The Global Power Shift: Paddy Ashdown
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I highly recommend this lecture by Paddy Ashdown, veteran of the English Royal Marines, a former officer for the UK security service, member of Parliament, and High Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Sir Ashdown offers an excellent macro view of the changing direction of international relations and diplomacy a distinguished career diplomat. His main idea is that the same process of globalization that has long past transformed global cultures and economies similarly affects the power dynamic of nation states and non-state actors. This concept is not only an astute observation but an elegantly simple way to describe an incredibly complex process with its own intrinsic logic. The video outlines the implications of the globalization of power will have on international cooperation and global security.
Ashdown’s advice for nations (really any institution): “In the modern age, where everything is connected to everything, the most important thing about what you can do is what you can do with others.”
Seems to make sense, but will policymakers heed his advice?
