India
Tauseef Mustafa/AFP via Getty Images

China

Preparing for Heightened China-India Tensions
To reduce the threat of conflict, the United States should boost aid to India and begin working with like-minded partners to develop a coordinated response strategy.

Contingency Planning Memorandum by Daniel S. Markey April 19, 2021 Center for Preventive Action

 

Link

China’s Unrestricted War on India

with Brahma Chellaney via Foreign Affairs April 2, 2021

India

Timeline: U.S.-India Relations
Since India’s independence, ties with the United States have weathered Cold War–era distrust and estrangement over India’s nuclear program. Relations have warmed in recent years and cooperation has strengthened across a range of economic and political areas.

Timeline by Eleanor Albert, Beina Xu, Lindsay Maizland, Kevin Lizarazo and Jeremy Sherlick November 4, 2020

Corruption
Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

Americas

The Corruption Probe That Rocked Latin America
Corruption investigations that started in Brazil ultimately triggered political upheaval across the continent.

In Brief by Amelia Cheatham April 19, 2021

 

Link

Operation Car Wash Was No Magic Bullet

via New York Times February 26, 2021

Central America

Making Anticorruption Reforms Stick in the Northern Triangle
The Biden administration made a bold commitment to support the region’s prosecutors in their fight against impunity. But corrupt courts, business associations, and legislatures could derail the progress if they are not reformed in time.    

Blog Post by Will Freeman March 12, 2021 Latin America's Moment

Myanmar

Southeast Asia

ASEAN’s Myanmar Crisis

Blog Post by Joshua Kurlantzick April 14, 2021 Asia Unbound

Southeast Asia

What Is ASEAN?
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is a regional organization that brings together disparate neighbors to address economic, security, and political issues, but the group’s impact remains limited.

Backgrounder by Lindsay Maizland and Eleanor Albert November 24, 2020

 

Link

The Looming Catastrophe in Myanmar

via Foreign Affairs April 15, 2021

Climate Change

Climate Change

Biden’s Earth Day Summit: What to Expect
President Biden hopes to show that the United States is ready to be a leader again in combating climate change.

In Brief by Lindsay Maizland April 15, 2021

Climate Change

Global Climate Agreements: Successes and Failures
International efforts, such as the Paris Agreement, aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But experts say countries aren’t doing enough to limit dangerous global warming.

Backgrounder by Lindsay Maizland January 25, 2021

 

Link

Competition With China Can Save the Planet

via Foreign Affairs April 13, 2021

Afghanistan

Afghanistan

A Risky Withdrawal
A complete U.S. military withdrawal by September 11, 2021, could allow the Taliban to take over much of Afghanistan.

In Brief by Max Boot April 14, 2021 National Security and Defense Program

Afghanistan War

Timeline: U.S. War in Afghanistan
The Taliban insurgency remains resilient nearly two decades after U.S.-led forces toppled its regime in what led to the United States’ longest war.

Timeline by Zachary Laub and Lindsay Maizland April 14, 2021

 

Link

The Taliban Is Ready to Exploit America’s Exit

with Carter Malkasian via Foreign Affairs April 14, 2021

Taliban

What Is the Taliban?
Since its ouster in 2001, the Taliban has maintained its insurgency against the U.S.-led mission in Afghanistan and the Afghan government. A collapse in intra-Afghan peace negotiations could pave the way for the group’s return to power.

Backgrounder by Lindsay Maizland March 15, 2021

Somalia

Somalia

Somalia’s Political Crisis Demands Sustained Attention

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin April 14, 2021 Africa in Transition

 

Link

Five Things to Know About Somalia’s Political Turmoil

via Al Jazeera April 14, 2021

 

Link

Somalia Must Learn to Stand Alone

via Foreign Affairs November 25, 2020

Events
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Play

Education

School Policy Decisions During COVID-19

Play
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, speaks on the considerations schools face in terms of reopening, taking into account their individual needs as well as public health and CDC recommendations. Jacob Carpenter, education reporter at the Houston Chronicle, discusses best practices for framing stories related to this topic. Carla Anne Robbins, adjunct senior fellow at CFR and former deputy editorial page editor at the New York Times, hosts the webinar.

