Julia Sweig shares her impressions regarding ongoing and future political, economic, and social changes in Cuba.

The Balkans region in southern Europe has been unsettled since the dismantling of Ottoman dominance there in the late nineteenth century. During the twentieth century, ethnic and sectarian tensions not infrequently brought war to the region, most recently during the 1990s amid the breakup of Yugoslavia. The United States played a significant role in bringing peace to Bosnia in 1995 and to Kosovo in 1999, but the region faces continued instability.

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The newly elected moderate Iranian president may lead the United States to loosen economic sanctions on the country, according to Carla Robbins.

Isobel Coleman and Terra Lawson-Remer share seven lessons from their new book, Pathways to Freedom: Political and Economic Lessons From Democratic Transitions.

John Campbell examines escalating violence in Nigeria.

The so-called "BRICS"—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—are a group of countries that have enjoyed relatively fast economic growth and increased political influence. Russia's economy used to occupy the middle tier of the BRICS, but today many Russians worry that it is dropping to the bottom of the group.

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Ray Takeyh weighs the prospects for change in Iran under the newly elected President Hassan Rowhani.

Beijing's push for rapid urbanization aims to promote growth, but the socioeconomic effects remain unclear.

Which style of Islam will prevail in Tunisia?

"To capitalize on the twin desires of Asian countries for closer ties with each other and for greater American presence, the United States must double down on its commitment to rebalance attention and resources to Asia."

"[The] country's defense experts and policy makers are now addressing systemic reform and modernization issues, and are talking about breaking down barriers to cooperation with civilian industry and market-driven management."

The U.S. education system is not as internationally competitive as it used to be; in fact, the United States has slipped ten spots in both high school and college graduation rates over the past three decades, according to a new report and scorecard from the Council on Foreign Relations' Renewing America initiative, which examines the domestic foundations of U.S. power. U.S. national security is directly linked to issues such as education because shortcomings among American workers threaten the country's ability to compete with other countries and set a compelling example internationally.

Jerome A. Cohen says the Communist Party's sustained efforts since June 4 to influence China's courts for its own ends may be easing, but judicial independence is still a long way off.

"It is troubling that someone who lectured on constitutional law for a dozen years…would misidentify the president's primary pledge and obligation," Micah Zenko writes. In this article, Zenko highlights the discrepancies between constitutional obligations of the U.S. presidency and what President Obama and former President Bush have identified as primary obligations.

The scorecard infographic and accompanying progress report, "Remedial Education: Federal Education Policy," highlights the main challenges facing the U.S. education system and assesses whether federal education policy is effectively addressing them.

Conceived as principal defenders of the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps has evolved into a vast institution of political, economic, and military power.

To capitalize on the twin desires of Asian countries for closer ties with each other and for greater American presence, the United States must double down on its commitment to rebalance attention and resources to Asia

Yes, the United States is pivoting to Asia, one of the reasons for the tête-à-tête last week between Barack Obama and Xi Jinping. But behind the scenes, President Obama has actually been reorienting U.S. diplomacy toward Europe.

With Ayatollah Khamenei set to replace Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with a "fawning admirer" of his choosing, Ahmadinejad may be missed for his ability to challenge the Islamic Republic's ruling religious hierarchy.