Future of Diplomacy Project

Should the United States Normalize Relations with the Taliban?

Belfer Center — Aug 21, 2023

Aug 21, 2023

Foreign Affairs has recently published a number of articles on how the United States should engage with the Taliban government in Afghanistan, extremist forces within the regime, how the West can help ordinary Afghans, and the fate of the country’s women. To complement these essays, Foreign Affairs asked a broad pool of experts for their take. As with previous surveys, Foreign Affairs approached dozens of authorities with expertise relevant to the question at hand, along with leading generalists in the field. Participants were asked to state whether they agreed or disagreed with a proposition and to rate their confidence level in their opinion. Two Belfer Center experts participated, International Security Executive Editor Jacqueline L. Hazelton and Future of Diplomacy Project Senior Fellow Paula Dobriansky.

The Bright Future of Diplomacy

Belfer Center — May 31, 2023

May 31, 2023

Training the next generation of foreign policy practitioners is one of the key missions of the Future of Diplomacy (FDP) and the Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on Belarusian Freedom and the War in Ukraine

Belfer Center — May 31, 2023

May 31, 2023

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the current Belarusian opposition leader, speaks with Belfer Center Fellow Svenja Kirsch on Belarusian Freedom and the War in Ukraine.

EVENT DEBRIEF: The Future of Ukraine: Reconstruction, Energy Security, and Innovation

Belfer Center — Apr 18, 2023

Apr 18, 2023

The following is an event write-up about the recent Future of Diplomacy Project (FDP) seminar on “The Future of Ukraine: Reconstruction, Energy Security, and Innovation” moderated by Ambassador Paula J. Dobriansky, Senior Fellow with the Future of Diplomacy Project.

EVENT DEBRIEF: The Geopolitics of Latin America Amid the War in Ukraine and China-U.S. Tensions

Belfer Center — Apr 10, 2023

Apr 10, 2023

The following is an event write-up about the recent Future of Diplomacy Project (FDP) seminar on “The Geopolitics of Latin America amid the War in Ukraine and China-U.S. Tensions” moderated by Negah Angha, Fellow at the Institute of Politics, on March 29, 2023.

Q&A with Desirée Cormier Smith

Belfer Center — Mar 13, 2023

Mar 13, 2023

In honor of International Women's Day and U.S. Women's History Month, Erika Manouselis, Manager of the Future of Diplomacy Project, spoke with Desirée Cormier Smith, the U.S. State Department’s first ever Special Representative for Racial Equity and Justice.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Shares Insights on the War and Ukrainian Determination

Belfer Center — Feb 23, 2023

Feb 23, 2023

The Belfer Center at Harvard Kennedy School hosted a virtual conversation with Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba Wednesday (Feb. 22) to discuss the war in Ukraine as it reaches a full year since Russia's invasion.

"Biden makes suprise visit to Ukraine before heading to Poland for invasion anniversary"

Belfer Center — Feb 20, 2023

Feb 20, 2023

U.S. President Joe Biden spent five hours in the Ukrainian capital on Monday, meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky and even taking a stroll through the streets of Kyiv – despite the sound of air sirens – to visit The Wall of Remembrance, which displays portraits of the approximately 4,500 Ukrainian soldiers who have died since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

The trip was kept under a media blackout until a few hours after Biden’s arrival, with the president’s official schedule only saying he would fly in the evening to Warsaw for a planned visit. The New York Times reported, quoting an anonymous official source, that Biden arrived in Kyiv early this morning after making the same 10-hour long journey from Poland that every world leader visiting Ukraine since the start of the war has.

Enabling an Economic Transformation of Ukraine: Recovery, Reconstruction, and Modernization

Belfer Center — Jan 10, 2023

Jan 10, 2023

The aim of the report is to focus specifically on the critical role of private sector investment in Ukraine’s economic reconstruction, and how the private sector, both within Ukraine and internationally, can enable Ukraine to win the peace. It provides a short overview of the economic challenges facing Ukraine, including governance, the sectors that will be critical to Ukraine's reconstruction, the roles and responsibilities for the G7, EU, IFIs, and DFIs, and then recommendations for how Ukraine and its partners can best attract private sector investment.

Digital Will Drive Ukraine's Modernization

Belfer Center — Jan 10, 2023

Jan 10, 2023

Technology will play a crucial role in that process. Since 2014, Ukraine has been at the forefront of the digital revolution through a journey marked by strength, adaptability, and success. Digital transformation transcends and affects all economic sectors in Ukraine. Digital solutions have been applied in a wide range of sectors including banking and finance, agriculture and food production, and energy, to cite a few. In that regard, digital transformation is key to a well-functioning society, affecting democratic participation, education, and public services.

