The United Kingdom and European Union are engaged in another bout of Brexit brinkmanship, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson pushing a bill that would undo their previous agreement.
Henry Nicholls/Reuters
Brexit supporters argue that the EU threatens sovereignty and stifles growth, while opponents counter that EU membership strengthens trade, investment, and the UK’s standing in the world.
Venezuela
Carlos Garcia/Reuters
Venezuela is grappling with the Western Hemisphere’s largest humanitarian crisis. Here’s how the United States can help.
Military
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
The U.S. military is considering some major shifts to its posture in Europe, including a large withdrawal from bases in Germany, that are raising security concerns on the continent.
Iran
The Trump administration’s case for invoking “snapback” sanctions against Iran for violating the nuclear deal rests on shallow arguments that have left Washington alone in efforts to pressure Tehran.
Onetime allies, the United States and Iran have seen tensions escalate repeatedly in the four decades since the Islamic Revolution.
Food Security
Global food insecurity has surged amid the coronavirus pandemic, threatening to worsen humanitarian crises and spur further mass migration.
United Nations
President Trump's virtual address to the UN General Assembly was shallow, unpersuasive, and exaggerated his domestic and international achievements.
Diplomacy and International Institutions
Council of Councils global perspectives roundups gather opinions from experts on major international developments. In this edition, members of six leading global think tanks reflect on what reforms are the most important for the United Nations as it looks toward its next seventy-five years.
Events
Foreign Minister Zarif discusses Iranian relations with the United States, the future of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and prospects for peace in the Middle East.
Human rights activists now say China's crackdown on Uighur Muslims meets the criteria of genocide. Here's why.
Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah discusses the challenges facing the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, including its fight against terror groups, and his country’s relationship with the United States.
This workshop, held with generous support from the Sejong Institute, brings together prominent U.S. and South Korean specialists to discuss what can be done to break the diplomatic stalemate with North Korea.
Expert Spotlight
Explainers
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United States
How Police Compare in Different Democracies
Recent killings by U.S. officers have sparked widespread calls for police reform and an end to systemic racism. Here’s how U.S. policing compares with other countries’ approaches.
China
China’s Approach to Global Governance
Learn about China's evolving approach to global governance and how it has shifted strategy under President Xi Jinping related to trade, the belt and road initiative, and the coronavirus pandemic.
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.
Syria
Syria's War and the Descent Into Chaos
In the nine years since protesters in Syria first demonstrated against the four-decade rule of the Assad family, hundreds of thousands of Syrians have been killed and some twelve million people have been displaced.
Global
Women’s Power Index
Find out where women around the world wield political power—and why it matters.
Featured Publications
An invaluable primer from Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, that will help anyone, expert and nonexpert alike, navigate a time in which many of our biggest challenges come from the world beyond our borders.
Diplomacy and International Institutions
Is America’s alliance system so quietly effective that politicians and voters fail to appreciate its importance in delivering the security they take for granted?
Venezuela represents the Western Hemisphere’s largest humanitarian crisis. Paul J. Angelo outlines what the United States can do to help alleviate the suffering of the Venezuelan people.