This week, the U.S. refused Russian demands to bar Ukraine from NATO membership, Honduras' first female president was sworn in, and Houthi rebels in Yemen launched attacks against the United Arab Emirates.
Read more below.
This Week’s Content Highlights
Features from Aspen Strategy Group Members
Stephen Biegun in The Detroit News: “To Avoid War, Biden and Allies Must Deter Putin from Invading Ukraine”
Chris Coons discusses Ukraine on ABC News' “This Week”
Elizabeth Economy on the Center for Strategic and International Studies ChinaPower podcast: “Xi Jinping’s Vision for China”
Robert Gates in Financial Times: “Putin Has Overplayed His Hand on Ukraine”
David Ignatius in The Washington Post: "The Fight Ahead in Ukraine: Body Bags and Cyberwar"
Condoleezza Rice and Thomas Donilon in a Council on Foreign Relations discussion: "U.S. National Security as Seen by Three Former National Security Advisors"
David Sanger in The New York Times: "War May Loom, But Are There Offramps?"
Anne-Marie Slaughter and Heather Hurlburt in Project Syndicate: “U.S. Security in the Shadow of Insurrection”
Rising Leaders in the News
"Distracted driving is a danger to drivers, passengers, road crews, and pedestrians alike. This legislation serves as both a way to encourage better behavior from drivers on our roads and allows our law enforcement to keep those who are driving distracted in check."
The Michigan House of Representatives passed ASG Rising Leader State Rep. Mari Manoogian, Rep. Mike Mueller, and Rep. Joseph Bellino's bills to ban distracted driving in the state.
Tweet of the Week
Things to Know
Content Relevant to Aspen Security Forum Discussions
Nicholas Bariyo in The Wall Street Journal: "Burkina Faso Soldiers Seize Power and Detain President"
Michael Crowley in The New York Times: "U.S. Offers ‘Diplomatic Path’ in Answer to Russian Demands"
Yuka Hayashi in The Wall Street Journal: "WTO Arbiter Sides With China in Tariff Fight With U.S."
Trevor Hunnicutt and Gustavo Palencia for Reuters: "Honduras Inaugurates First Female President, Harris Vows Closer U.S. Ties"
Louisa Loveluck in The Washington Post: "Islamic State Militants Still Holed Up in Syrian Prison, Kurdish-led Forces Admit"
Vivian Nereim and Zainab Fattah in Bloomberg: "Why UAE Is Latest Target as Yemen’s War Heats Up"
Eleanor Olcott in Financial Times: "China Backs Russia’s ‘Security Concerns’ in Crisis With West Over Ukraine"
Book of the Week
By Jan-Werner Müller
"Everyone knows that democracy is in trouble, but do we know what democracy actually is? Jan-Werner Müller, author of the widely translated and acclaimed What Is Populism?, takes us back to basics in Democracy Rules. In this short, elegant volume, he explains how democracy is founded not just on liberty and equality, but also on uncertainty. The latter will sound unattractive at a time when the pandemic has created unbearable uncertainty for so many. But it is crucial for ensuring democracy’s dynamic and creative character, which remains one of its signal advantages over authoritarian alternatives that seek to render politics (and individual citizens) completely predictable.
Müller shows that we need to re-invigorate the intermediary institutions that have been deemed essential for democracy’s success ever since the nineteenth century: political parties and free media. Contrary to conventional wisdom, these are not spent forces in a supposed age of post-party populist leadership and post-truth. Müller suggests concretely how democracy’s critical infrastructure of intermediary institutions could be renovated, re-empowering citizens while also preserving a place for professionals such as journalists and judges. These institutions are also indispensable for negotiating a democratic social contract that reverses the secession of plutocrats and the poorest from a common political world."
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