Press Release
from Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Cambridge, MA – The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, in partnership with the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, announced today the expansion of its Economic Diplomacy Initiative (EDI).
From trade negotiations and sanctions policy to data privacy and digital currencies, EDI aims to advance knowledge of how nations should use economic relationships to pursue both economic growth and national security interests.
EDI is led by Belfer Center Executive Director Aditi Kumar, along with Harvard Faculty Co-chairs Nicholas Burns and Lawrence H. Summers.
“From U.S.-China trade tensions to major efforts by private corporations to launch their own digital currencies, the Economic Diplomacy Initiative is committed to helping leaders and citizens better grasp some of the most powerful levers shaping change around the world today,” said Summers.
“Our Economic Diplomacy Initiative is a major new effort to elevate our focus on the critical importance of economic issues in international relations today,” said Burns.
To kick off its research agenda, EDI will host “Digital Currency Wars: A National Security Crisis Simulation” in the JFK Jr. Forum on November 19. The event simulates a National Security Council meeting in response to a geopolitical crisis triggered by digital currencies and other advances in financial technology. In addition to Burns and Summers, Ash Carter, Meghan O’Sullivan, and Eric Rosenbach are just a few of the experts who will take on the role of Cabinet officials in the meeting.
“The development of digital currencies has the potential to upend the global economic system – everything from implementing sanctions to protecting financial privacy to tracking illegal activity will look very different in a digital world,” said Kumar. “This is exactly the type of forward-looking policy challenge that we want to explore with EDI.”
Among a broad range of pursuits, the initiative will investigate three core challenges that policymakers face:
- Negotiating the rules of the international economic order. As economic power shifts from the U.S. to a broader group of nations, how will policymakers set a clear vision for the international economic order, including the agreements, institutions, and infrastructure that facilitate multinational commerce?
- Deploying economic instruments to promote geopolitical interests. How are states using economic instruments – including trade, investment, sanctions, aid, and monetary policy – to achieve national interests? How should policymakers respond to other nations’ use of these instruments?
- Promoting competitiveness in critical economic sectors. In an era of unprecedented global competition, how can policymakers support national competitiveness and innovation in critical sectors, such as energy, finance, artificial intelligence, telecommunications, and next-generation commodities?
The initiative builds on a series of conversations on the critical role that economic relationships play in enhancing global security. Past speakers include Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank and former IMF Managing Director; Michael Froman, former U.S. Trade Representative; Penny Pritzker, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce; and Luis Moreno, President of the Inter-American Development Bank.