Diplomacy and International Politics

GRAND RAPIDS, United States, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- While the United States and China may compete in economy and trade, they should also work together to combat global challenges, said a former senior U.S. diplomat here on Friday. 

Texas Congressman Joaquin Castro joined Harvard Kennedy School Professor Nicholas Burns in a discussion concerning the role Congress should play in foreign policy in the era of President Trump. Castro discussed his upbringing and the civic conscious he gained at a young age alongside his twin brother Julian Castro, which encouraged him to eventually pursue a career in public service. The conversation covered a wide range of foreign affairs topics including immigration, trade, and terrorism. Castro took questions from the audience and voiced his concerns about a variety of global developments and threats and his believe that Congress should take a more active role in these issues.  

As the Trump administration stokes a trade war with China and tries to smooth over relations with long-term allies like Canada and the European Union, other nations are forging ahead with free trade agreements among themselves, a shift that could isolate the U.S. economy in the long term.

Former University President Lawrence H. Summers and two former U.S. diplomats critiqued the Trump administration’s trade policies at an Institute of Politics panel event Tuesday.

Speakers included Michael B. Froman, who was the U.S. Trade Representative during the Obama administration, and Kennedy School Professor R. Nicholas Burns. Burns previously served as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs from 2005 to 2008.

A recurring theme at the event—entitled “The Revolution in American Trade Policy"—was President Donald Trump’s frequently stated interest in renegotiating and leaving international trade agreements.

In this installment of “Conversations in Diplomacy," the Future of Diplomacy Project's Faculty Director, Nicholas Burns, is joined by Michael Froman, former United States Trade Representative.

Former US Trade Representative Michael B. Froman joined moderator Nicholas Burns, the Faculty Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project at HKS, in conversation at the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum.  Larry Summers, the Charles W. Eliot University Professor of Harvard University, introduced the program. Froman discussed NAFTA, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, intellectual property rights, the US-China trade relationship, and the impacts of technology and globalization.

Cathryn Cluver Ashbrook, Executive Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project, discusses the importance of the final wording of the G-20 communique, particularly with respect to the climate change and energy policy dossiers, noting different approaches to achieve transatlantic compromise. She underlines the importance of high-level meetings such as the G-20 to address critical global challenges, including multilateral responses to North Korea’s provocations and the ongoing conflict in Syria.

Foreign policy experts said the move could damage the United States’ credibility and weaken Mr. Trump’s efforts to negotiate issues far beyond climate change, like trade and terrorism.

“From a foreign policy perspective, it’s a colossal mistake — an abdication of American leadership,” said R. Nicholas Burns, a retired career diplomat and an under secretary of state for President George W. Bush.

“The success of our foreign policy — in trade, military, any other kind of negotiation — depends on our credibility,” Mr. Burns said. “I can’t think of anything more destructive to our credibility than this.”

Forty-four years after the United Kingdom entered into an often tempestuous but not always loveless union with Europe, Prime Minister Theresa May will trigger formal divorce proceedings Wednesday.

At the heart of the British position in these complex negotiations is a simple trade-off between sovereignty and prosperity.