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1562. U.S. global development leadership in a changing world
- Author:
- Homi Kharas
- Publication Date:
- 08-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- “Foreign assistance” combines two of the least popular words in United States politics. Since the end of the Cold War, isolationism has slowly weakened internationalism, perhaps because of the growing feeling that foreigners are freeloading on the U.S. as the world’s policeman and problem solver. Some indicators of popular attitudes toward foreign assistance are concerning, although these are not all consistent with each other. A 2016 Pew Survey found far more Americans responding that the U.S. does too much in terms of solving global problems (41 percent) than too little (27 percent). Similarly, a significant majority (57 percent) think that the U.S. should deal with its own problems and let others deal with theirs as best they can.
- Topic:
- International Affairs and International Development
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1563. The politics of foreign aid
- Author:
- Liz Schrayer
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- In 2011, as the annual budget resolution hit the Senate floor, multiple amendments were offered to cut the foreign assistance account. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky offered the most dangerous amendment to cut billions from the International Affairs Budget. While it was defeated, it still garnered 20 votes. In the intervening years, Senator Paul offered similar amendments—but his final effort in 2015 was different. It was soundly defeated by a 96-4 vote.
- Topic:
- Humanitarian Aid and Foreign Aid
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1564. Institutional architecture of U.S. foreign aid
- Author:
- George Ingram
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- “Bureaucratically fragmented, awkward, and slow, its (foreign aid) administration is diffused over a haphazard and irrational structure... The program is based on a series of legislative measures and administrative procedures conceived at different times and for different purposes and many of them obsolete, inconsistent, and unduly rigid and thus unsuited for our present needs and purpose.”—President John F. Kennedy’s Special Message to the Congress on Foreign Aid, March 22, 1961, that led to the enactment of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the establishment of United States Agency for International Development.
- Topic:
- Foreign Aid
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1565. Handle with care: The challenge of fragility
- Author:
- Nancy Lindborg
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- Despite enormous gains in poverty reduction and a long, steady drop in global violence over the past 70 years, progress is stubbornly stalled in those states considered most fragile. In the last de- cade, rising levels of violent con ict in states and regions like Syria, South Sudan, Yemen, Libya, Nigeria and East Africa have spawned four civil wars, the specter of four famines, and historic numbers of people displaced by violence, all of which are straining the global humanitarian sys- tem and threatening precious development gains. The world has responded with ever-larger pack- ages of humanitarian, military, and peacekeeping action. What remains missing, however, is a concerted focus on the underlying dynamics of fragility, which will ultimately require a different way of doing business and, importantly, a shared blueprint for action among political, security, development, and humanitarian actors.
- Topic:
- Foreign Aid
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1566. Multilateralism under stress
- Author:
- Homi Kharas
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- The multilateral development system, led by the United States, has guided development cooperation by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, evolving gradually through new institutions and new norms since World War II. Organized by a small group of like-minded countries, multilateralism has been a way of managing burden-sharing among donors and of delivering public goods. These functions are now under stress. According to a poll conducted in December 2016 by the Program for Public Consultation at the University of Maryland, most Americans (59.3 percent) support the statement that “when giving foreign aid, it is best for the U.S. to participate in international efforts, such as through the United Nations. This way it is more likely that other countries will do their fair share and that these ef- forts will be better coordinated.” However, a majority of Republican voters disagree, believing that it is better for the U.S. to provide aid on its own, to ensure control over how money is spent and to gain recognition for its generosity.
- Topic:
- International Trade and Finance and Global Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1567. American public support for foreign aid in the age of Trump
- Author:
- Stephen Kull
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- Is President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy a reflection of a larger isolationist trend in public attitudes? And what do Americans think about foreign aid in particular? The answer is complex. On the one hand, recent polls suggest a robust majority support an engaged U.S. role in the world, a moral dimension to U.S. foreign policy, and giving foreign aid, especially humanitarian aid. On the other, many are dissatisfied with America’s role in the post-Cold War era, and Trump has effectively played on that disillusionment. The U.S. is seen as having overextended itself in playing a hegemonic role in the world, a role that has served corporate interests and the wealthy, but that has not effectively served the middle class, which is largely footing the bill for it. This overextension is seen as being reflected in the U.S. budget deficit, which troubles the public more than the elites.
- Topic:
- International Affairs and Foreign Aid
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1568. European cybersecurity policy – Trends and prospects
- Author:
- Iva Tasheva
- Publication Date:
- 06-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- European Policy Centre
- Abstract:
- Increased digitalisation has brought both economic benefits and cybersecurity challenges. According to Europol, an expanding cybercriminal economy is exploiting our increasingly Internet-enabled lives and low levels of digital skills. This became publicly evident in May 2017 with the biggest ransomware attack so far; the WannaCry cryptoworm exploited a security gap in widely used, and often not updated versions of the Windows operational system. The cyber weapon, which enabled hackers to lock (encrypt) the victims' computer files until they paid a ransom, was stolen from the US National Security Agency. It spread within a few hours, affecting 200,000 computers, compromising the security and preventing the work of critical infrastructures, such as hospitals (NHS), public transport (Deutsche Bahn), banks (Deutsche Bank), service providers (Telefónica), delivery services (FedEx), and businesses across the globe.
- Topic:
- International Security
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1569. The Future of Trade
- Author:
- Rohinton P. Medhora
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Commentary and Analysis
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Abstract:
- Critical reviews of hard-hitting commentaries on urgent global issues are published periodically by Project Syndicate as part of their Issue Adviser series. In the latest instalment, below, the president of the Centre for International Governance Innovation assesses the populist threat to globalization and international trade and considers arguments by economists such as Kaushik Basu, Jeffrey Frankel, Laura Tyson and other commentators
- Topic:
- International Relations, International Security, and Global Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1570. 2017 Zeev Schiff Memorial Lecture with Maj. Gen. Yair Golan
- Author:
- The Washington Institute for East Policy
- Publication Date:
- 09-2017
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- IDF Major General Yair Golan provides an assessment of the major national security challenges confronting Israeli planners and indicates how they might meet them.
- Topic:
- International Security
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus