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On Defense, France Bites the Bullet, But Avoids Strategic Insolvency May 7, 2013
Iceland’s Recovery Saga Presents Opportunities for Brussels, Washington—and Beijing May 6, 2013
Which Way Forward for Europe’s Hybrid Regimes? May 2, 2013
The Arab Revolts and the Liberal Order May 2, 2013
Events
Andrew Light Speaker Tour in Europe May 14, 2013 / Berlin, Germany; Brussels, BelgiumGMF Senior Fellow Andrew Light participated in a speaking tour in Europe to discuss opportunities for transatlantic cooperation on climate and energy policy in the second Obama administration.
In this podcast, GMF Vice President of Programs Ivan Vejvoda discusses last month's historic agreement to normalize relations between Kosovo and Serbia.
Anchor Elaine Reyes speaks with Andrew Small, Transatlantic Fellow of the Asia Program for the German Marshall Fund, about Beijing's potential role in brokering peace between Israel and Palestine
Events
Security in the South Caucasus March 12, 2012 / Brussels, Belgium
On Thursday 8 March, 2012, the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) was proud to host four distinguished experts from the EU, NATO, Georgia and Turkey for a panel discussion on security in the South Caucasus. James Appathurai, NATO Secretary General’s Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia, Giga Bokeria, a prominent Georgian politician and the current Secretary of the National Security Council of Georgia, Ilter Turan, Professor of International Relations at Istanbul Bilgi University and one of Turkey's foremost political scientists and commentators on international affairs, and Philippe Lefort, EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the Crisis in Georgia, all gathered for the discussion moderated by Senior GMF Fellow, Peter Semneby.
The discussion highlighted the strategic importance of the region, not least because Georgia and Azerbaijan are crucial countries for the supply and transit of oil and natural gas, and regional stability is therefore key to energy security in wider Europe. Other reasons are the region’s geographical proximity to—and cultural affinity with—European partner countries, the region’s role as a trade route to and from Central Asia, and the potential spillover of terrorism and drug-trafficking from the Russian North Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Middle East.
Discussants acknowledged that the security situation in the South Caucasus is characterized by a security deficit due to several unresolved conflicts. The involvement of regional neighbors such as Russia adds to the volatility of the dispute. There were fears that the regional security architecture is unable to prevent future conflict, let alone lead to definitive conflict resolution. To move the resolution process forward, the discussants emphasized the need for an increased international awareness and stronger commitment by both regional and foreign actors. But, as one discussant said, the international community will never be able to substitute for local political will. Increasing regional trade and economic activity, people-to-people exchanges and engaging the local populations will therefore be pivotal to making progress at the negotiation table.
Click here for a podcast with Peter Semneby and Giga Bokeria.
