Last weekend’s summit in Bangkok yielded several notable accomplishments. But the announced breakthroughs actually contain less than meets the eye.
Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP/Getty Images
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations brings together disparate neighbors to address economic, security, political, and social issues, but the group's impact remains limited.
Election 2020
Stephen Lam/Reuters
United States Presidential Election (2020)
The Democratic field could touch on a number of foreign policy issues, from climate change to Iran, during its first prime-time sparring session.
United States Presidential Election (2020)
The Democratic and Republican presidential contenders have begun defining their approach to major foreign policy issues as they jockey for position in their parties’ primaries.
Sudan
Gulf powers have lined up behind Sudan’s ruling military council. Where Sudan goes from here could depend on whether other powers play a countervailing role.
Turkey
After his party suffered a humiliating loss in Istanbul, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is down but far from out.
Iran
The narrow and congested Mideast waterway has become a site of escalating U.S.-Iran tensions. Conflict in the wake of tanker attacks there could jolt global oil supplies.
Test your knowledge of U.S. secretaries of state, from the founding of the country to the present day.
CFR on the Record
Jerome Powell discusses the challenges facing the U.S. economy and the policies of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The Elders, an independent group of global leaders founded by Nelson Mandela, work to address challenges of peace-building, inequality, exclusion, and injustice in a rapidly changing world. Mary Robinson, Ban Ki-moon, and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf discuss the vital role of a well-functioning multilateral system and how it can provide the tools and institutions needed to manage and prevent conflicts before they turn violent.
Governor Inslee discusses international climate policy and U.S. leadership in global climate action.
Expert Spotlight
Explainers
1
5
China
Photos: Thirty Years of Protests in China Since Tiananmen
From demonstrations for religious freedom to demands for environmental protection, citizens from diverse backgrounds have challenged authority in China. Here’s a look at major protests since 1989.
Pollution
Why Air Pollution Is So Bad in Asia’s Cities
Air pollution in Asia is deadly. Here’s why it’s so bad.
China
Belt and Road Tracker
This tracker shows how the Belt and Road Initiative has changed countries’ bilateral economic relationships with China over time.
Trade
The Truth About Tariffs
Tariffs have been applied over the years to protect homegrown industries and target competitors who are seen as using unfair trade practices. They impose costs on both importers and exporters and had been in decline until the recent U.S.-China trade spat.
Wars and Conflict
Global Conflict Tracker
The Center for Preventive Action’s Global Conflict Tracker is an interactive guide to ongoing conflicts around the world of concern to the United States.
Featured Publications
President Donald J. Trump’s actions have often been rash, ignorant, and chaotic. Yet some of his individual foreign policies are substantially better than his opponents assert.
Japan’s United States–imposed postwar constitution renounced the use of offensive military force, but, Sheila A. Smith shows, a nuclear North Korea and an increasingly assertive China have the Japanese rethinking that commitment—and their reliance on U.S. security.
In chronicling the adventurous life of legendary CIA operative Edward Lansdale, The Road Not Taken definitively reframes our understanding of the Vietnam War.