Africa

"What happens when, after another dozen major attacks, the chain of their barbarism outpaces the chain of our human solidarity? When is the permissible moment to start asking if we can muster as much wisdom and realism to fight terror as we do to harness emotions of solidarity? The recent increasing pace and widening geographic scope of terror suggest we are dealing with a qualitatively new kinds of terrorists — but the policy responses of governments and the emotional responses of entire societies suggest we have no idea how to respond to quell this monster."

In an otherwise annus horribilis in foreign policy, who were the brave men and women working tirelessly for peace in 2014? Professor Burns asked his Harvard Kennedy School students and his three daughters for their suggestions.

Here are their and his choices: Pope Francis; two 17-year olds--Malala Yousafzai and Hong Kong Protest leader Joshua Wong; AIDS advocate Joep Lange; the Ebola doctors/nurses; international relief organizations providing food/shelter to the 11 million Syrian homeless, the millions of non-violent protesters against racial discrimination; Shimon Peres and, yes, Barack Obama and John Kerry. And, above all, the victims of ISIS, including James Foley, Stephen Sotloff, Peter Kassig, Alan Henning and David Haines.

Professor Burns finishes this op-ed wishing us all peace on earth in 2015.

An audio recording from Robert S. Ford, former US Ambassador to Syria (2011-2014) and Algeria (2006-2008). He is currently a resident scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C. and teaches at Johns Hopkins University on Middle East politics.

On October 29, 2014 at MEI, Ambassador Ford reflected on his 4½ years working for the U.S. Mission in Iraq and 3 years working on Syria, in a talk moderated by Kennedy School professor and former State Department colleague Nicholas Burns.

Nicholas Burns outlines the most significant global crises on Obama’s 2014 foreign-policy agenda that will determine whether the year ahead will bring war or peace to the world’s most troubled regions.

In his annual "Peacemakers" column, Nicholas Burns highlights a few remarkable men and women who work tirelessly to bring peace and healing in an increasingly turbulent world. He reminds us of President Kennedy's vision: that despite the violence and tragedy around us, we must hold fast to the urgent, elusive, human dream: "Not merely peace in our time, but peace for all time."

Today's violence and chaos in Cairo is a stark reminder of the complexities of political revolution in one of the most important countries in the Middle East, to say nothing of the tricky international diplomacy that surrounds it. On August 14, GlobalPost interviewed Professor Nicholas Burns about events in Egypt.

The Spring 2011 issue of the Belfer Center newsletter features recent and upcoming activities, research, and analysis by members of the Center community on critical global issues. This issue highlights the Belfer Center’s continuing efforts to build bridges between the United States and Russia to prevent nuclear catastrophe – an effort that began in the 1950s. This issue also features three new books by Center faculty that sharpen global debate on critical issues: God’s Century, by Monica Duffy Toft, The New Harvest by Calestous Juma, and The Future of Power, by Joseph S. Nye.

The Winter 2010/11 issue of the Belfer Center newsletter features recent and upcoming activities, research, and analysis by members of the Center community on critical global issues. This issue highlights a major Belfer Center conference on technology and governance, the Center's involvement in the nuclear threat documentary Countdown to Zero, and a celebration of Belfer Center founder Paul Doty.