My Philanthropy

• The New York Review of Books
• June 22, 2011

The formative experience of my life was the German occupation of Hungary in 1944. I was Jewish and not yet fourteen years old. I could have easily perished in the Holocaust or suffered lasting psychological damage had it not been for my father, who understood the dangers and coped with them better than most others.

A French Cure for the Resource Curse

• Project Syndicate
• June 6, 2011

The campaign to ensure that companies engaged in extractive activities disclose all of their payments in their host countries is gaining momentum – and France is leading the effort. President Nicolas Sarkozy should be applauded for supporting a new initiative promoting strict transparency standards for petroleum, gas, and mining companies listed on European stock exchanges.

Remarks delivered at the Cato Institute (Excerpt)

• Washington, DC
• April 28, 2011

Friedrich Hayek is generally regarded as the apostle of a brand of economics which holds that the market will assure the optimal allocation of resources — as long as the government doesn’t interfere. It is a formalized and mathematical theory, whose two main pillars are the efficient market hypothesis and the theory of rational expectations.

Europe Re-Divided?

• Project Syndicate
• March 21, 2011

The so-called euro crisis is generally seen exclusively as a currency crisis, but it is also a sovereign-debt crisis – and even more a banking crisis. The situation’s complexity has bred confusion, and that confusion has political consequences. Indeed, Europe faces not only an economic and financial crisis, but also, as a result, a political crisis.

How Germany Can Avoid a Two-Speed Europe

• Financial Times
• March 21, 2011

The “euro crisis” is generally seen as a currency crisis, but it is also a sovereign debt and, even more, a banking crisis. The situation is complex. The complexity has bred confusion, and this has political consequences. Europe’s various member states have formed widely different views and their policies reflect their views rather than their true national interests.

Openness Can Help Lift the Curse of Resources

• Financial Times
• March 3, 2011

The natural resources sector has the potential to generate billions of dollars in revenues that can be used for poverty reduction and sound investment. For decades, however, management secrecy has allowed corruption to thrive in countries such as Angola, Cambodia and Guinea.

Transcript of Interview with Fareed Zakaria on GPS

• CNN
• February 20, 2011

ZAKARIA: George Soros is the 14th wealthiest American, according to "Forbes Magazine." He's one of the most successful investors of all times who has spent billions of his dollars to promote democracy around the world, to promote what he calls open societies.

Why Obama Has to Get Egypt Right

• The Washington Post
• February 3, 2011

Revolutions usually start with enthusiasm and end in tears. In the case of the Middle East, the tears could be avoided if President Obama stands firmly by the values that got him elected. Although American power and influence in the world have declined, our allies and their armies look to us for direction.

The US-China Dialogue of the Deaf

• Project Syndicate
• December 22, 2010

The visit on January 19 of China’s president, Hu Jintao, is coming at a time when economic conflict between the United States and China has become one of the most worrying global developments. Throughout last year, the US pressed China to revalue the renminbi, while China blamed the US Federal Reserve policy of “quantitative easing” for currency-market turmoil.

Europe Should Rescue Banks Before States

• Financial Times
• December 14, 2010

The architects of the euro knew that it was incomplete when they designed it. The currency had a common central bank but no common treasury – unavoidable given that the Maastricht treaty was meant to bring about monetary union without political union.