"The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the World on the Brink"

Belfer Center — Dec 8, 2022

Dec 8, 2022

A conversation hosted by the Woodrow Wilson Center featuring Ambassador Paula J. Dobriansky and Dr. Melvyn Leffler for a discussion on the role that U.S. President Ronald Reagan played in the peaceful end of the Cold War.

“Lula's Possible Trip to the US Before Taking Office Puts the Embassy In a Tight Spot”

Belfer Center — Dec 3, 2022

Dec 3, 2022

Recent guest speaker at the Future of Diplomacy Project, Ricardo Zuniga, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and Special Envoy for the Northern Triangle in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, was quoted in Folha de Sao Paulo describing Brazil as "a great multilateral actor and has a long legacy of involvement in peace processes, in the search for multilateral solutions to one of the most complex security problems."

The Faultlines Podcast: A Conversation with Ambassador Paula J. Dobriansky

Belfer Center — Dec 1, 2022

Dec 1, 2022

A conversation hosted by the Faultlines Podcast with Ambassador Paula J. Dobriansky covering her career at the U.S. State Department and current geopolitical issues like the Russia-China strategic alignment.

Former Colombian President Iván Duque Discusses Resurgent Left Wing in Latin America at Kennedy School Event

Belfer Center — Nov 18, 2022

Nov 18, 2022

Former Colombian President Iván Duque discussed Latin America’s resurgent left wing and advocated for environmental action at the Harvard Kennedy School on Thursday afternoon.

Legal Experts Discuss Accountability Measures Against Russia at HLS Event

Belfer Center — Nov 17, 2022

Nov 17, 2022

The speakers included Yale Law School professor Harold H. Koh ’75, and Patrick W. Pearsall, Director of the International Claims and Reparations Project at Columbia Law School. Koh and Pearsall discussed their experiences representing Ukraine in legal proceedings against Russia before the International Court of Justice.

Colin L. Powell Embodied the American Dream

Belfer Center — Oct 21, 2022

Oct 21, 2022

Colin L. Powell was a great American. A brilliant soldier, statesman and patriot, he devoted his life to public service, and he cherished the United States, his family and his many friends. While acknowledging America’s challenges, he drew inspiration from its noble purpose and promise. “America remains the last best hope of Earth,” he said in his 1994 Howard University commencement address “You are its inheritors, and its future is today placed in your hands.” The trajectory of his life—from humble beginnings as a Jamaican immigrant’s son growing up in the Bronx to the highest levels of government—is a true American dream.

Rep. Mike McCaul and Amb. Paula J. Dobriansky on Competing with China and Russia

Belfer Center — Oct 3, 2022

Oct 3, 2022

House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mike McCaul (R-TX) and Ambassador Paula J. Dobriansky spoke about how the U.S. can better compete against China and Russia on technology and supply chains. Other topics included making changes to improve the defense industrial base, protecting critical supply chain infrastructure, and preparedness for major events like a pandemic.

The Market Rewards Companies That Prioritize National Security

Belfer Center — Aug 12, 2022

Aug 12, 2022

Companies that rely on certain countries in Asia for their supply lines will face continued challenges as geopolitical stresses, let alone global pandemics, cause supply shortages. Beyond causing economic harm, these shortages pose a direct threat to U.S. national security interests.

State Department’s Learning Agenda Launch

Belfer Center — Jun 30, 2022

Jun 30, 2022

The Learning Agenda is an unprecedented effort by the Department to institutionalize evidence-based learning and implement the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (“Evidence Act”). The Evidence Act requires federal agencies to develop a “learning agenda” – a systematic plan to answer a set of policy-relevant questions critical to achieving the agency’s strategic objectives. It will guide the Department’s efforts over the next four years across eight questions to increase the impact of U.S. foreign policy and bolster the Secretary of State’s modernization efforts.

This event featured a keynote address followed by a panel of foreign policy and evidence-building experts for a thoughtful discussion on addressing Learning Agenda Questions 1 and 2: How can the State Department improve the effectiveness of its diplomatic interventions to better advance foreign policy objectives? How can the Department improve the effectiveness and sustainability of its foreign assistance efforts?

Allies: Twenty-Seven Bold Ideas to Reimagine the US-Colombia Relationship

Belfer Center — Jun 10, 2022

Jun 10, 2022

This book is intended to advance the next phase of the U.S.-Colombia relationship. In a rapidly changing world, the following chapters present a roadmap for a new type of engagement that challenges our ambitions and extends the ties that bind our countries.