Carnegie Moscow Center
After the worst year of economic performance in recent memory, most projections show positive growth in 2010, but questions about the sustainability of the recovery remain central.
Three months ago, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen presented the basis for a new strategic partnership with Russia, laying out the specific areas where practical cooperation could be extended. Now, the Secretary General comes to Moscow, reaffirming the preeminence of NATO-Russia cooperation on the Alliance’s agenda.
The Iraqi parliamentary elections in 2010 will determine whether the country moves toward consolidating a stable democracy, or slides deeper into sectarian turmoil.
The North Caucasus looks and feels more and more like Russia’s neighbor than a constituent part of the state. As the people in the region have become disappointed in local leaders and the Kremlin, many of them turn to Islam as their last hope to achieve structure and peace.
Russia is the only major economy that is not a member of the WTO, but discussions over its accession have intensified, giving rise to important questions about the implications for world trade.
The hoped for undivided “Europe whole and free” of twenty years ago has today become a region in danger of seeing new lines divide the continent with the prospect of heightened tension for all. It will require adjustments and new thinking from all to recapture the promise of an undivided, secure, and prosperous region.
There is widespread agreement that NAFTA has fallen short of its stated goals. Mexico’s experience under NAFTA shows that the U.S. trade agreements must include robust funding for development and avoid restrictions on government policies proven to promote dynamic development.
Since the start of the financial crisis, questions about sovereign wealth funds, which had $3.9 trillion in assets in 2008, have been at the forefront of discussions regarding financial stability and global politics.
Foreign Affairs Minister Petro Poroshenko discussed Ukraine’s domestic and foreign policy challenges ahead of the presidential election in January, stressing Ukraine’s strengthened democratic processes and the importance of continued dialogue about the new and open European security architecture.
While a greater degree of pluralism has been introduced into Arab societies, they are still likely to grapple with political apathy, low voter turnout, dwindling membership in registered parties, and shrinking constituencies for the foreseeable future.