'Foreign Policy: A Battle between Realpolitik & Ideology'

Mark Urban 

Diplomatic Editor, Newsnight

Wednesday 7 May| 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Location: Boothroyd Room, Portcullis House, Houses of Parliament

RSVP required to sarah.feurey@ypfp.org
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Mark Urban

Mark Urban is a journalist, author and broadcaster, who is currently Diplomatic Editor of the BBC's flagship current affairs programme Newsnight. He was previously Middle East correspondent for BBC News, a general reporter for Newsnight and Defence correspondent of The Independent newspaper.

The Marshall Plan, which provided $13 billion in aid for Europe, rescued the continent from the destruction of World War II and further economic catastrophe while setting the stage for the continent's integration today.  But who were the major players in Europe and the United States who hammered out the deal?  What role did Congress play in forging the policy? What baseline did the Marshall Plan set for future U.S. assistance policies?  To discuss these questions and more, please join Greg Behrman, Henry Kissinger Fellow for Foreign Policy at the Aspen Institute and author of “The Most Noble Adventure: The Marshall Plan and the Time When America Helped Save Europe”.

As the oldest secular state in the Muslim world, Turkey is an important ally to the United States and has been a partner with the West since the beginning of the Cold War.  However, this history does not guarantee a smooth relationship.  Issues such as the rights of the Turkish Kurds, relations with Iraqi Kurds, entrance into the EU, and the rise of political Islam continue to cause strains within and without Turkey, raising numerous questions.  What does Turkey think about the United States?  Do Turkey, the United States, and Europe share the same views about the Middle East?  What do Turks think about the international system and its need for leadership?  To discuss these issues and more, YPFP is pleased to host emerging Turkish leaders Arif Cem Gundogan, Derya Tan Boya, and Gulgonul Bozoglu.

Please join the Women's Foreign Policy Group next Tuesday, May 13th at the Slovenian Embassy, for a book reception with Robin Wright, Diplomatic Correspondent for The Washington Post, for her new book, "Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East"

Robin Wright has reported from more than a 140 countries on six continents for The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Sunday Times of London, CBS News and The Christian Science Monitor. She has also written for The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The New York Times, The International Herald Tribune and others. Her foreign tours include the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and several years as a roving foreign correspondent. She has covered a dozen wars and several revolutions. She now covers U.S. foreign policy for The Washington Post. Among several awards, Wright received the U.N. Correspondents Gold Medal, the National Magazine Award for reportage from Iran in The New Yorker, and the Overseas Press Club Award for "best reporting in any medium requiring exceptional courage and initiative" for coverage of African wars. She was named journalist of the year by the American Academy of Diplomacy, and won the National Press Club Award and the Weintal Prize for diplomatic reporting. Wright has also been the recipient of a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation grant. As an author, Ms. Wright has been a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Brookings Institution, Yale University, Duke University, Stanford University, and the University of California at Santa Barbara. She lectures extensively around the United States and has appeared on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN and PBS programs, including “Meet the Press,” “Face the Nation,” “This Week,” “Nightline,” the “Newshour,” “Frontline,” and "Larry King Live.’ Among her books, The Last Great Revolution: Turmoil and Transformation in Iran was selected as one of the 25 most memorable books of the year 2000. She is also the author of Sacred Rage: The Wrath of Militant Islam, Flashpoints: Promise and Peril in a New World, and In the Name of God: The Khomeini Decade.

After the collapse of the USSR, cooperation between U.S. and Russian aerospace companies symbolized the spirit of the post-Cold War era.  In many ways, these efforts have been very successful, reducing costs and enabling projects like the International Space Station.  However, rising tensions with Russia have led to questions about whether this relationship is good for the United States and its continued access to space.  What are the challenges and risks of working in Russia?  How important has Russia become to U.S. access to space?  Should the U.S. count on continued cooperation in the future?  To answer these questions and more, please join Mark Albrecht, former president of International Launch Services and senior space policy advisor to President Bush from 1989 to 1993.

To RSVP, please email your name and affiliation to events@ypfp.org.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Panel Discussion at New York University

Thursday, May 15, 2008 - 7:00 PM

Location:
Eisner and Lubin Auditorium
New York University
Kimmel Center - Fourth Floor
60 Washington Square South
New York, NY

Please join Thomas Keenan, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature and Director of the Human Rights Project at Bard College, as he moderates a discussion between David Rieff, author of A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis, and Dr. Rony Brauman, former president of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), to honor one of the great figures of humanitarian action, François Jean.

