The Weekly Leaf
This week, the EU reached a deal on using Russia's frozen assets for Ukraine, President of China Xi Jinping met with leaders in Europe, and King of Jordan Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein met with President Joe Biden in Washington.
Read more below.
2024 Aspen Security Forum
Join us for the 2024 Aspen Security Forum! Our flagship Forum will feature an array of decision-makers and thought leaders from Washington, DC and around the world. Learn more about how to register for the livestream or request to attend here.
This Week's Content Highlights
Features from Aspen Strategy Group Members
Joseph Nye for Project Syndicate: “U.S.-China Cooperation Remains Possible”
Jendayi Frazer for The Catalyst: “Engaging Africa on Its Own Terms”
Susan Glasser for The New Yorker: “Biden’s Public Ultimatum to Bibi”
Michael J. Green discussed AUKUS on Q+A With Jack Tame
Kay Bailey Hutchison for Dallas News: “U.S. Leadership Requires Partners”
David Ignatius for The Washington Post: “After the War, What Kind of Future Awaits Israelis and Palestinians?”
Nicholas Kristof for The New York Times: “The Case for Hope”
Meghan O’Sullivan interviewed by Robert N. Stavins for the Environmental Insights podcast: “Energy, Geopolitics, and Climate Change”
David Sanger interviewed by Paula Dobriansky for C-SPAN After Words
Tweet of the Week
Rising Leaders Program Highlights
Features from ASG Rising Leaders
Emma Campbell-Mohn (‘23) and Ian Platz (‘23) will speak at the 2024 NATO Youth Summit in Miami, FL on Tuesday, May 13. Organized by NATO, the Aspen Institute, Aspen Institute Romania, Swedish Defence University, and the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, the 2024 NATO Youth Summit will bring together leaders from around the world to explore the issues they see as critical to global security. Register to attend virtually here.
Things to Know
Content Relevant to Aspen Security Forum Discussions
Sam Altman interviewed by Valerie Wirtschafter and Michael O’Hanlon for The Brookings Institution: “Shifting Geopolitics in the Age of AI”
Nandita Bose and Steve Holland for Reuters: “Jordan’s King Abdullah Presses Biden to Avert Israel Offensive in Rafah”
Sarah Ellison and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez for The Washington Post: “In Arizona, Election Workers Trained With Deepfakes to Prepare for 2024”
Emily Kilcrease for Foreign Affairs: “America’s China Strategy Has a Credibility Problem”
Amy Mackinnon for Foreign Policy: “Putin Begins Fifth Term With Nuclear Drills”
Katrina Manson for Bloomberg: “Microsoft Creates Top Secret Generative AI Service for U.S. Spies”
Jennifer Rankin for The Guardian: “EU Reaches Deal on Using Profits From Russia’s Frozen Assets for Ukraine”
Barak Ravid and Stephen Neukam for Axios: “Senators Meet With ICC Over Concerns About Possible Israel Arrest Warrants”
Nektaria Stamouli for POLITICO: “North Macedonia’s EU Aspirations Face Bumpy Ride After Elections”
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute: “Global Military Spending Surges Amid War, Rising Tensions and Insecurity”
Bela Szandelszky for AP News: “Hungary and China Sign Strategic Cooperation Agreement During Visit by Chinese President Xi”
William Yang for Voice of America: “China Ramps up Pressure on Taiwan Ahead of Presidential Inauguration”
Aspen Strategy Group Partner News
Eva-Marie Etzel, Chris Bassler, Marin Halper, Anthony Vinci, Pavneet Singh, Dawn Meyerriecks, Nadia Schadlow, and Isaac Harris for MITRE: "Strategic Economics: Options for Competitive Advantage”
MITRE: "MITRE to Establish New AI Experimentation and Prototyping Capability for U.S. Government Agencies”
From the Archives
Revisit our conversation on arms control and emerging
technologies from the 2023 Aspen Security Forum.
Mark T. Esper, Partner and Board Member, Red Cell Venture Capital, and 27th U.S. Secretary of Defense
Bonnie D. Jenkins, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, U.S. Department of State
Anja Manuel, Executive Director, Aspen Strategy Group and Aspen Security Forum
Moderator: David Sanger, White House and National Security Correspondent, The New York Times
Book of the Week
by Robert Kagan
“The 2024 election could be the last free election held in a unified America. So warns Robert Kagan in this brilliant and terrifying analysis of the perilous state of democracy in the United States today. If Donald Trump loses the upcoming election, as he did in 2020, but refuses to accept the result, as he also did in the last election, he is likely to call on his millions of followers to repudiate the election results. It will be a short step from there to Republican-dominated states rejecting the legitimacy of the federal government and effectively seceding. The United States at that point will cease to be united, with grave consequences for both Americans and the world.
In Rebellion, Kagan dives deeper than the op-eds and think pieces to explore the historical forces that have brought us to this moment—in particular the long history of opposition to liberalism, and to government, that has shaped America’s character from the time of the Revolution to today. Trump’s unique capacity to tap into that tradition of dissent and circumvent the American system has brought us to the edge of dissolution—not for the first time in our history but possibly the last. This is an elegant and deeply informed synthesis of history, contemporary politics, and ideas that sheds light on this crucial moment."
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As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the Aspen Institute is nonpartisan and does not endorse, support, or oppose political candidates or parties. Further, the views and opinions of our guests and speakers do not necessarily reflect those of the Aspen Institute.