SOFT POWER
Summer 2013
International Security Journal Highlights
Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter
International Security is America’s leading journal of security affairs. It provides sophisticated analyses of contemporary security issues and discusses their conceptual and historical foundations. The journal is edited at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center and published quarterly by the MIT Press.
January 25, 2013
"What the Suez Crisis Can Remind Us About U.S. Power"
Op-Ed, Washington Post
By David Ignatius, Senior Fellow, Future of Diplomacy Project
"Chuck Hagel means it when he describes himself as an “Eisenhower Republican.” He kept a bust of President Dwight Eisenhower in his Senate office for a dozen years and has a portrait of Ike on the wall of his current office at Georgetown University.
But the most compelling evidence of Hagel’s fascination is that he purchased three dozen copies of an Eisenhower biography and gave copies to President Obama, Vice President Biden and then-Defense Secretary Bob Gates, according to the book’s author, David Nichols," writes David Ignatius in The Washing Post.
March/April 2013
"Our Pacific Predicament"
Magazine or Newspaper Article, American Interest, issue 4, volume 8
By Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
"American interests rest on stability in the region to allow the continuing growth of trade and investment that benefits all countries. The U.S.-Japan alliance remains crucial to stability in East Asia, but so too are good relations in all three sides of the strategic triangle. One thing is clear: If, despite all we do, Sino-Japanese relations deteriorate toward literal conflict, the United States will be faced with some very tough choices."
Associated Press
February 20, 2013
"Obama and Kerry Should Listen Hard"
Op-Ed, Agence Global
By Rami Khouri, Senior Fellow, Middle East Initiative
It was inevitable that the announcement of U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to the Middle East in mid-March would trigger expectations of new proposals for re-starting Palestinian-Israeli peace talks. This visit, coupled with John Kerry’s appointment as secretary of state and the start of Obama’s second term, heightens speculation about what, if anything, the United States may do to prod the parties towards fresh negotiations
January 25, 2013
"Work With China, Don't Contain It"
Op-Ed, New York Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
"But America's rebalancing toward Asia should not be aggressive. We should heed Mr. Kennan's warning against overmilitarization and ensure that China doesn't feel encircled or endangered. The world's two largest economies have much to gain from cooperation on fighting climate change, pandemics, cyberterrorism and nuclear proliferation."
January 22, 2013
"The Second Term: Joseph Nye on U.S.-Chinese Relations"
Q&A
By Doug Gavel and Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
"The task for the Obama Administration over the next four years will be to implement a balanced policy that both balances and integrates China. It must shape the environment to deter aggressive actions while holding open the opportunity for cooperation with joint gains."
AP Photo
January 17, 2013
"The Promise of India"
Op-Ed, Boston Globe
By Nicholas Burns, Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Politics, Harvard Kennedy School
Nicholas Burns writes, "It has been a big idea in American foreign policy for over a decade: The United States would align its interests with a rapidly rising and democratic India to balance China’s burgeoning power in the vital Asia Pacific region. But that ambitious strategic bet depended on the critical assumption that the chaotic, poor, and struggling India of today would develop into the vibrant, wealthier, and more stable India of tomorrow that many of its admirers think it may yet become.
January 10, 2012
"The World in 2030"
Op-Ed, Social Europe Journal
By Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
"The question of America's role in helping to produce a more benign world in 2030 has important implications for President Barack Obama as he approaches his second term. The world faces a new set of transnational challenges, including climate change, transnational terrorism, cyber insecurity, and pandemics. All of these issues require cooperation to resolve."
December 16, 2012
"Immigration and American Power"
Op-Ed, The Korea Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
"While too rapid a rate of immigration can cause social problems, over the long term, immigration strengthens U.S. power. It is estimated that at least 83 countries and territories currently have fertility rates that are below the level needed to keep their population constant. Whereas most developed countries will experience a shortage of people as the century progresses, America is one of the few that may avoid demographic decline and maintain its share of world population."
December 3, 2012
"Seoul, Tokyo Should Look to the Future"
Op-Ed, The Korea Herald
By Sang-ho Song and Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
In addition to the festering territorial row over Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo, historical issues such as Japan's wartime sexual enslavement have overshadowed the prospect of the two countries' cooperation on security and other issues. Diplomatic tension is expected to escalate further as security hawk Shinzo Abe of the Liberal Democratic Party is likely to return to Japan's premiership following the parliamentary elections slated for Dec. 16.