THE LIST PROJECT INVITES YOU TO A SPECIAL SHOWING OF GEORGE PACKER’S “B E T R A Y E D” AT THE CULTURE PROJECT THURSDAY, MAY 15 AT 8 PM

THERE WILL BE A SPECIAL POST-PERFORMANCE CONVERSATION WITH GEORGE PACKER & LIST PROJECT FOUNDER KIRK JOHNSON

CULTURE PROJECT IS OFFERING A ONE-NIGHT DISCOUNTED TICKET PRICE TO FRIENDS OF THE LIST PROJECT. TO ORDER TICKETS, CALL 212-352-3101 OR VISIT WWW.CULTUREPROJECT.ORG AND USE DISCOUNT CODE L25STCP

STANDARD SEATS $25 (REGULARLY $35)
PREMIUM SEATS $45 (REGULARLY $60)

New York, NY –-- Culture Project (Allan Buchman, Artistic Director) has announced that it will host The List Project for a special post-show discussion, following the Thursday, May 15 performance of its critically acclaimed World Premiere production of George Packer’s play Betrayed. Following the 8:00 p.m. performance, Packer will be joined by Kirk Johnson, founder of The List Project, a former United States Agency for International Development (USAID) officer whose work to resettle Iraqis endangered by working with American organizations helped inspire Packer’s play. Packer and Johnson will be joined by Ehab Al-Kuttub, an Iraqi currently working with The List Project and the evening will be moderated by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, National Editor of The Washington Post and author of Imperial Life in the Emerald City.

THE LIST PROJECT INVITES YOU TO A SPECIAL SHOWING OF GEORGE PACKER’S “B E T R A Y E D” AT THE CULTURE PROJECT THURSDAY, MAY 15 AT 8 PM

THERE WILL BE A SPECIAL POST-PERFORMANCE CONVERSATION WITH GEORGE PACKER & LIST PROJECT FOUNDER KIRK JOHNSON

CULTURE PROJECT IS OFFERING A ONE-NIGHT DISCOUNTED TICKET PRICE TO FRIENDS OF THE LIST PROJECT. TO ORDER TICKETS, CALL 212-352-3101 OR VISIT WWW.CULTUREPROJECT.ORG AND USE DISCOUNT CODE L25STCP

STANDARD SEATS $25 (REGULARLY $35)
PREMIUM SEATS $45 (REGULARLY $60)

New York, NY –-- Culture Project (Allan Buchman, Artistic Director) has announced that it will host The List Project for a special post-show discussion, following the Thursday, May 15 performance of its critically acclaimed World Premiere production of George Packer’s play Betrayed. Following the 8:00 p.m. performance, Packer will be joined by Kirk Johnson, founder of The List Project, a former United States Agency for International Development (USAID) officer whose work to resettle Iraqis endangered by working with American organizations helped inspire Packer’s play. Packer and Johnson will be joined by Ehab Al-Kuttub, an Iraqi currently working with The List Project and the evening will be moderated by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, National Editor of The Washington Post and author of Imperial Life in the Emerald City.

Normalizing Japan: Politics, Identity, and the Evolution of Security Practice

Special Asian Security Luncheon Seminar
Where: The East-West Center in Washington, 1819 L St. NW, 2nd Floor Conference Room
When: May 19, 2008, 12:30-2:30pm
What:
Andrew Oros's new book, Normalizing Japan, the latest in the East-West Center's Studies in Asian Security series published by Stanford University Press, seeks to answer the question of what future direction Japan's military policies are likely to take by considering how policy has evolved since World War II, and what factors shaped this evolution. Andrew Oros argues that Japanese security policy has not changed as much in recent years as many believe, and that future change also will be highly constrained by Japan's long-standing "security identity" – the central principle guiding Japanese policy over the past half century. His analysis is based on detailed exploration of three cases of policy evolution – restrictions on arms exports, the military use of outer space, and cooperation with the United States on missile defense – which shed light on other cases of policy change, such as Japan's deployment of its military to Iraq and elsewhere and its recent creation of a Ministry of Defense.

CUSE will host its Fifth Annual Conference at Brookings on Tuesday, May 20, 2008. As in previous years, the Conference will bring together scholars, officials, and policymakers from both sides of the Atlantic to examine the evolving roles of the United States and Europe in the global arena.

This year’s panel discussions will examine trans-Atlantic relations beyond the Bush presidency; Sarkozy’s plans for France’s EU presidency; and the future of Russia under Medvedev. We are pleased to announce that this year’s confirmed speakers include: Jan Petersen, former Norwegian Foreign Minister; Pierre Levy of the French Foreign Ministry’s Planning Staff; Sir Lawrence Freedman of King’s College, London; Gary Schmitt of the American Enterprise Institute; Gideon Rachman of the Financial Times; and Strobe Talbott, President of Brookings.

Addressing the failures that led to the 9/11 attacks spurred change in the U.S. intelligence community, most notably the founding of the DNI and DHS.  Yet early opposition to creating these organizations reminds us that these changes were not inevitable.  The United States has suffered other intelligence failures in recent decades, like the failure to predict the collapse of the USSR, but none has resulted in such sweeping changes.  What forces led the country to create DHS and the DNI?  How did the Bush Administration choose the shape these organizations would take?  Did the historical experience of the intelligence community influence this process?  To discuss these questions and more, please join Dr. John Gannon, Senior Vice President for Global Analysis at BAE Systems and former chairman of National Intelligence Council.

