The summit in Colombia offers Washington an opportunity to boost growing economic ties amid ongoing disputes with regional partners over Cuba and the legalization of illicit drugs, writes CFR's Shannon K. O'Neil.

Addressing Egypt's economically debilitating subsidy system will be hard amid political transition, but with the country's social contract under review, the time is ripe for reform needed to put the country on a more viable economic path, says CFR's Isobel Coleman.

The elections brought democratic forces into parliament for the first time in fifty years. But Myanmar's rapid reforms still must be viewed as small steps in a country where military forces retain considerable power, writes CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

One year after Japan's triple disasters, questions persist about the ability of the world's third-largest economy to rebound and how its struggling political system can mount serious reforms, writes CFR's Sheila Smith.

Talk among major economies is intensifying over a "financial firewall" to contain the eurozone crisis. But CFR's Steven Dunaway says the emphasis should be on pressing debt-saddled states to make reforms that will improve their growth prospects.

Myanmar's sudden transition from repressive pariah to potential democracy should be viewed through the lens of a military alarmed by people power revolts and by the country's increasingly shaky economic condition, says CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

Detainee policy that would mandate military custody for al-Qaeda suspects captured in the United States could have a detrimental impact on U.S. counterterrorism operations, say CFR legal experts Matthew C. Waxman and John B. Bellinger III.

What is the best way to stabilize Afghanistan at a time when international forces are scaling down commitments? Putting Afghan troops in the lead of their own counterinsurgency efforts, writes CFR's Linda Robinson.

Delegates at climate talks underway in South Africa would be better off addressing matters such as a global climate fund rather than trying to preserve the contentious Kyoto Protocol, says CFR's Michael Levi.

G20 leaders will be tested this week to act on sovereign debt crises and potential global economic upheaval. Stewart Patrick says a proper response would be for leaders to follow their own promises from previous summits.

In this Markets and Democracy Brief, CFR’s John Campbell and Asch Harwood note the potential dangers of elections in weak and divided African countries, but they urge continued U.S. support for elections because Africans themselves embrace them.

Tunisians triggered the first of the Arab world upheavals, but can they sustain support for democratic changes? CFR's Victoria Taylor says the elections for a constitutional assembly will test Tunisia's political maturity.

In this Markets and Democracy Brief, CFR's Mark Lagon argues for a more consistent approach to human rights promotion than the United States has often pursued in the past.

With China and Southeast Asian states disputing claims to the energy-rich South China Sea, the United States is likely to bolster its presence in the area, writes CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

With the United States eager to withdraw from Afghanistan and reconciliation with the Taliban considered key to any peace process, Afghan women's rights are once again in question, writes CFR's Gayle Tzemach Lemmon.

The 2011 high-level UN meeting on non-communicable diseases fell far short of the major funding and targets agreed to at a similar meeting on HIV/AIDS a decade ago, which CFR's Thomas Bollyky says indicates a need for different actors and approaches on chronic diseases.

This year's daunting UN challenges for President Obama: navigating the Palestinian statehood thicket and convincing Americans that UN diplomacy matters, writes CFR's Stewart Patrick.

New efforts by the Obama administration to prioritize the prevention of atrocities can only make a difference if authorities are able to surmount challenges ranging from bureaucratic inertia to fickle public opinion, write Andrew Miller and Paul Stares.

U.S. lawmakers' brinkmanship over raising the debt ceiling could have prompted a series of moves--the downgrading of U.S. debt by Standard and Poor's being one--that could cause a selloff of U.S. securities and an end to the primacy of the dollar, writes CFR's Francis Warnock.

Scaling back the U.S. commitment in Afghanistan will yield a peace dividend, but only when Social Security and Medicare spending are controlled will the U.S. be able to refocus on domestic priorities, says CFR'S Gayle Tzemach Lemmon.