In 2012, the Obama administration announced a "pivot" to East Asia—a strategy that includes a focus on regional security alliances and a rebalance of U.S. military presence from Europe to the Asia-Pacific.
American diplomacy has changed dramatically in the past few decades, and has taken on a more conflict-prone direction, according to this New York Times piece.
Matthew C. Waxman argues that international law still plays a powerful role in justifying or delegitimizing the case for military action. Just like in the Cuban missile crisis, the United States needs to present a plausible case for self-defense in order to strike Iran.
The myth about how the United States won the Cuban missile crisis made it more difficult for presidents to do what common sense dictated, says CFR president emeritus Les Gelb.
Micah Zenko says, in the aftermath of the attacks in Benghazi, President Obama faces tremendous pressure to "do something" in response, but force won't stop another attack.
Fifty years later, the effects of the Cuban Missile Crisis linger still because of the persistent effects of one lie—that JFK won the day without compromising, writes Leslie H. Gelb in Foreign Policy.
GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has asserted that Russia is America's "No. 1 geopolitical foe;" a claim that has been heavily criticized, but may still be true.
The outcome of the presidential election will have significant impact on U.S. foreign policy, particularly considering the debabte over the potential of war with Iran.
Will Inboden writes that the historic role of the Democratic Party of vocally opposing Republican policies only to later embrace those policies when they have been proven successful should at the least raise a skeptical eyebrow at the ongoing Democratic denunciations of Romney's foreign policy.
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