Two trends represent Korea today: South Korea's extraordinary economic boom and North Korea's stagnation and provocation.

The Bush administration wants to contain Iran by rallying the support of Sunni Arab states and now sees Iran's containment as the heart of its Middle East policy: a way to stabilize Iraq, declaw Hezbollah, and restart the Arab-Israeli peace process. But the strategy is unsound and impractical, and it will probably further destabilize an already volatile region.

This academic module features teaching notes by Steven Pifer, author of the Council Special Report Averting Crisis in Ukraine, along with additional resources to supplement the text. In this report, Ambassador Pifer examines current issues facing Ukraine, including its geostragic relevance; the social, political, and economic relationship between Russia and Ukraine; the question of NATO membership; and the possibilities for integration into the West.

This module features teaching notes and supplemental resources for Toward an Angola Strategy: Prioritizing U.S.-Angola Relations, a report of an Independent Commission sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations Center for Preventive Action. This report argues that it is in the interest of the United States to help develop a sustainable and lasting peace in Angola.

As Libyan rebels press for control of the state and the ouster of Muammar al-Qaddafi, experts warn about the troubles ahead in maintaining security and rebuilding a country emerging from forty-two years of autocratic rule.

The approval of a Hezbollah-backed candidate as Lebanon's new prime minister feeds concerns in the West about the militant Shiite group's growing strength and the implications for national and regional stability.

A surge in Taliban-inspired violence, including a spike in suicide bombings, may be evidence of a deeper crisis roiling Afghan society.

Amid a widening scandal over links between his government and paramilitary violence, President Alvaro Uribe proposes a new anti-drug strategy that favors development over military force.

The Palestinian Authority is about to get a new government. The move could spell good news for the region, and might just strengthen Washington’s quest to build a coalition to contain Iranian designs.   

Michah Zenko discusses preventive priorities the United States will face in 2012.

Micah Zenko argues that while the United States should continue to use its military capabilities to support the no-fly zone in Libya, it should also work toward a negotiated end to the civil war.

Walter Russell Mead says the violence in Kyrgyzstan is shaping up to be "a typical modern horror story."

Eboo Patel leads a conversation on his new book Sacred Ground: Pluralism, Prejudice, and the Promise of America, and his work as a Muslim interfaith adviser to the Obama administration.

Jendayi Frazer, CFR's adjunct senior fellow for Africa Studies, discusses preventing conflict between Sudan and South Sudan.