Peace picks this week

The big event is Carnegie’s with Islamists on Thursday, but the week somehow starts on Wednesday with an event of my very own, he said unashamedly:

1.  Does an Asterisk Make a Difference? SAIS Rome auditorium, 10-11:30 April 4

Belgrade and Pristina–after sustained U.S. and EU pressure–have agreed that Kosovo will be identified with an asterisk in European regional meetings.  The asterisk will make reference to both UN Security Council resolution 1244 and the International Court of Justice advisory opinion on the legality of Kosovo’s declaration of independence.

The asterisk deal is causing second guessing on both sides.  What does it tell us, or not, about Kosovo’s status?  How does it affect the relationship between Pristina and Belgrade?  What implications does it have for U.S. and EU approaches to conflict management?

Wednesday, April 4, 2012
10:00-11:30 a.m.

Rome Auditorium
1619 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20036

Moderator:
Michael Haltzel
Senior Fellow, Center for Transatlantic Relations

Speakers:
David Kanin
Adjunct Professor of European Studies

Daniel Serwer
Senior Fellow, Center for Transatlantic Relations
Professor of Conflict Management

2. Delegation of Egypt’s Freedom & Justice Party, Georgetown University, 12:30 April 4

Event Details

Khaled Al-Qazzaz
Foreign Relations Coordinator, Freedom and Justice Party

Chair:

John L. Esposito 
University Professor & Founding Director, Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding

For a map showing the location of the Rafik B. Hariri Building, please visit:
http://maps.georgetown.edu/rafikbhariribuilding/

For more information, please visit:
http://acmcu.georgetown.edu

3. Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty CATO 4 pm April 4

Wednesday, April 4, 2012
4:00 PM (Reception To Follow)

Featuring the coauthor Daron Acemoglu, Killian Professor of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; with comments by Karla Hoff, Senior Research Economist, Development Economics Group, World Bank; moderated by Ian Vasquez, Director, Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity, Cato Institute.

The Cato Institute
1000 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001

If you can’t make it to the Cato Institute, watch this event live online at www.cato.org.

Institutions — not geography, culture, or other factors — explain why some nations succeed and others fail. So says Daron Acemoglu in an ambitious new book drawing evidence from thousands of years of human history and from societies as diverse as those of the Inca Empire, 17th century England, and contemporary Botswana. Inclusive political and economic institutions, influenced by critical junctures in history, produce virtuous cycles that reinforce pluralism in the market and in politics. Acemoglu will contrast that pattern of development with that experienced under extractive institutions. He will also describe the conditions under which institutions favorable or inimical to development tend to arise. Karla Hoff will provide critical comments.

4. Islamists in Power: Views from Within, Carnegie but at the Grand Hyatt

Thursday, April 5, 2012 – Washington, D.C.
8:45 AM – 4:45 PM EST

Islamist parties have emerged as the strongest contenders in recent elections in Tunisia, Egypt, and Morocco, and are likely continue to do well in future elections in other countries. It is clear that Islamist parties will have a dominant impact on the outcome of Arab transitions, but there is little understanding in Washington of what that will mean for governing.

On April 5, high-level representatives of Islamist parties from Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Jordan, and Libya will participate in a one-day event convened by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Agenda

5.  What is in and what is not in the much-disputed newest constitution in Europe:  the Fundamental Law of Hungary, National Press club, 4 pm April 5