Stanford University

Syria today, Syria tomorrow: Politics, security, and society

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Abstract:

The Syrian crisis continues to grind on without a viable settlement to the conflict in sight. The problems spurred by the crisis, from refugees to extremist groups, have become a tangible concern for the West, not just Middle Eastern countries. Meanwhile, from Russia to Iran to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Qatar, several countries have turned Syria into a political and military playground. The lack of strategy to end the conflict on part of the USA, Europe, and the United Nations has paved the way for those state and non-state actors to increase the scope of their actions in Syria. The continuation of this dynamic can only mean further instability across the Middle East and beyond.

This talk links the international relations, security, and social dimensions of the Syrian conflict to address how and why the crisis has reached the level it is at today, with a focus on the role of external stakeholders as well as of rising extremist groups. It will reflect on how a settlement to the conflict might be reached and what the implications of a settlement would be for the Middle East.

Bio:

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Lina Khatib is a Senior Research Associate with the Arab Reform Initiative. She was formerly the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut and before that a co-founder of the Program on Arab Reform and Democracy at Stanford University’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. Her research focuses on the international relations of the Middle East, Islamist groups, and foreign policy. She has written extensively on Syria over the past two years, especially on armed groups like the Islamic State, and has also published seven books including Taking to the Streets: The Transformation of Arab Activism, an edited collection (with Ellen Lust; Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014) based on work produced by CDDRL’s Program on Arab Reform and Democracy. She is also a Research Associate at SOAS, University of London.

 

This event is sponsored by CDDRL's Program on Arab Reform and Democracy.

 

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CISAC Central Conference Room
Encina Hall, 2nd Floor
616 Serra St
Stanford, CA 94305

Lina Khatib Arab Reform Initiative
Seminars

Is there a future for the EU? Europe After the Euro Crisis

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Abstract

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Professor Sergio Fabbrini will present highlights from his most recent book Which European Union? Europe After the Euro Crisis. He puts forward an argument for interpreting the European Union (EU) from a comparative perspective. The aim is to bring Stein Rokkan to Brussels, that is to interpret the structuring and functioning of the EU according to the basic analytical concepts of the literature on comparative politics. Which European Union? not only repositions the EU in a comparative context, but also conceptually innovates the tool-kit of comparative politics. Based on a reinterpretation of the literature on comparative federalism, the book conceptualizes two species of the ‘federal political system’ genus, i.e. federal states arising from the disaggregation of previously unitary states and federal unions arising from the aggregation of previously independent states.

 

Speaker Bio

sergio fabbrini photo personal2
Sergio Fabbrini is Director of the School of Government and Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the LUISS Guido Carli University of Rome, where he holds the Jean Monnet Chair. He is also Recurrent Visiting Professor of Comparative Politics at the Department of Political Science and Institute of Governmental Studies, University of California at Berkeley. He has published fourteen books, two co-authored books and fourteen edited or co-edited books. His most recent publications in English include Compound Democracies: Why the United States and Europe Are Becoming Similar, 2nd edn (2010) and America and Its Critics: Vices and Virtues of the Democratic Hyperpower (2008).

 

This event is hosted by the Bill Lane Center for the American West and co-sponsored by the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law. 

 

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Sergio Fabbrini LUISS Guido Carli University of Rome LUISS Guido Carli University of Rome
Seminars

Catching Up, Forging Ahead, and Falling Behind in Southeast Asia: The Abramovitz Hypothesis Revisited

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Co-sponsored by the Stanford Center for International Development

In 1986 then-Stanford professor Moses Abramovitz argued in a seminal article that all countries that are relatively backward in their levels of productivity had the potential for rapid advance, and indeed could quickly catch up with the leading economies if they could realize that potential. Their ability to catch up was to a large extent determined by their “social capability.” Although a number of European economies and Japan had narrowed the productivity gap with the USA in the post-1950 era, few low or middle income economies had managed to do this. Prof. Booth will examine the record inside Southeast Asia, where the gap in per capita GDP between Singapore and Malaysia compared with the region’s other economies has not narrowed much since 1960, and compared with some of them has actually widened. A particular puzzle concerns the Philippines, which was well ahead on most economic and social indicators in 1960 compared with Thailand and Indonesia, but fell behind over the ensuing 50+ years. Prof. Booth will explore the reasons for this.

anne booth
Anne Booth has been an Asia-focused professor of economics in the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, since 1991. She studies the modern economic history of Southeast Asia with emphasis on the 20th century. Her many writings in this field include Colonial Legacies: Economic and Social Development in East and Southeast Asia. Her latest book, Economic Change in Modern Indonesia, is due from Cambridge University Press in April. Before coming to SOAS, she held research and teaching positions in Singapore and Australia. Her degrees are from Victoria University of Wellington (BA) and the Australian National University (PhD). Before 1991 she held research and teaching positions in Singapore and Australia. She grew up in New Zealand.

