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.
This meeting was part of the broader Aspen Initiative in Favor of Pure Science – a project aimed at raising awareness in civil society of the strategic importance of pure science, not only as relevant to scientific study but also in terms of its fundamental service to humanity in general.
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 arrival of a new administration in Washington offers an opportunity to reconsider the broad spectrum of commitments and instruments that NATO uses to pursue its objectives. The Alliance has shown a great capacity for adaptation, but the many challenges of the coming years are going to call for new joint efforts.
The global security context needs to be interpreted and somehow modelled in order to better evaluate NATO’s trajectory and prospects: the international system seems to be caracterized by a form of “aggressive multipolarity”, as well as by a rather disorderly power competition across the spectrum. The US-China question has inevitably taken center stage, although the evolution of this bilateral relationship is far from clear at this stage.
The Covid-19 pandemic has triggered economic, political, social and cultural turmoil across the globe. A crisis unlike any that has occurred in a very long time that proving that health is an integral part of the foundation of a society and its economy. Nevertheless, the response to the pandemic as not been rapid and it is going to be necessary to adjust some previously applied mechanism.
Post-covid recovery needs women. Women’s empowerment is pivotal to tapping our society’s potential and meeting the challenges of the coming years. The digital revolution and the ecological transition are processes poised to stimulate the raising of a new development model above the wreckage the pandemic will have left behind. The need to draft new paradigms is precisely what makes diversity and broader vision at all levels, starting with decision makers, fundamental.
The world is in the midst of an unprecedented health and economic crisis, and there seems to be a vacuum in global leadership (certainly of US leadership). No single country can offer an effective recipe for resolution. The EU, at least, has recently demonstrated the ability to come together and agree on a large economic support package, but there remains a need for coordination at an even broader level. This, in turn, may require a consensus on common standards, from fair trade to scientific cooperation to specific health issues.
The main challenge associated with the spread of Covid-19 into the autumn/winter is going to be healthcare facilities’ ability to diagnose and treat a growing number of virus cases (as per all predictions) and distinguish them from seasonal flu. While Covid countermeasures will surely contribute significantly to reducing the incidence of regular flu, the annual illness will in any case continue to deplete healthcare resources.
