Diplomacy and International Politics

Given the ravages of the coronavirus crisis, the future of Europe cannot be one of permanent division between its northern and southern states.

February 24th, 2020, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Dr. Gesche Joost, Professor of Design Research at the Berlin University of the Arts and head of the Design Research Lab since 2005, discussed the digital divide and how it will shape social connectivity in an event moderated by Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook, Executive Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project and the Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship, and Lauren Zabierek, Executive Director of the Cyber Project.

In Finland, they’re drinking boxed wine and playing Korona, a board game. In Greece, they’re stockpiling feta. The French refuse to stop kissing. ISIS is telling its members to avoid traveling to Europe to conduct attacks. And, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, hand-washing stations are everywhere; they know the drill.

Often, crises are moments of truth. Some leaders prove in these moments to be up to the stakes, others collapse. The forces behind decisions, interests and ideologies become clearer. President Tump's solemn address to the American nation on Wednesday evening on the coronavirus crisis deserves a special mention. On that day, Donald Trump was preparing to put an end to the world economy as we knew it.

European capitals are taking a variety of steps individually to try to beat back the outbreak. But few countries are working together to combat the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. 

Cathryn Clüver-Ashbrook speaks to NDR2 radio on the impact of U.S. Scretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit on the health of the German-American relationship and shares reflections on 30 years after the fall of the Berlin wall.

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. 

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.