Diplomacy and International Politics

The following is an event write-up about the recent Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship (PETR) seminar on “France’s Global Role in a Changing World Order” co-moderated by Natalie Colbert, Executive Director of the Belfer Center, and Svenja Kirsch, Fellow with PETR, on April 19, 2023.

The policies and conduct of the Trump administration are changing the way much of the world sees the United States. Host Marco Werman discusses the issues with Arturo Sarukhán, a former Mexican ambassador to the US, and Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook, executive director of The Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. 

Macron's second official visit to the country should be about more than feeding the growing appetite for consumption by the Chinese. Rather, Macron ought to use his meetings with his Chinese counterpart and other top officials to boldly advance a broader European agenda on issues ranging from climate change to intellectual property and even to human rights.

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has succeeded in amending the unpopular Brexit deal, removing the widely disliked backstop, and replacing it with a revised protocol for Northern Ireland. He brought his new plan to the House of Commons in an unusual Saturday session on October 19; Parliament had required the government to ask the European Union for an extension to the October 31 deadline if the divorce settlement was not approved by that date. But Parliament delayed consideration of his revised agreement, first wanting to ensure the U.K. would not leave the EU without a deal. Johnson begrudgingly asked the EU for an extension, which it is now considering. Parliament is expected to vote on Johnson’s deal this week, with the numbers too close to call.

NPR's David Greene talks to Amanda Sloat of the Brookings Institution, and David Rennie of The Economist magazine, about the global standing of the U.S. The G-7 meetings in France wrap up Monday.

President Trump is continuing to raise the issue of readmitting Russia to the G7, and is still blaming President Obama for throwing Moscow out of the group. Former U.S. ambassador to NATO and Washington Post foreign columnist David Ignatius join Andrea Mitchell to discuss.

President Trump is pushing Boris Johnson, the incoming prime minister of Britain, toward a hard break with the European Union. But Mr. Johnson could be constrained.

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace hosted a discussion on the impact of the European Parliament election on issues like migration, trade, and transatlantic relations.

When contemplating Brexit, particularly a ”hard” Brexit without agreements with the EU, the outside world is deeply puzzled how Britain could produce such a calamitous act of self-harm, severely hurting its economy, undermining its international standing, and possibly threatening its national integrity. While Brexit will hurt the EU economically, it will not undermine the EU’s global role as the world’s second largest economy. Brexit has also had some unexpected effects that strengthen the EU.