A thought-provoking study of democratization proposing that the spate of retreating democracies, one after another over the past two decades, is not just a series of exceptions.

Joshua Kurlantzick says dramatic signs of political opening and reform by Myanmar's new civilian government suggest the limits of international pressure.

CFR Fellow Joshua Kurlantzick argues that the United States should play a much larger role in shaping Myanmar's reforms by launching a new strategy of engagement, including a sizable aid package, upgraded diplomatic relations, and, if reforms continue, an end to American sanctions.

Joshua Kurlantzick says Europe is turning to emerging economies to help solve its debt crisis, but it's too bad they can't deliver.

Joshua Kurlantzick discusses the unexpected series of reforms that has taken place in Burma since President Thein Sein took office.

With China and Southeast Asian states disputing claims to the energy-rich South China Sea, the United States is likely to bolster its presence in the area, writes CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

Joshua Kurlantzick explores Deng Xiaoping's legacy in his review of Ezra Vogel's Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China and Henry Kissinger's On China.

Joshua Kurlantzick details the ways in which Chinese influence is putting pressure on democracy in Asia.

CFR scholars provide policy options for preventing a major crisis in the territories immediately adjacent to China: North Korea, Myanmar, Pakistan, and Central Asia.

Joshua Kurlantzick and Hunter Marston say that opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi might not want to assume a revolutionary role when dealing with the Burmese government.

Joshua Kurlantzick says Libya is hardly the only country that has reason to rejoice at the fall of Muammar al-Qaddafi.

Joshua Kurlantzick states, “China, other Asian nations, and the United States remain unprepared for Myanmar to spark a refugee crisis, a large-scale conflict along its borders — or even a nuclear breakout.”

Joshua Kurlantzick says that while the Arab Spring has allowed nations in the region to begin transitioning to democracy, democracy is actually faltering throughout the developing world.

Joshua Kurlantzick says Thailand's post-election democracy may need U.S. support.

Joshua Kurlantzick says the election victory by the party of Yingluck Shinawatra, sister of exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, puts Thailand's already wobbly democracy at greater risk.

Joshua Kurlantzick reviews Joel Brinkley's Cambodia's Curse: The Modern History of a Troubled Land.

Escalating hostilities between China and its neighbors over competing claims to the South China Sea is a test of China's growing strength and a diplomatic challenge for the United States, which insists that the waterway should be open, says CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

Joshua Kurlantzick reviews Mara Hvistendahl's Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls, and the Consequences of a World Full of Men.

Thailand's general elections in July could mark a crucial step toward reconciliation but are likely to fuel further resentments that have roiled the country and eroded regional stability, says CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

Joshua Kurlantzick reviews Mara Hvistendahl's Unnatural Selection.

Joshua Kurlantzick says that as counterterrorism officials plot life for al-Qaeda after Osama bin Laden, they would do well to look toward the Indonesian experience.