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Anne Booth 2015-16 NUS-Stanford Lee Kong Chian Distinguished Fellow on Southeast Asia, Stanford University
Seminars

Jihad as Grand Strategy: Islamist Militancy, National Security, and the Pakistani State

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Abstract: This book seeks to understand the connection between Pakistan and Islamist militancy. The book argues that, since Pakistan’s founding in 1947, it has used religiously motivated non-state actors as strategic tools to compensate for acute political and material weakness. Over time, this policy has become so important as to constitute a central pillar of Pakistani grand strategy. Contrary to conventional wisdom, Pakistan’s militant strategy has not been wholly disastrous. Over the decades, it has achieved important domestic and international successes, helping Pakistan to strengthen its domestic political foundations, confront stronger adversaries, undermine South Asia’s territorial status quo, and shape the strategic environment in Afghanistan. Recently, however, these successes have given way to severe problems, as Pakistan has lost control of its proxies, been forced to make damaging resource tradeoffs, and risked inciting catastrophic war with an increasingly powerful India. These problems undermine regional stability and threaten the survival of the Pakistani state. The weakness that originally made Pakistan’s militant strategy useful has now made support for militancy extremely dangerous. If Pakistan does not abandon its strategy of jihad it may face catastrophe.

About the Speaker: S. Paul Kapur is Professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. He is also an Affiliate at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, and a Visiting Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. Previously, he was on the faculties of the U.S. Naval War College and Claremont McKenna College, and was a visiting professor at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation. His research and teaching interests include the strategic use of militancy, nuclear weapons proliferation, deterrence, and South Asian and Pacific Ocean regional security. Kapur is author of Dangerous Deterrent: Nuclear Weapons Proliferation and Conflict in South Asia (Stanford University Press, 2007) and co-author of India, Pakistan, and the Bomb: Debating Nuclear Stability in South Asia (Columbia University Press, 2010). His articles have appeared in leading journals such as International Security, Security Studies, Asian Survey, Washington Quarterly, and in a variety of edited volumes. Kapur manages several strategic engagement projects for the U.S. Department of Defense. He received his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Chicago and his B.A. from Amherst College.

Professor in the Department of National Security Affairs U.S. Naval Postgraduate School
Seminars

The Strategy for Korea's Economic Success

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hwy chang moon
Today, Korea is renowned for its remarkable economic growth and its globally-recognized companies that include Samsung, Hyundai and POSCO. Given that Korea was one of the world’s poorest countries a mere 50 years ago, many people call Korea’s rapid economic development “a miracle.” However, when Korea’s road to economic prosperity is analyzed, several key factors that led to this growth can be identified. Professor Moon will explain these fundamental factors and provide perspective on how Korea can sustain this growth going forward.

Hwy-Chang Moon is a visiting professor in the Korea Program for the 2015 academic year and is currently teaching a course on Korean economy and business through the Center for East Asian Studies at Stanford University. Moon is a professor at Seoul National University, where he also served as the Dean of Graduate School of International Studies. He has delivered special lectures at various institutions, and has consulted several multinational companies and governments (e.g., Malaysia, Dubai, Azerbaijan and the Guangdong Province of China).

Moon is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Business and Economy, and has published numerous articles and books on topics covering international business strategy, cross-cultural management and Economic Development in East Asia with a focus on South Korea.

Moon received a PhD from the University of Washington, and has previously taught at the University of Washington, University of the Pacific, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Helsinki School of Economics, Keio University, and Hitotsubashi University.

 
The Strategy for Korea's Economic Success
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Hwy-Chang Moon

Encina Hall E301616 Serra StreetStanford, CA 94305-6055
(650) 723-6530
0
hwychangmoon_2.jpg PhD

Hwy-Chang Moon has joined the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (Shorenstein APARC) for the 2015-2016 academic year. During his time at Shorenstein APARC, he will be working on a research project entitled, “The Global Strategy of Korean Firms in Silicon Valley," and will also teach a course on Korean economy and business in the fall quarter.

Moon is a professor of international business strategy at the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS), Seoul National University, where he also served as the dean of GSIS.

