“Mccain’s foreign policy idealism has been reaffirmed not because it is wildly popular but because it is unavoidable,” argues Michael J. Gerson.

President Bush's farewell State of the Union address was marked by a call for Congress to unite behind his Iraq policy and curtail partisanship.

Amy Frumin, a CFR international affairs fellow and former USAID representative in Afghanistan, says Washington's current approach to delivering foreign assistance needs to “reorganized.”

President Bush’s AIDS program in Africa is up for renewal. A number of health experts applaud some of its results but want to end the focus on abstinence.

Ethiopia’s U.S. ambassador says his government needs more international help in securing Somalia and is wrongly blamed by Congress for rights abuses.

The Mexican government’s strong response to one of the worst natural disasters in its history stands in marked contrast to historic trends.

Shannon O’Neil, CFR’s Mexico expert, says Washington’s $1.4 billion multiyear plan to bolster Mexico’s crackdown on drug and criminal rings, while drawing criticism, is likely to win congressional approval. 

Watch experts discuss U.S. foreign aid reform and the upcoming report of the HELP Commission, established by Congress to determine ways to make U.S. foreign aid more effective.

Listen to experts discuss U.S. foreign aid reform and the upcoming report of the HELP Commission, established by Congress to determine ways to make U.S. foreign aid more effective.

An article published in Mexican weekly Proceso presents extensive newinformation about "Plan Mexico." The Center for International Policy's Columbia Program presents the article translated into English.

At the third annual Arthur C. Helton Memorial Lecture, Jan Egeland, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General, discusses his work at the United Nations handling the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

The Bush administration has sought innovative approaches to shake up U.S. foreign aid but its efforts face serious damage due to high-level scandals.

One year into the U.S. State Department’s effort to transform foreign assistance programs, funding is up but criticism remains over the scope of the reforms.

In this report the Power and Interest News Report website traces the increasing role Iran has been playing in Afghanistan since 2001. It argues that Afghanistan and its ethnic and religious mosaic is a "paradigmatic case" of the importance that trans-state identities play in the geopolitical configuration of the Greater Middle East. It points out that Iran has been the traditional backer of Afghanistan's Shi'a, such as the Hazaras, the Qizilbashs and the Farsiwans, and that this involvement on the part of Iran is only likely to increase.

Israel is the largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid. This report by the Congressional Research Service provides an overview of that assistance.

Unrest in Pakistan over the suspension of the country's outspoken chief justice could undermine President Pervez Musharraf's efforts to keep control.