Germany's Bundesbank remains an influential actor in eurozone policymaking, and its recent disagreements with the ECB raise concerns about managing the zone's debt crisis. This Backgrounder explains.

EU leaders at this week's summit are expected to advance a banking union crucial to restoring confidence in the eurozone, but its full implementation is a long way off, says CFR's Robert Kahn.

EU leaders took significant steps forward to rein in the eurozone crisis in 2012, but have struggled to implement meaningful, long-term reforms to develop a more integrated Europe.

Acrimony among European leaders regarding a new EU budget is indicative of larger challenges the union faces in facilitating further economic integration, says CFR's Sebastian Mallaby.

Poland has maintained economic growth despite the global financial crisis and eurozone woes, while asserting itself as a leading advocate for greater European integration, explains this Backgrounder.

Unlike Germany, France under the leadership of François Hollande has failed to articulate a long-term vision for Europe, says the Peterson Institute's Jacob Funk Kirkegaard.

While a new round of U.S. quantitative easing will have a negative impact on emerging markets like Brazil, the country should not blame U.S. monetary policy for the structural flaws in its economy, says expert Bernardo Wjuniski.

A recent agremeent between Sudan and South Sudan to restart oil exports is likely to improve the macroeconomic situations of the countries, while paving the way for future negotiations over land disputes, says expert Alex de Waal.

As the center of the eurozone debt crisis shifts to Spain, it could signify a potentially decisive phase in the EU's management of the crisis, says economist Megan Greene.

As Europe's central bank moves aggressively to staunch the continent's crisis, some critics are asking if it has exceeded its mandate by stepping into the breach left open by elected leaders.

Climatic conditions across the U.S. farm belt are triggering a rise in global food prices that threatens to fuel political unrest in developing countries, says CFR's Isobel Coleman.

China's global investment boom is slowing, which could affect its trading partners. But its economy does not have to be doomed to slow growth, says expert Patrick Chovanec.

A proposed centralized banking supervisor could help stabilize Europe's struggling banks and increase vital capital flows within the euro area, says expert Domenico Lombardi.

Controversies over too-big-to-fail financial institutions continue to mount. The Basel Accords represent the latest effort to ease risk and restore confidence, as this Backgrounder explains.

EU approval of a new proposal for a banking and fiscal union would help reassure global financial markets and alleviate the eurozone debt crisis, says Bruegel's Benedicta Marzinotto.

G20 members meeting in Mexico won a commitment on banking sector integration despite limited influence on eurozone politics, says expert Jacob Funk Kirkegaard.

Greek elections this weekend could render a verdict on the country's eurozone future, with analysts fearing serious consequences for the global economy, says this CFR Backgrounder.

The U.S. financial sector is at risk of eurozone sovereign debt contagion that could potentially undermine the fragile U.S. economic recovery, explains economist Richard H. Clarida.

This weekend's G8 summit will be dominated by negotiations over the eurozone sovereign debt crisis and limiting contagion to the global economy, says expert C. Randall Henning.