Professor Moon is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Business and Economy, and has published numerous articles and books on topics covering international business strategy, cross-cultural management and economic development in East Asia with a focus on South Korea. He frequently provides his perspectives on global economy and business through interviews and televised debates, and his writings appear regularly in South Korean newspapers. The New York Times and NHK World TV have also asked for his perspectives on these topics.

Professor Moon received a PhD from the University of Washington, and has previously taught at the University of Washington, University of the Pacific, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Helsinki School of Economics, Keio University, and Hitotsubashi University. He has also consulted several multinational companies, international organizations, and governments (e.g., Malaysia, Dubai, Azerbaijan, and the Guangdong Province of China).

Visiting Professor
<i>Professor, Seoul National University</i>
Seminars
Korean Studies Colloquium Series

Perspectives on the U.S.-Korea Alliance

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In the wake of South Korean President Park Geun-hye's meeting with President Obama in Washington, D.C. on October 16, Mark Lippert, the American Ambassador to Korea, will offer his thoughts about U.S.-Korean relations and the challenges and opportunities the alliance may face in coming years.

Ambassador Lippert previously held senior positions in the Department of Defense from May 2012 until September 2014. This included Chief of Staff to the Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, and Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs, where he was the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense on all international security strategy and policy issues related to the nations and international organizations of Asia and the Pacific. Prior to being confirmed in April 2012, he completed a two-year mobilization on active duty in the United States Navy. During that time, which included a deployment to Afghanistan, he served as an Intelligence Officer for the Naval Special Warfare Development Group in Virginia Beach, Virginia from 2009 to 2011.

Ambassador Lippert served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff for the National Security Council in 2009.  In 2008, he served as Deputy Director for Foreign Policy on the Obama-Biden Transition Team, and Senior Foreign Policy Advisor on the Obama for America campaign. Previously, he worked as the Foreign Policy Advisor for then-Senator Obama from 2005 to 2008, where he managed the Senator's work on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. From 2007 to 2008, he took a leave of absence from this position to deploy on active duty as an Intelligence Officer with Seal Team One in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. From 2000 to 2005, he was a Professional Staff Member on the Senate Appropriations Committee, State-Foreign Operations Subcommittee, advising Senator Patrick Leahy on a range of foreign aid and security assistance issues. From 1999 to 2000, he served as the Foreign and Defense Policy Advisor to Senator Tom Daschle and the Senate Democratic Policy Committee.

Ambassador Lippert’s military awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal for his service in Iraq, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and the Basic Parachutist Badge. He is also the recipient of the Department of Defense’s Distinguished Public Service Award and the Department of the Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award.

Ambassador Lippert graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University with a B.A. in Political Science and holds an M.A. in International Policy Studies from the same institution. He also studied Mandarin Chinese at Beijing University.

 

Mark W. Lippert <i>U.S. Ambassador to Republic of Korea</i>
Seminars
Korean Studies Colloquium Series

What Explains ASEAN’s Centrality, and Will Disunity Derail ASEAN’s Success?

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For more than two decades the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has been at the center of multilateral arrangements for security in the Asia-Pacific. That keystone role has gained global support. In 2010 Secretary of State Clinton called ASEAN “the fulcrum of regional architecture”; in 2014 her successor said, “We must continue to support ASEAN’s centrality.” The governments of China, Japan, India, and Australia, among many others, have joined the chorus of support for ASEAN’s linchpin role. What explains ASEAN’s success?

Prof. Vuving’s answer is threefold: In the first place, ASEAN’s hard power weakness is a diplomatic strength, captured in the legitimacy of cooperative norms such as “open regionalism” and the “ASEAN Way.” Second, ASEAN’s location and character as an autonomous but inoffensive actor between Northeast and South Asia, between China and the United States, and between the Pacific and Indian Oceans allows it to play a “bridging” role between different geopolitical zones and potentially rival players.  Third, this bridging position has proven useful in managing changes in the relative power and status of major Asian-Pacific states. Prof. Vuving will also suggest that the unity of ASEAN’s own member states is less critical to ASEAN centrality than commonly thought.

alex vuving
Alexander L. Vuving’s teaching, research, and consulting encompass topics such as Asian security, the rise of China, Chinese strategy, Vietnamese politics and foreign policy, Southeast Asia’s international relations, the South China Sea dispute, and the concept of soft power. He has published widely on these subjects and is a frequent media interviewee. He is a member of the editorial boards of the journals Asian Politics and Policy and Global Discourse. He received his PhD in political science from the Johannes Gutenberg University in Germany and has been a post-doctorate fellow and research associate at Harvard University.

