The diplomatic strength and economic power of the United States depend upon a functioning global order and a system of international trade based on uncontested access to the global commons—the world's shared land, sea , air, and space—for all. Command of the global commons is what makes the United States a super power.
As you stand in endless lines this holiday season, here's a comforting thought: all those security measures accomplish nothing, at enormous cost. That's the conclusion of Charles C. Mann, who put the T.S.A. to the test with the help of one of America's top security experts.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office recommends the Transportation Security Association strengthen its foreign airport assessment program and use its results to improve U.S. aviation security.
Adam Segal, author of "Advantage: How American Innovation Can Overcome the Asian Challenge," discusses the policy changes needed to achieve the Chinese ambition to move from a model of "made in China" to one of "innovated in China."
In the autumn of 2010, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) began deploying new technologies and procedures for screening passengers at airport checkpoints. Reports of negative public reaction to some of these changes have prompted intense congressional interest in TSA passenger screening. This report addresses some of these concerns.
New screening measures at U.S. airports are being called overly intrusive by some passengers and civil rights groups. National security experts advise using a system that relies more on intelligence, behavioral profiling, and empowering passengers.
Failures to stop the recent U.S. airliner bomb plot and the destruction of a CIA base in Afghanistan illustrate inherent problems in intelligence gathering, and al-Qaeda's impenetrability, says CFR's Richard K. Betts.
President Obama has called for tweaks to the way terror suspects are monitored, but some observers wonder whether the changes will be sufficient to prevent a repeat of the Christmas Day terror plot.
CFR's Edward Alden says U.S. response to recent air-security failures should be to improve existing measures that identify genuine threats instead of imposing "knee-jerk initiatives that look tough" but may be less effective.
Repercussions of the failed Christmas Day bombing continue, with policy debate focused on Yemen as a new al-Qaeda front and possible delays shuttering Guantanamo Bay.
Sebastian Mallaby, director of CFR’s Center for Geoeconomic Studies, says the skewed governing securities ratings agencies is partly to blame for stock market turmoil.
George Naccara, director of security at Boston's Logan Airport, discusses the myriad threats American airports face and some of the measures designed to keep them safe.
The air travel system remains one of the most high-profile targets for terrorists. This backgrounder examines efforts to improve aviation security since the 9/11 attacks.
The central finding of this report is that federal government has had a naïve view of what the market is able to do when left largely on its own to protect critical infrastructure.
The Council on Foreign Relations' David Rockefeller Studies Program—CFR's "think tank"—is home to more than seventy full-time, adjunct, and visiting scholars and practitioners (called "fellows"). Their expertise covers the world's major regions as well as the critical issues shaping today's global agenda. Download the printable CFR Experts Guide.
Special operations play a critical role in how the United States confronts irregular threats, but to have long-term strategic impact, the author argues, numerous shortfalls must be addressed.
The author analyzes the potentially serious consequences, both at home and abroad, of a lightly overseen drone program and makes recommendations for improving its governance.
Two experts argue that despite myriad development strategies, only one can succeed in alleviating poverty in India: the overall growth of the country's economy. More
