Israel’s January 31 aerial attack on a Syrian  research facility and arms complex has raised once again the thorny question of when preemption against a developing threat may be justified under international law—as opposed to simply strategic calculation. Predictably, the Israeli bombardment elicited a hail of criticism from some regional and global players. Syria has threatened to retaliate, while Iran has suggested that Israel would regret its violation of Syrian sovereignty. The Russian response, however, was particularly intriguing, since it highlights an ongoing disagreement over the circumstances in which the use of force may be warranted. Read more »

Coauthored with Isabella Bennett, program coordinator in the International Institutions and Global Governance program.

Last month, IIGG and the Moscow-based Institute of Contemporary Development convened the second regional meeting of the Council of Councils—a network of twenty-four policy institutions based in established and emerging states—to exchange practical ideas and solutions regarding daunting transnational challenges. The conversations highlighted growing areas of systemic global risk and thinning solidarity within the so-called international community. These trends threaten to undermine multilateral cooperation in stabilizing the global economy and preserving international peace and security. Read more »

In a valedictory address delivered today at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for a new era of American global leadership. The United States remains the world’s “indispensable” power, she insisted. It is the cornerstone of a “just, rules-based international order.” But she warned against complacency. “Leadership is not a birthright,” she insisted. “It has to be earned by each new generation.” To lead in the twenty-first century, the United States will need to “adapt to these new realities of global power and influence,” by exploiting its entire array of policy levers, cultivating diverse partnerships and networks, and forging a “new international architecture” tailored to new global challenges and emerging powers. Read more »

Coauthored with Isabella Bennett, program coordinator in the International Institutions and Global Governance program.

The violence that has plagued once-stable Mali since late 2011 should have come as no surprise to Western governments, for it is a direct function of NATO’s Libyan intervention. By adopting a “light footprint” approach in Libya, the alliance unwittingly contributed to a security vacuum that allowed countless weapons  to stream out of Libya and fuel insurgency, extremism, and crime in neighboring countries. One of these countries was Mali, where the flood of weapons from Libya helped a rebel coalition topple the democratically elected government in Bamako in May 2012 and—until the recent French intervention—allow a jihadist alliance to gain control over the country’s entire northeast. The relevant policy question is why neither the United States nor its international partners did anything to  staunch or mitigate the flow of Libyan weapons south. Read more »

France’s decision to intervene forcefully in Mali is a welcome development in the campaign to eradicate transnational terrorism in Africa. It comes after weeks of diplomatic dithering over how to respond to jihadist gains in that country.  Some four weeks ago, the UN Security Council authorized the deployment of a West African force led by the “African Union in close coordination with ECOWAS,” without as usual providing adequate logistical  and military support. The ensuing delays permitted rebels to spread from their stronghold in the northeast and consolidate control over half of the country.  As of mid-January the rudiments of an African intervention force, with limited counterinsurgency capability,  were only beginning to coalesce. By intervening in its former colony at the request of the Bamako government, France is doing a double service: freeing Mali’s traditionally moderate Islamic population from draconian sharia law, and preventing the establishment of a permanent safe haven where al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and affiliated groups have free rein to attack regional and Western targets. Read more »

Could a coalition of democracies help the United States address some of its more daunting global challenges?  In a new CFR working paper, Like-Minded and Capable Democracies: A New Framework for Advancing a Liberal World Order Ash Jain argues that the answer is yes. The title may be cumbersome, but Jain’s inclusion of “like-minded” and “capable” is critical. Democratic solidarity is possible only if the United States judiciously includes democracies that truly share U.S. preferences and have tangible resources to leverage for collective action. Failure to think soberly about these two criteria has doomed previous proposals to harness democracy  to U.S. strategy. Read more »