Domestic Constraints on Global Cooperation

As part of the Stanley Center’s 53rd annual Strategy for Peace Conference in October 2012, some 15 policy experts from Brazil, India, and the United States gathered for a discussion of the domestic determinants of international cooperation, summarized in this Policy Dialogue Brief.

When analysts and practitioners—especially in Washington and other Western capitals—assess issues on the international agenda, they tend to focus on rising powers’ policy stances without delving into their internal considerations. With a focus on two emerging powers and three areas of policy, participants discussed ideas for a more comprehensive and holistic approach to the major collective action problems of today’s world. The conference brought together experts from Brazil, India, and the United States, and the agenda covered food security, energy security and climate change, and nuclear nonproliferation.

Participants identified avenues that could facilitate greater cooperation between rising and established powers.