Webinar with Jacob Carpenter and Randi Weingarten April 15, 2021 Local Journalists Webinars

Diplomacy and International Institutions

Lessons Learned With Thomas Donilon

Play
Thomas Donilon discusses his distinguished career in business and government, including his role as national security advisor under President Barack Obama, working with three U.S. presidents, serving at the state department, and his current roles at BlackRock and the Council on Foreign Relations. Lessons Learned is a roundtable series, open to term members and younger life members, which features distinguished speakers who reflect on their career experiences, the choices they made along the way, and the lessons they have learned from them.

Webinar with Thomas E. Donilon April 7, 2021

Public Health Threats and Pandemics

Preventing the Next Pandemic: Leveraging Technology for Early Warning of Spreading Infectious Illness.

Play
The rapid rate of infection in the ongoing pandemic is catalyzing technological innovation to prevent the next potential pandemic from ever reaching a global scale. Technology is the essential tool for early testing, detection, and tracking. Through the use of modern data science techniques to develop epidemiological forecast models and personal technology such as smart thermometers and wearables to track trends across regions, preventative measures are more powerful than ever before. Our speaker Inder Singh, founder and CEO of Kinsa Inc., discusses the current and changing landscape of technology and infectious disease prevention.

Webinar with Inder Singh April 14, 2021

Women and Women's Rights

COVID-19's Impact on Women

Play

Virtual Event with Julia Smith and Clare Wenham April 14, 2021

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Explainers

The Arab Spring at Ten Years: What’s the Legacy of the Uprisings?
Rising Hunger: Facing a Food-Insecure World
The Coronavirus Pandemic, With Tom Bollyky
Conflicts to Watch in 2021
China’s Repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang
The Arab Spring at Ten Years: What’s the Legacy of the Uprisings?
Rising Hunger: Facing a Food-Insecure World
The Coronavirus Pandemic, With Tom Bollyky
Conflicts to Watch in 2021
China’s Repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang
The Arab Spring at Ten Years: What’s the Legacy of the Uprisings?
Rising Hunger: Facing a Food-Insecure World
The Coronavirus Pandemic, With Tom Bollyky
Conflicts to Watch in 2021
China’s Repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang

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Middle East and North Africa The Arab Spring at Ten Years: What’s the Legacy of the Uprisings?

Ten years on, the lives of people in Arab Spring countries have improved in certain aspects but worsened in others. CFR.org visualizes the changes in Bahrain, Egypt, Libya, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen.

Food and Water Security Rising Hunger: Facing a Food-Insecure World

Global food insecurity has surged amid the coronavirus pandemic, threatening to worsen humanitarian crises and spur further mass migration.

Public Health Threats and Pandemics The Coronavirus Pandemic, With Tom Bollyky

Thomas J. Bollyky, director of CFR’s Global Health program and senior fellow for global health, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the World Health Organization’s newly declared pandemic, COVID-19.

Conflict Prevention Conflicts to Watch in 2021

In CFR’s annual Preventive Priorities Survey, U.S. foreign policy experts assess the likelihood and impact of thirty potential conflicts that could emerge or escalate in the coming year.

China China’s Repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang

More than a million Muslims have been arbitrarily detained in China’s Xinjiang region. The reeducation camps are just one part of the government’s crackdown on Uyghurs.

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Experts in the News

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
Link

Lemmon: Women’s Equality Was Launched on the Ashes of the Fight Against ISIS

Via FOX & Friends April 3, 2021

Richard N. Haass
Link

Haass: The Real Test of Bipartisanship Will Be on Economic and Domestic Policies

Via Conversations With Jim Zirin March 31, 2021

Thomas J. Bollyky
Link

Bollyky: The Inequity of Vaccine Distribution Extends the Pandemic Globally

Via NPR's Consider This March 29, 2021

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Featured Publications

Wars and Conflict

Nonstate Warfare
Stephen Biddle explains how nonstate military strategies overturn traditional perspectives on warfare.

Book by Stephen Biddle April 6, 2021 National Security and Defense Program

China

The United States, China, and Taiwan: A Strategy to Prevent War
To preserve peace in the Taiwan Strait, Robert D. Blackwill and Philip Zelikow propose the United States make clear that it will not change Taiwan’s status, yet will work with allies to plan for Chinese aggression and help Taiwan defend itself.

Council Special Report by Robert D. Blackwill and Philip Zelikow February 11, 2021 U.S. Foreign Policy Program

Iran

The Last Shah
Ray Takeyh provides new interpretations of many key events—including the 1953 coup against Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadeq and the rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini—significantly revising our understanding of the United States’ and Iran’s complex and difficult history.

Book by Ray Takeyh January 26, 2021

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