What to do about Cyprus?

Newly elected President Nicos Anastasiades wasted no time setting out his stall for negotiations on a possible €17 billion ($22.14 billion) bailout required before the country runs out of money in June: "I want to be absolutely clear. Absolutely no reference to a haircut on public debt or deposits will be tolerated. Such an issue isn't even up for discussion," he told Parliament on his first day in office.

WASHINGTON, DC – As the world enters yet another year in the shadow of continued financial and economic crisis, a broader view of the contours of the future global economy is required.

The longer-term trends are clear. Dynamic emerging markets from Asia to Latin America are rising in prominence. The United States and Japan remain important drivers of the global economy but face major debt and deficit challenges. Europe is going through a difficult but historic process of re-engineering and integration. The Middle East is transforming before our eyes. Sub-Saharan Africa is breaking through to sustained development – creating a new frontier of growth after decades of stagnation.

These changes are shaping our future in a positive way. Yet there are still considerable roadblocks to overcome. The global economic recovery remains too weak. With more than 200 million unemployed around the world, prospects for job creation are still too dim. And the gap between rich and poor, exacerbated by the crisis, is still too wide.

There is a tough road ahead if we are to turn optimism into reality. I see three key milestones.

In an interview with SPIEGEL, President of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi defends his euro crisis policies and promises to keep prices stable. He also says he's on Germany's side when it comes to encouraging reforms in the euro zone.

BERKELEY – The first two components of the euro crisis – a banking crisis that resulted from excessive leverage in both the public and private sectors, followed by a sharp fall in confidence in eurozone governments – have been addressed successfully, or at least partly so. But that leaves the third, longest-term, and most dangerous factor underlying the crisis: the structural imbalance between the eurozone’s north and south.

BRUSSELS – The consequences of Europe’s debt crisis are all too present throughout much of the European Union, as distressed economies attempt to stabilize and grow at the same time. Notwithstanding the important decisions taken over the last couple of years, the reality is that we need to do more to tackle the challenges facing the eurozone.

One of the main reasons why the measures taken in the eurozone over the last two years have failed to address the crisis is that the decisions were often taken too late. Countries in financial difficulties only sought support when market conditions had deteriorated to a point of no return. Two factors explain their reluctance to request financial assistance from the EU or International Monetary Fund.

'Reform yourselves, and ye will grow out of your debt." So goes Germany's unwritten mantra for the European crisis. Chancellor Angela Merkel is urging Greece, Spain, Italy and the rest to shape up their economies and pay down their obligations—and withholding German money until they do.

MUNICH – For a while, it looked as if the European Central Bank’s €1 trillion credit program to pump liquidity into Europe’s banking system had calmed global financial markets. But now interest rates for Italian and Spanish government bonds are on the rise again, closing in on about 6%.

PARIS – The United States is widely recognized as possessing the deepest, most liquid, and most efficient capital markets in the world. America’s financial system supports efficient capital allocation, economic development, and job creation.

CAPE TOWN – At last, European leaders have revealed their top-secret plan for solving the euro’s crisis. And it is – drum roll – a version of the “Tobin tax,” a levy on financial transactions first suggested in 1972 by the Nobel laureate economist James Tobin.