China’s rise, US rebalancing in Asia, historic defense reforms in Japan, the adoption of new Guidelines for bilateral cooperation: the Japan-US alliance has reached a turning point in its history.

The German debate about public investment policyfaces a dilemma. The deficits in public infrastructure have grown considerably due to comparatively low investments in recent years. In addition, substantial investments for promising mega-projects, such as the energy transition (“Energiewende”) and broadband expansion are indispensable in a foreseeable future. 

With the Democratic Presidential Nomination in sight, Hillary Clinton must still contend with a continuous conversation about her email practices. How will this scandal, or non-scandal, affect the presidential race yet to come? A look at the perspectives of the American constituency and pending investigations may predict Clinton's likely future... and the future of the American presidency.

Tokyo is known as a pioneer throughout the history of Japan’s environmental policy, often being compared to California in the United States or Paris in France. Following the global trend of growing local initiatives tackling climate change, Tokyo introduced a cap-and-trade scheme in 2010 ahead of a national implementation.

The 2015 terror attacks in France and the ensuing activation by the Ministry of Defense of its homeland protection plan opened a new phase in the long history of the French Army’s involvement in internal security.

Along with a history marked by intervention from external powers, the Middle East is now confronting conflicts which combine political, ethnic and religious dimensions. The United States can not withdraw its “leadership” in the area. Aside from the Syrian question, the next American administration will have to redefine the network of partnerships and alliances in the region and grapple with a multitude of problems, none of which have simple solutions.

This report explores business models for storage solutions that may help the European energy system adapt to new challenges.

This Hot Energy Topic aims at defining and assessing megatrends impacting the future energy system of the European Union (EU) to the year 2050.