John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, discussed his recent trip to Darfur, Sudan, Chad, and the Central African Republic in an event at the Carnegie Endowment. Holmes described the successes and challenges of the humanitarian effort, but stressed the importance of a political solution, “The peacekeeping operation itself, even when it’s there in full, is not the solution to the problem. What is needed above all is a political settlement there.”

The fourth debate in the series, Reframing China Policy: The Carnegie Debates, asked the question, “Has American engagement with China produced a significant improvement in human rights?” Addressing this topic were Jacques deLisle, professor of law, Center for East Asian Studies, University of Pennsylvania, and Sharon K. Hom, executive director, Human Rights in China, and emerita professor of law, City University of New York School of Law. Carnegie China Program Director Minxin Pei moderated the discussion.

In a discussion hosted by the Carnegie Endowment, India's Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs R. Nicholas Burns share their perspectives on how India and the United States view their interests in the emerging international system and how both countries are working toward the construction of a global partnership in a variety of functional and regional areas that include India's immediate and extended neighborhood.

The third debate in the Carnegie's Reframing China Policy Series featured Larry Wortzel and David Finkelstein—two of the world's preeminent specialists on Chinese security issues and the Chinese military, and included remarks by Ambassador J. Stapleton Roy and Carnegie Senior Associate Michael Swaine.

The rising conflicts in Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine, as well as tensions between the U.S. and Iran, have recently overshadowed political reform debates. Given these developments, what is the state of the Arab political reform agenda and what can be expected in terms of political change in the region in the near future? On February 6, Carnegie hosted four top political analysts from the region with expertise spanning all different parts of the Arab world discussed this issue.

The session, part of the Carnegie's day-long program of events to launch its New Vision, examined the national interests and strategies of the U.S., Russia, and China in the region. Has a new Great Game taken shape? What kinds of competition and what degree of cooperation can be expected? How will political and social dynamics within Central Asia affect the plans of the great powers?

The New Vision changes the structure of a think tank from a group of scholars in one place, to an integrated global network. The goal is to build a body of work that generates fresh ideas and proves its value by affecting policy choices in the U.S., Russia and Eurasia, China, the Middle East, and Europe. These five locations include the centers of world governance and the places where political and economic evolution will most determine the near-term possibilities for peace and human progress. Carnegie launched its New Vision with a series of events on February 5-6, a new logo, and redesigned publications and website.

The New Vision changes the structure of a think tank from a group of scholars in one place, to an integrated global network. The goal is to build a body of work that generates fresh ideas and proves its value by affecting policy choices in the U.S., Russia and Eurasia, China, the Middle East, and Europe. These five locations include the centers of world governance and the places where political and economic evolution will most determine the near-term possibilities for peace and human progress. Carnegie launched its New Vision with a series of events on February 5-6, a new logo, and redesigned publications and website.

Thomas Carothers' recent Journal of Democracy article, “How Democracies Emerge: The ‘Sequencing' Fallacy,” is a critical response to the viewpoint that certain preconditions –especially a well-functioning state and the rule of law– should be in place before a country attempts democratization. In this debate Carothers expanded on his core arguments about the relative compatibility of authoritarianism versus democracy with rule-of-law development and state-building, exploring cases ranging from El Savador and Nigeria to Egypt and Iraq. Jack Snyder emphasized the high costs of failed democratization and suggested that the United States and other international actors should give less priority to elections in their democracy promotion efforts. Francis Fukuyama drew attention to democracy's relation to good governance and state-building, stressing that state consolidation is a long, arduous process. Marc Plattner moderated the session.

The rise of China presents one of the most important global challenges facing the United States. The second debate in Carnegie's Reframing China Policy Series features Wing Woo, University of California, Davis, and Barry Naughton, University of California, San Diego, who address the question, "Without accelerated reforms, will China's rapid growth unravel before its economy overtakes the U.S.?"