In The News

Europe Worries Portugal Is Prone to a Debt-Crisis Relapse

Patricia Kowsmann October 26, 2016
Portugal’s economic weakness is part of a long string of bad news for the European Union, which has been hit by a rising tide of euroscepticism. Earlier in October, Portugal’s central bank predicted a decline in investment in the country. The International Monetary Fund has asserted that this decline is due to the government’s turn away from austerity, including high levels of public and private...

The Decline of the West, and How to Stop It

Javier Solana and Strobe Talbott October 25, 2016
Western democracy’s many achievements are in jeopardy as cooperation erodes at both the global and national levels, warn Javier Solana, former secretary general of NATO, and Strobe Talbott, president of the Brookings Institution. “A vital lesson of the modern era is that internationalism has stabilized the world, while lapses into bellicose nationalism have wreaked havoc,” the two write. Nations...

Top-Down, Bottom-Up Urban Design

Elizabeth Greenspan October 25, 2016
The United Nations Habitat III conference on urbanization in the developing world, the first in 20 years, convened in mid-October. Three sociologists – motivated to reshape the Athens Charter, a set of rigid guidelines crafted in 1943 to standardize urban design across the world – presented what they call the “Quito Papers,” a comprehensive guide and “more flexible way to design cities,” writes...

Belgium Walloons Block Key EU Ceta Trade Deal with Canada

October 24, 2016
Negotiating trade deals and satisfying special interests are never easy. A region in Belgium blocked agreement on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between Canada and Europe. Other EU members were ready sign the agreement that has been in the works since 2009. “Wallonia, a staunchly socialist region of 3.6 million people, has led objections to the deal, demanding stronger safeguards...

Is a Better World Possible Without US Military Force?

Shadi Hamid October 24, 2016
Under President Obama, the United States adopted a “do no harm” foreign policy in contrast to Bush-era military interventionism. Shadi Hamid in The Atlantic describes this as a Leftist tendency to avoid intervention, allowing other countries to exercise agency without American interference. He argues the policy has not led to a safer and more just world. For instance, Obama has maintained a non-...

Brexit’s Big Winner? It Could Be New York City

David Francis October 21, 2016
Many in the London banking industry are asserting that the city’s financial operations could relocate to New York City once Prime Minister Theresa May initiates Brexit. Banking is crucial to the British economy and accounts for up to 10 percent of national GDP, reports David Francis for Foreign Policy. He lists reasons for relocating. London bankers had opposed Brexit and can’t help but wonder...

Battle for Mosul: Why Troops Reaching ISIS Stronghold Is a Delicate Balance

Matt Bradley October 21, 2016
The Islamic State took control of Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, in summer of 2014. Coalition forces have surrounded the city and include Kurds, Iraqis, Turks, advisers from the United States and elsewhere, as well as many militias of varying ethnicities. Multiple challenges are in store: “The Kurdish Peshmerga are only one piece of a complex patchwork of religious and ethnic identities that...