Politics and Government | Council on Foreign Relations

United States

Domestic Terrorism Strikes U.S. Capitol, and Democracy

The breaching of the U.S. Capitol and disruption of the presidential succession by a pro-Trump mob has inflicted lasting damage on the nation’s image as a bastion of democracy. The country should now dedicate itself to rebuilding civil discourse.

In Brief by Bruce Hoffman January 7, 2021
Transition 2021

Nigerian Reaction to the Assault on the U.S. Capitol

Americans should be under no illusion about the serious damage to their country’s remaining moral authority and capacity for international leadership caused by yesterday's assault on the U.S. Capitol…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 7, 2021 Africa in Transition
Transition 2021

Transition 2021 Series: The First 100 Days and Beyond

Richard Haass and David Rubenstein discuss the most pressing foreign policy challenges to greet the Biden administration, including U.S.-China relations, cybersecurity, climate change, nuclear proliferation, and the pandemic, as part of the first event in CFR’s Transition 2021 series. The Transition 2021 series examines the major issues confronting the administration in the foreign policy arena.

Virtual Event by Richard N. Haass January 6, 2021

Nigeria

Nigerian Human Rights Activist Arrested—Again

Nolan Quinn contributed to this post. Omoyele Sowore, human rights activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, was arrested New Year’s Eve following a peaceful prote…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 5, 2021 Africa in Transition
Transition 2021

Save the world — America's greatest priority

When the United States and the world emerged from the Cold War 30 years ago, the watchword in foreign affairs was “change.” Now, on so many global fronts, the imperative goal is far more arresting: t…

by David J. Scheffer January 5, 2021
Political History and Theory

The Council on Foreign Relations at 100: The History

2021 marks the 100th anniversary of the Council on Foreign Relations. Since its inception in 1921, the Council has been guided by an unwavering set of core principles: independence, nonpartisanship, and a commitment to producing quality, policy-relevant scholarship. The CFR’s mission, to provide the analysis and context necessary to inform America’s foreign policy choices and to increase public understanding of the world and why it matters, remains as urgent today as at any time in the past century.

January 5, 2021
Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia Events to Watch in 2021: Part 1

The past year was a highly eventful one in Southeast Asia. The region suffered significantly from the global pandemic, and yet it also contained some of the states with the best records on COVID-19 i…

Blog Post by Joshua Kurlantzick January 4, 2021 Asia Unbound
2020 in Review

Ten Good Foreign Policy News Stories in 2020

Two thousand twenty will go down in the books as a very tough year. It’s of no comfort that historians say it ranks just eighth in terms of the most stressful years in U.S. history. Our lives were di…

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay December 31, 2020 The Water's Edge
Coronavirus

Resurgence of COVID-19 in Africa

It was long expected that Africa, with its weak public health infrastructure and the impoverishment of its population, would face particular disaster with the outbreak of COVID-19. It arrived later t…

Blog Post by John Campbell December 29, 2020 Africa in Transition
2020 in Review

Ten World Figures Who Died in 2020

I wrote yesterday about ten Americans who died in 2020 who shaped U.S. foreign policy during their lifetimes. But Americans are not the only ones who influence world affairs. Below are ten world figu…

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay December 29, 2020 The Water's Edge
2020 in Review

Ten Foreign Policy Notables Who Died in 2020

Year’s end is a time for taking stock, counting successes, and assessing failures. It is also time for remembering those who are no longer with us. Here are ten Americans who died in 2020 who through…

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay December 28, 2020 The Water's Edge
China

U.S. Relations With China

Since 1949, U.S.-China relations have evolved from tense standoffs to a complex mix of intensifying diplomacy, growing international rivalry, and increasingly intertwined economies.

Timeline by CFR.org Editors December 23, 2020
Elections and Voting

Ten Elections to Watch in 2021

Millions of people around the world voted in 2020. Taiwanese voters reelected Tsai Ing-wen as president. Burmese voters returned Aung San Suu Kyi’s party to power. Guineans protested before and after…

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay December 23, 2020 The Water's Edge
Global

Five Foreign Policy Stories to Watch in 2021

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay December 21, 2020 The Water's Edge
Nigeria

Release of Nigerian School Boys: Questions and Hypotheses

The freeing of perhaps 344 boys kidnapped from a boarding school at Kankara in Katsina state is unalloyed good news. However, the foiled attempt to kidnap another eighty school children, at Dandume i…

Blog Post by John Campbell December 21, 2020 Africa in Transition