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Program(s): Peace and Security, Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies

Macron Can Survive France’s Anger

Non-Resident Fellow James Traub writes that the French will remain restive unless and until the effects of their president’s ambitious reforms kick in.

Publication Date: Dec 01, 2018

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe

Macron Has Changed France’s Political DNA

Non-Resident Fellow James Traub argues in his latest article for Foreign Policy that one year after his election, it's clear Emmanuel Macron isn't just a president — he's a liberal man of providence.

Publication Date: Jun 05, 2018

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe

Angela Merkel’s Great Escape

The chancellor's response to the refugee crisis was going to be her downfall. Then Germany's welfare state kicked in.

Publication Date: Sep 21, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe

Program(s): Peace and Security

Topic(s): Humanitarian Crises

A refugee crisis is what happens when large numbers of people fleeing poor, violent countries seek asylum in rich, peaceful countries, raising agonizing moral and political questions. This of course is what occurred in 2015, when a million refugees from Syria and elsewhere poured across Europe’s borders, provoking a backlash that brought nationalist parties to the verge of power and threatened the Continent’s liberal order. The refugees were the cause, rather than the victims, of the crisis in question.

Publication Date: Sep 11, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe, Middle East, Syria

Program(s): Peace and Security

Topic(s): Humanitarian Crises

Can Nationalists Ever Make Good Liberals?

France's new president is betting that he can bring disaffected voters back into the liberal fold by combining openness with economic growth. What if he just makes them even angrier?

We live in a time of catastrophic political experiments. Americans are learning how far the institutions of civil society can protect democratic norms in the face of an autocratically minded president. The British are about to find out how much economic pain they can endure for the privilege of flipping the bird to Europe. Italians may soon hand the reins of power to a clown — literally.

Publication Date: Jun 28, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe

Program(s): Peace and Security

Trump's statement at meeting with Netanyahu 'a reversal of a major policy of the U.S.government'

“What do you think about policy Trump in the Middle East?” - a reasonable question, but one with no answer. If we take only the Israel-Palestine conflict as an example, the U.S. has for several decades, through both Republican and Democratic administrations, supported as a solution the establishment of two states, Israel and Palestine, living in peace with each other. The U.S. advocated direct negotiations between the two parties, represented by the government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization as the means to that end and has offered to assist in any way.

Publication Date: Feb 23, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): Barnett Rubin

Region/Country: Europe, United States

Program(s): Afghanistan-Pakistan Regional Project

Topic(s): International Security

Marine Le Pen Is Donald Trump Without the Crazy

The Front National leader's grace and eloquence make her dangerous to liberalism. Donald Trump’s contemptuous cynicism makes him an existential threat

Publication Date: Feb 16, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe, United States

Program(s): Peace and Security

Analysis: Trump’s ‘America First’ Vision Could Upend Postwar Consensus

In his first two weeks in office, President Donald Trump's "America First" pledge has proven more than an idle slogan. In word and deed, the White House has signaled an aggressive unilateral stance toward the world that's antagonized allies abroad and divided supporters at home.

Publication Date: Feb 01, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): Benjy Sarlin, Barnett Rubin

Region/Country: Europe, Middle East, United States, South Asia, Afghanistan

Program(s): Afghanistan-Pakistan Regional Project

Topic(s): Global Governance

Donald Trumps far-right feedback loop is shaking Europe to its core

Last week, Frank-Walter Steinmeier made his last visit to Paris as Germany’s foreign minister (he is about to become president) in order to issue a plea to the French people: “Please do not surrender to the siren song of populism.” His meaning was plain: Do not elect Marine Le Pen, leader of the nativist National Front, in the presidential election this spring. If France falls, Germany, which votes in September, could be next.

Publication Date: Feb 03, 2017

Author(s) / Contributor(s): James Traub

Region/Country: Europe, United States

Program(s): Peace and Security

Topic(s): International Security