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Alexander L. Vuving Professor, Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu
Seminars

Northeast Asia in Strategic Crisis: North and South Korean Responses

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su hoon lee
With China’s rise, the U.S.-centered postwar order in East Asia is in crisis.  Regional disputes about issues of history, territory, maritime control, airspace, military alliances, and nuclear weapons are intensifying as the U.S.-PRC strategic rivalry grows. How are North and South Korea responding to this historic development? South Korean scholar Lee Su-hoon, an international relations adviser to the late President Roh Moo-hyun, will compare and contrast the views and positions of the two Koreas sandwiched between the great powers. Lee received a PhD in comparative international development and sociology from Johns Hopkins University.

Su-hoon Lee Professor, Kyungnam University, Korea
Seminars
Korean Studies Colloquium Series

When Law Matters: the Everyday Life of the Indian Constitution

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This event is sponsored by the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) and the Center for South Asia.

 

When the Indian Constitution was adopted in 1950, its egalitarian and inclusive spirit was widely seen as ahead of its time and out of sync with India’s many entrenched inequalities. Due to the efforts of its main author, the renowned Dalit leader B.R. Ambedkar, the Constitution contained multiple safeguards of cultural, religious and political rights as well as the most ambitious affirmative action program in the world. Over the following six decades, the Constitution shaped Indian society in numerous ways but its most profound impact was in framing public discourse and the way citizens and communities present their claims and demands in public. Despite deep and often violent social and political conflicts, the Constitution and many of its key provisions – religious tolerance, uplift of the historically disadvantaged, recognition of the rights of distinct communities, unity of the nation – are invoked and claimed by all sides in these conflicts. At the same time, the Supreme Court of India has emerged as an active and activist court that is widely respected as the guardian of the Constitution.

 

In this seminar, two distinguished speakers will highlight and analyze why and how the Indian Constitution acquired this key role in the nation’s life.

Professor Rajeev Bhargava is a renowned political theorist who has published seminal studies of Indian secularism and law, and the Director of the well known Center for the Study of Developing Societies in New Delhi. 

Dr. Rohit De is a legal scholar and Assistant Professor of History at Yale University. His forthcoming book is entitled Litigious Citizens, Constitutional Law and Everyday Life in the Indian Republic.

 

The two presentations will be followed by shorter commentaries from:

Francis Fukuyama, Senior Fellow at FSI and Director of CDDRL

Erik Jensen, Professor at the Stanford School of Law

Dr. Vivek Srinivasan, Program Manager for CDDRL's Program on Liberation Technology

 

Rajeev Bhargava Director, Center for the Study of Developing Societies Director, Center for the Study of Developing Societies
Rohit De Assistant Professor of History at Yale University Assistant Professor of History at Yale University
Seminars
CDDRL Special Events

The International Atomic Energy Agency and Nuclear Safeguards, 1953-1971

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Abstract: The nuclear negotiations between the P5+1 and Iran moved the International Atomic Energy Agency to the center of public attention. Based on multi-archival research and oral history interviews, this talk will look into the early history of the IAEA’s nuclear inspectorate. The foundations of today’s safeguards system were laid in the mid-1950s, when a group of twelve nations negotiated the Statute of the IAEA. In the mid-1960s, the Soviet Union abandoned its formerly critical stance on nuclear safeguards. Following the entry-into-force of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) comprehensive safeguards were introduced. The control of diversion was at the heart of the IAEA’s early safeguards system, while it neglected other aspects of the proliferation problem, such as the distribution of dual-use technology and related knowledge, or the development of clandestine nuclear programs. It was not lack of knowledge or imagination, but the complex technical, political, and legal background that was the reason for this limitation.

About the Speaker: Elisabeth Roehrlich is a senior researcher and project director at the University of Vienna’s Department of Contemporary History, and a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington D.C. She received her PhD. in History from the University of Tuebingen, Germany, and held fellowships at the Norwegian Institute for Defense Studies, the German Historical Institute in Washington D.C., and Monash South Africa. Her research focuses on the history of international relations and the evolution of the global nuclear order. She is the author of a prize-winning book about the former Austrian chancellor Bruno Kreisky (Kreisky’s Außenpolitik, Vienna University Press, 2009), and her work on the IAEA has been published or is forthcoming in journals such the IAEA Bulletin and the Journal of Cold War Studies. Roehrlich has been awarded funding from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), and the Austrian Central Bank to support her research on the IAEA.

The International Atomic Energy Agency and Nuclear Safeguards, 1953-1971
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Elisabeth Roehrlich Director IAEA History Research Project, University of Vienna
Seminars
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