"One of the misconceptions about the Syrian refugee crisis is that it mainly involves people in large camps, above all in Jordan and Turkey....But according to UN figures, a full three quarters of the Syrian refugee population throughout the region are surviving on their own in towns and rural areas."
Mohd Najib Razak, prime minister of Malaysia, discusses the Global Movement of Moderates that he established to oppose extremist ideology in all faith traditions.
"Public anger at gender inequality in India must be seen as an important—and long-overdue—social development, and it can certainly help in remedying the persistent inequalities from which Indian women suffer."
Speakers: Jean-Nicolas Bitter and Chris Seiple Presider: Irina A. Faskianos
Jean-Nicolas Bitter and Chris Seiple lead a conversation on the Nyon Process and international efforts to engage Salafis in dialogue, as part of CFR's Religion and Foreign Policy Conference Call series.
The interventions that U.S. policymakers have proposed to address Syria are based on a "deep misunderstandings of how U.S. force was used on behalf of humanitarian missions in the past, and have almost nothing to do with how Syrian non-combatants are actually being killed," Micah Zenko writes in his latest article. Micah discusses the "misleading characterization" that policymakers have repeated throughout the Syrian civil war.
"When the Security Council blocks action and states get away with gassing their own people or killing them en masse, the rule of law suffers and the authority of the Security Council is diminished."
Ed Husain argues for the creation of a global venture to support local and community organizations throughout the Middle East that forward counternarratives to violent extremism.
U.S.-Russian disagreement over how to respond to the conflict in Syria is spurring further deterioration in the relationship between Moscow and Washington, says CFR's Stephen Sestanovich.
A reported devastating chemical weapons attack stirs new debate in Washington and global capitals about intervention in Syria. This Issue Guide provides background and analysis.
Asked by Jake Mazeitis, from National Forensic League
A government's legitimacy and sovereignty are not sacrosanct if it abuses its own citizens. Norms and values are even more important than international law to justify intervention to protect human rights.
Laurie Garrett says before American cruise missiles reach their targets, serveral diplomatic steps must be taken in order to stop the further use of nerve gases by the Syrian regime against its own people and prevent the use of chemical weapons from becoming the region's "new normal."
Secretary of State John Kerry gave this statement on August 30, 2013, to review with the American people the Obama administration's assessment about the August 21 chemical weapons attack on Syrian civilizans and the steps taken to develop a plan with U.S. and international officials to intervene.
Any external military intervention in Syria in response to government use of chemical weapons will require persuasive arguments to prove legitimacy, says CFR's Matthew Waxman.
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.
An authoritative and accessible look at what countries must do to build durable and prosperous democracies—and what the United States and others can do to help. More
Through an in-depth analysis of modern Mexico, Shannon O'Neil provides a roadmap for the United States' greatest overlooked foreign policy challenge of our time—relations with its southern neighbor. More