Investment in maternal health in Afghanistan provides a cost-effective way to promote strategic U.S. foreign policy objectives. As part of a responsible drawdown, the United States should continue its commitments to improving maternal health programs.

CFR scholars provide policy options for preventing a major crisis in the territories immediately adjacent to China: North Korea, Myanmar, Pakistan, and Central Asia.

In this globalized world, countries will need to cooperate on policies that extend across borders to address issues that affect them all, including conflict prevention and peacemaking. The authors of this report assess the strengths and weaknesses of international institutions and provide a set of practical recommendations for how the United States can strengthen the global architecture for preventive action by partnering with those organizations.

This Independent Task Force report encourages the Obama administration and Congress to adopt a "pro-America" trade policy that brings to more Americans the benefits of global engagement.

Business, policy, and thought leaders offer recommendations on enhancing the U.S.-India strategic relationship.

The repercussions of a terrorist attack on the United States originating in Pakistan could be catastrophic. Professor Stephen Tankel outlines policy tools that U.S. decision-makers can employ to prevent an attack and to mitigate the consequences if one occurs.

As tobacco reemerges as a contentious issue in trade policy, CFR Senior Fellow Thomas Bollyky argues that the Obama administration can better balance U.S. mandates on tobacco trade policy with its interests in promoting global health and U.S. standing abroad.

Public disorder and instability in Libya could emerge if the Qaddafi regime falls. The United States should support a stabilization effort to prevent the potential consequences of regime failure.

This Independent Task Force finds that Brazil is a significant international actor whose influence on global issues is likely to increase and recommends that U.S. policymakers and others recognize its global standing and work with Brazil to develop complementary policies. This report is also available in Portuguese.

CFR Senior Fellow Paul B. Stares offers crisis preparedness solutions to help the Obama administration reduce its chances of being blindsided by future uprisings, as it was by the Arab Spring.

CFR Senior Fellow Daniel Markey argues that the United States should move quickly to convert the post–bin Laden crisis in U.S.-Pakistan relations into an opportunity for significant and positive reform of Pakistan's security and intelligence services.

Electoral instability and insurrectionary violence may once again afflict the Democratic Republic of Congo. Joshua Marks of the National Endowment for Democracy proposes steps the United States can take to prevent these scenarios from occurring and, if they occur, mitigate their potential consequences.

Eight years of U.S. attempts to promote a lasting peace for Darfur have failed. The United States should narrow its objectives, focusing on reducing violence and supporting tribal reconciliation.

Many low-paying jobs have moved from the United States to rapidly growing markets abroad, and higher-paying jobs may soon follow. While Americans benefit from cheaper goods, employment opportunities have diminished. Policymakers should address this trade-off as a first step toward tackling questions of inequality and economic distribution.

David A. Shirk analyzes the drug war in Mexico and argues that the United States should help Mexico address its pressing crime and corruption problems.

CFR Senior Fellow Michael Levi reviews possible states of the Iranian nuclear program, evaluating the range of policy outcomes in order to better guide decisions on strategy.

Kara C. McDonald and Stewart M. Patrick offer recommendations for U.S. leadership in United Nations Security Council reform and expansion.

Kay King offers recommendations to reset congressional rules, practices, and procedures to address today's dysfunctional Congress and restore it as a full partner to the executive branch in advancing U.S. national security interests.

This Independent Task Force report assesses U.S. objectives, strategy, and policy options in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It supports a long-term partnership with Pakistan, calls for a new approach to Afghan political reform, reconciliation, and regional diplomacy, and says that a more limited U.S. mission in Afghanistan would be warranted if the present strategy does not show signs of progress. This report is also available in Italian.

Further provocations by North Korea as well as other dangerous military interactions on or around the Korean peninsula remain a serious risk and carry the danger of unintended escalation.