This past weekend, the leaders of the G-20 countries met in Washington, D.C., to discuss how to revive the struggling global economy. The group set out guidelines for greater market controls, including international coordination on supervision of banks and other financial institutions. But they deferred consideration of an even larger question, the future of global financial regulation, to the group's next meeting in April. As the crisis continues to unfold, it has opened up an old fissure in economic policy, between those who worship free markets and those who argue for more government intervention. In a 2005 Foreign Affairs article, then-Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin explained why the G-20 was likely to become a crucial organization for resolving global problems. In a 1995 piece, meanwhile, Michael Lewis, the author of Liar's Poker and Moneyball, looked at the battle between disciples of Milton Friedman and John Maynard Keynes and what it meant for the future of the Bretton Woods system.

• Full text of Martin's essay (May/June 2005)
• Full text of Lewis' essay (March/April 1995)

Previously in Background on the News

The President
November 5, 2008
On January 20, 2009, Barack Obama will take office with the responsibility for guiding the country through economic crisis at home and military conflict abroad. . . . Read more

Pirates of the Arabian
October 8, 2008
On September 25, a band of pirates hijacked a Ukrainian vessel laden with arms off the coast of Somalia. As the U.S. Navy surrounded the ship and Russian warships steamed south, the pirates demanded a ransom of $20 million to release the treasure on board: dozens of Soviet T-72 tanks, grenade launchers, and anti-aircraft guns. Attacks on commercial vessels have become commonplace along Somalia's lawless coast, but the seizure of the MV Faina upped the ante . . . Read more

Fixing Finance
September 24, 2008
As ongoing financial chaos upends Wall Street, pundits and politicians are debating the causes of the economic crisis and proposing solutions to it. . . . Read more

• Newsletter Archive

New! Events Sponsored by Foreign Affairs

Video Highlights:

• Watch video highlights from the inaugural night of Foreign Affairs Live, a subscriber event featuring editor James F. Hoge Jr. and Iraq experts Steven Simon and Stephen Biddle.

Upcoming Events:

Attention: New York-area Subscribers!

• James Clarke Chace Memorial Speaker Series
  We cordially invite you to our fall events series co-sponsored with the Globalization and International Affairs program of Bard College kicking off September 18 with Ted Sorensen. To RSVP and see the full schedule of events, click here.
• In Print
  In Print, a series co-sponsored with NYU's Center for Global Affairs, is also open to the public. Foreign Affairs editors discuss the latest books in the field with such notable authors as Philip Gourevitch, Ahmed Rashid and Jacob Weisberg. For a full schedule, click here.

Newsletter Sign-Up

Foreign Affairs Academic Update

Resources for teaching, sample syllabi and a sneak peak of each new issue of Foreign Affairs.
http://www.foreignaffairs.org/arp/newsletter/subscribe

Newsletters from the Council on Foreign Relations

Stay on top of world news and international policy with bulletins produced by the Council on Foreign Relations.
http://www.cfr.org/about/newsletters.html