Europe’s destiny: security and defense priorities
For a country such as Italy, the rapid, far-reaching changes in the global system call for broader and more effective defense sector undertakings, in terms both of national capability and integration with allies. Although it has been underway for some years now, this trend has thus far been seriously underestimated, even by European partners, and directly concerns the vital economic interests of countries heavily inter-dependent in terms of foreign trade. It thus calls for the generation of synergies between a wide range of sectors that include military instruments.
Growth in Europe: the role of banks
Given the uncertainty of the scenario, banks are being reaffirmed as drivers of growth, although they cannot replace national and international institutions. Finance must serve as a support for businesses and families, notwithstanding the limitations of the European banking system, especially compared with the Chinese and American giants.
Testing the West in 2024. Politics, security and economics in EU-US relations
2024 is going to be a crucial electoral year for Europe and the United States as they each face not only internal political issues but also the pressure of growing international tensions. The outcome of the elections will be the first major indication of whether the two shores of the Atlantic will continue to act in tandem, with no center or guide, in a manner marked by what has been defined “the age of the polycrisis”, or if existing divergences will widen further.
The Italian G7 Presidency
Italy will be taking over the G7 presidency in January 2024 at a moment of profound geopolitical change and uncertainty. The very structure of globalization (…)The Italian G7 Presidency
Rethinking EU competitiveness in the changing geopolitical world
The discussion underway on European economic governance reform is part of a substantially uncertain and volatile macro-financial picture. The principal risks include stagflation, financial fragmentation, competitiveness problems (in light of the American Inflation Reduction Act) and the twin (digital and sustainable) transitions.
Italy and France one year after the Quirinal Treaty. The challenges of sovereignty and of geopolitics
Opportunities for increased collaboration between Italy and France, reinforced by the Quirinal Treaty and the protocols signed in Parliament, will have to be developed in the settings of the EU and the two nations’ common neighborhood policies vis à vis the southeast.
The EU and China facing global change: Energy transition, growth models, and global trends
There is broad consensus in both Europe and China that global economic slowdown is a serious threat, which is complicated by current monetary policy responses to inflation as a result of both the Russia/Ukraine war and the end of the pandemic recession. Given the enormous challenges this poses for economic policies, a multilateral framework for managing problems of such proportions would be to the advantage all countries – advanced, emerging and developing. In reality, however, many of the most recent national choices have gone in the opposite direction, with scarce coordination and unilateral action – starting with the US Fed, whose interest rate adjustments have been especially impactful given the international role of the dollar.
The Battle of Pavia and the future of European defense (1525-2025)
The battle of Pavia on February 24, 1525 was a revolutionary event, and the first major European battle in terms of army composition and geopolitical scale of operations and objectives. Moreover, it was a battle in which a new technology – the firearm – was employed for the first time in campaign and in which the populace was pitted against the nobility. Today’s war in Ukraine, like the battle of Pavia at the time, has opened up some new perspectives: political ones, i.e., the debate it has triggered on European defense, as well as technological ones on the future of security.
Italy’s recovery and resilience plan: how to strengthen and accelerate the implementation phase
After two years of planning, the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) has reached the point of implementation, with distributions going to local agencies that are now tasked with administering the funds. This undertaking is not devoid of problems associated with technical and administrative capacities. While on the one hand Italy is among the countries leading the definition of objectives and requesting installments from Europe, at the same time it is saddled with the age-old difficulty getting projects off the ground; indeed, according to a government update, only 15 billion of the 39 billion allotted has been spent.
The great power of scramble – Global trends and the role of Europe
The war in Ukraine represents a major point of discontinuity in prospects for a future international power balance teetering between the order ensured by a system of shared rules and a scenario of disorder marked by a tense democracy/autocracy standoff.
Crisis in Europe: meeting the challenges
The war in Ukraine is an existential one for Vladimir Putin. If he loses it, he loses his power, which is why he is willing (…)Crisis in Europe: meeting the challenges
Aspenia 97: Presentation – Addio alla Russia.
Rome, 30 June 2022 – To tie in with the publication of Aspenia 97 (in Italian), Aspen Institute Italia will be holding an Aspenia Talk on “The future of Russia in the post-global world” in digital mode at 18:00 on Wednesday 6 July.
Transatlantic Forum on Russia
The current situation in Russia raises a highly important question with regard to peace and security in Europe and, in a broader sense, the very (…)Transatlantic Forum on Russia
Aspen Italy/France Forum
Italy and France have solid relations built on a common history of strong economic and cultural ties. An important addition to those relations is the Quirinale Treaty signed in Rome on November 26. This strengthening of bilateral cooperation is crucial, in the first place, to the future of European economic governance. In the coming months, fiscal policy rules will be written into a revised Stability and Growth Pact within the framework of the French EU presidency. New rules on State Aid will also be outlined along with a framework of reforms needed to make the continent more competitive.
Western Balkan countries’ integration in the EU: the case for Kosovo
The process of EU enlargement has been a major political and strategic success, but it is facing growing problems such as capacity for integration and political consensus among current members.
The post Merkel Germany: implications for Europe and the US
The September 26 German elections could not but be influenced by the figure of Angela Merkel. Her principal legacy is probably to have been a master crisis manager and a pillar of political stability, but she has not staked her career on promoting a truly comprehensive and ambitious vision for Europe. Even regarding the pursuit of German national interests, an overall assessment of her profile as a leader must take into account several missed opportunities for renewal and perhaps even excessive prudence.
The economics of climate change: a joint agenda between US and Europe
Policies for waging the battle against climate change and for and managing the phenomenon are central to both the post-pandemic economic recovery and to transatlantic relations at this new stage of opportunity for Euro-American cooperation. The slogan adopted by Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral campaign – “Build Back Better” – can be considered overall a highly appropriate approach to the international circumstances that distinguish 2021.
The decline of the West? The dilemma of liberal democracies
What is waning more in the West, civility or democracy? There has been talk for a century now of Western “decline”, understood as demographic and economic, but also the decline of fundamental values such as freedom, democracy and openness. Interpretations have gone so far as to speak of a broad decline in moral values. It can be seen as the beginning of a different perception of the world’s diversities.
The future of foreign investment in Italy and Europe
Country system appeal has always been an issue for Italy, the recipient of between 2% and 3% of all direct foreign investments in Europe and the twelfth-ranked nation on the continent. The difficulty in attracting investments is paramount among the concerns to be addressed in ensuring support for and the development of the country’s fabric of small and medium-sized enterprises. Yet, the country presents a marked dualism, not only between north and south, but also between levels of competitiveness and productivity.
Digital society: democracy, information, security
The relationship between information and power is not a new concern. Ancient Greek historian Polybius defined ochlocracy as the degeneration of democracy where the mob is led to believe it is free to exercise its prerogatives while instead becoming the active instrument of one or more groups. The exponential spread of interconnected actors has fed a considerable flow of web-channeled data, the appropriate use of which platforms are required to manage. This endeavor calls for an ability to differentiate between content that is legal and that which may constitute a violation.
Italy 2040: a new social contract to weather the crisis
The United States-China face-off is surely going to dominate in the near future. Washington now considers the bid to involve China in a liberal order, which Beijing itself has deemed illegitimate, a lost cause. Thus, in order to prevent the confrontation from becoming a conflict – or even war – it is going to be necessary to establish some collaborative terrain on global issues in a context otherwise dominated by sharp contrasts. It is not the Congress but rather the American economic world that interacts and is heavily interdependent with the Chinese economy.