George Soros explains the events that led to the recent bond purchase announcement by the European Central Bank solidifying its commitment to do whatever it takes to save the euro, and discusses the larger political implications this decision will have for the future of the European Union.

Experts analyze the current state of world economies.

This series is presented by the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies.

Sebastian Mallaby argues that simplicity should trump complexity as finanical regulators seek new defenses against risk.

Robert Rubin writes that the ECB would risk losing its credibility and stoking inflation if it did not impose conditionality on its bond-buying program.

Peter Orszag calls for the revival of Build America Bonds to channel tax subsidies to state and local governments for infrastructure investment.

Sebastian Mallaby argues that the conditionality of the ECB plan to resume sovereign bond purchases will blunt the intervention's effectiveness.

Sebastian Mallaby argues that policymakers must decide whether the federal government will ensure the stability of the shadow banking system.

Benn Steil's column in Dow Jones' Financial News, co-authored with Dinah Walker, provides new evidence highlighting the endemic flaws in LIBOR as both a benchmark for setting market lending rates and a central-bank metric for judging policy effectiveness.

Sebastian Mallaby argues that equity investors would prefer to have big banks broken up than forced to raise more capital.

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.

Ongoing investigations into Barclays' fraudulent Libor submissions highlights critical lessons about conflicts of interest, pressures on regulators, and banks that are too big to fail, says CFR's Sebastian Mallaby.

Sebastian Mallaby argues that the only way to end the era of "too-big-to-fail" is to break up the banking behemoths.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership, a massive multilateral trade agreement now in the works that focuses on the Asia-Pacific region, could add billions of dollars to the U.S. economy and solidify Washington's commitment to the Pacific. But if the Obama administration fails to calm critics of the deal, there is a growing possibility that it could collapse.

Sebastian Mallaby examines the Spanish experience with countercyclical capital buffers to argue that even the most innovative banking regulations will never take taxpayers completely off the hook when banks go bust.

Peter Orszag calls for a "combo deal" of upfront stimulus and long-term deficit reduction because it would be less risky, offer more growth, and be more likely to be enacted than a stimulus-only approach.

Charles A. Kupchan argues that though it is not too late to save the euro, it is growing too late to save the E.U, as restoring confidence in Europe's integration will prove both more decisive and more elusive.

Jagdish Bhagwati argues the failure of the Doha round's multilateral trade negotiations undermines the rule-making authority and dispute-settlement mechanism of the World Trade Organization.

Economic Downturn: Compares economic indicators from the latest recession to past downturns, both post-war and pre-war, to demonstrate the recent recession is worse than other post-war recessions.

Robert Rubin explains how the pressures of the "fiscal cliff" will present U.S. political leaders with a rare second chance to make critical fiscal reforms after the 2012 elections.