To attend, please register by emailing events@ypfp.org with your name and affiliation .  

The Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED)and the Heinrich Böll Foundation present:

Perceptions of U.S. Democracy Promotion:American and Middle Eastern Views

Most Americans and Middle Easterners agree, according to public opinion polls, that democracy can develop in the Middle East and that only peaceful means of supporting democracy are acceptable. Nevertheless, deep disagreements remain on whether the U.S. should be involved in promoting democracy in the region, and if so, how.

What types of policies and programs do Middle Easterners perceive as permissible and legitimate ways for the U.S. to impact political reform? What actions can the U.S. take to regain credibility on promoting reform in the region? How do Americans view the promotion of democracy abroad compared to other policy priorities, especially when groups likely to come to power through democratic means are opposed to most U.S. policies?

On May 27, Brookings’s 21st Century Defense Initiative will host Vice Admiral Robert T. Moeller, deputy to the commander for military operations, United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), for a discussion on the aims, status and future mission for AFRICOM as it approaches its first anniversary this fall.

Vice Admiral Moeller has been directly involved with AFRICOM since its conceptualization as a new regional military command. Beginning in late 2005, Admiral Moeller was the executive director of the AFRICOM Transition Team, and has served as deputy for military operations since August 2007. A surface warfare officer commissioned in 1974, Vice Admiral Moeller has served in a wide variety of sea, shore and joint duty assignments. He commanded the USS Belknap, participating in NATO and Partnership for Peace operations and in Operations Provide Promise and Deny Flight across the former Republic of Yugoslavia. He also commanded the USS Port Royal and the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group. Most recently, he was the director for strategy, plans and policy at U.S. Central Command from 2004-05. He is also served as a Navy Federal Executive Fellow at the Brookings Institution from 1989-90.

Globalization is one of the most commonly discussed traits of the world today, and it forces leaders to work in different cultures with both public and private organizations.  Within the United States, we understand how the government and private sectors work together, but how are public-private partnerships, and globalization in general, viewed in other countries?  What opportunities and challenges does this create for U.S. and world business?  How can the United States continue build and benefit from such partnerships?  To discuss these issues and more, please join LTG (Ret.) Daniel W. Christman, Senior Vice President for International Affairs at the United States Chamber of Commerce.

Cyclone Nargis recently hit Burma and left as many as 128,000 people dead and 2.5 million people impacted due to horrible resource mismanagement and negligence by the military dictatorship.

How can you help? Come to a happy hour benefit! The money will be donated to a relief organization working inside Burma that has been by-passing the military junta to make sure that food, medicine and supplies actually reach people in need.We hope that you will be able to join us in solidarity with the people of Burma.

The benefit will be on Wednesday, May 28, from 6:30-9 PM, at Meze in Adams Morgan (2437 18th Street NW).

Please register for this event online at www.aei.org/event1730.

Thursday, May 29, 2008, 9:00-10:45 a.m.
Wohlstetter Conference Center, Twelfth Floor, AEI
1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036

In light of Latin America's historic vulnerability to even minor tremors in external markets, all eyes in the region are on the current U.S. subprime credit crisis and any possible fallout in the hemisphere. Most indicators point to relatively minor repercussions in Latin American economies: regional money and bond markets remain steady, and economists predict that growth will slow-but only by a bit. While exports will likely decline and inflationary pressures remain a concern, this relatively benign impact raises the questions: What is different this time around? Will some countries fare better than others in riding out the crisis? In looking forward, how can policymakers in the region further reduce vulnerability to external crises?

East-West Center Special Asian Security Luncheon Seminar

Where: East-West Center in Washington, 1819 L St. NW, 2nd Floor Conference Room
When: May 30, 2008, 12:30-2:30PM
Who: Yoshihisa Komori, Editor-at-Large, The Sankei Shimbun; Robert Sutter, Professor, Georgetown University; Ming Wan, Professor, George Mason University

This event is free and open to the public.
A light lunch will be served at 12:30pm.

The China-Japan-U.S. trilateral relationship remains one of the most complex and significant in the post-Cold War era. While U.S.-Japan political and military cooperation remains strong, Japan's slowed economy, alongside China's continued growth, has brought China and Japan closer economically. The recent meeting between PRC President Hu Jintao and Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda hinted at the possibility of warming relations between China and Japan that have been evolving since the departure of Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi, even if the summit failed to address more substantive issues such as historical territorial disputes over the East China Sea.

Brooks Tigner is both the Chief Editor for Security Europe and the Europe Defence Technology Editor with Jane’s Defence Weekly and Jane’s International Defence Review. In this capacity he reports on European security and defence issues at both NATO and the EU. Mr. Tigner has been following the development of European security and defence policy for the past 16 years, and will make a presentation and lead a discussion on the impact of France’s upcoming EU Presidency on ESDP. 

To attend, please RSVP by writing to events.brussels@ypfp.org