U.S. Foreign Policy | Council on Foreign Relations

The End of World Order and American Foreign Policy

The United States should respond to the COVID-19 reordering moment and stop deterioration in the balance of power with China, bolster relations with India and Europe, and reform the way it deals with allies and partners.

Council Special Report by Robert D. Blackwill and Thomas Wright May 28, 2020

Higher Education Webinar: The Triumph and Peril of America’s Alliances

Mira Rapp-Hooper, CFR's Stephen A. Schwarzman senior fellow for Asia Studies and senior fellow at Yale Law School’s Paul Tsai China Center, discusses the U.S. system of alliances and its importance for national security.

Conference Call with Mira Rapp-Hooper Jun 18, 2020

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
China

The U.S.-China Rivalry, With David Shambaugh

David Shambaugh, Gaston Sigur professor of Asian studies, political science, and international affairs and director of the China Policy Program at George Washington University, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss China’s growing power and ambition across the globe. Shambaugh’s most recent book is Where Great Powers Meet: America and China in Southeast Asia.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay and David Shambaugh January 26, 2021 The President's Inbox
Transition 2021

Transition 2021: What Awaits Biden on Capitol Hill?

Algene T. Sajery, founder and chief executive officer of Catalyst Global Strategies, and Christopher M. Tuttle, managing director at the Council, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss what challenges the incoming Biden administration will likely face in Congress.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay, Algene T. Sajery and Christopher M. Tuttle January 19, 2021 The President's Inbox

Experts in this Keyword

Elliott Abrams

Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies

Edward Alden

Bernard L. Schwartz Senior Fellow

Robert D. Blackwill

Henry A. Kissinger Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy

Max Boot

Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Senior Fellow for National Security Studies

Karen B. Brooks

Karen B. Brooks

Adjunct Senior Fellow for Asia

Thomas E. Donilon

Thomas E. Donilon

Distinguished Fellow

Richard A. Falkenrath

Senior Fellow for National Security

Jendayi E. Frazer

Jendayi E. Frazer

Adjunct Senior Fellow for Africa Studies

Gordon M. Goldstein

Adjunct Senior Fellow

Thomas Graham

Distinguished Fellow

Richard N. Haass

Richard N. Haass

President, Council on Foreign Relations

Martin S. Indyk

Distinguished Fellow

Daniel Kurtz-Phelan

Editor, Foreign Affairs; Peter G. Peterson Chair

Farah Pandith

Farah Pandith

Adjunct Senior Fellow

Stewart M. Patrick

James H. Binger Senior Fellow in Global Governance and Director of the International Institutions and Global Governance Program

Stephen Sestanovich

George F. Kennan Senior Fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies

Ray Takeyh

Hasib J. Sabbagh Senior Fellow for Middle East Studies

Matthew C. Waxman

Matthew C. Waxman

Adjunct Senior Fellow for Law and Foreign Policy

Transition 2021

Transition 2021: What Can Biden Get Done?

Each Friday, I look at what is happening in President-Elect Joe Biden’s transition to the White House. This week: Biden faces substantial obstacles in his bid to remake U.S. foreign policy after four years of America First.

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay January 15, 2021 The Water's Edge
Transition 2021

Transition 2021 Replay: Biden’s CIA Director Nominee on U.S. Diplomacy

President-Elect Joe Biden recently nominated Ambassador William J. Burns to serve as the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. In June of 2019, Ambassador Burns and James M. Lindsay discussed American diplomacy and international cooperation in the age of America first on The President’s Inbox.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay and William J. Burns January 11, 2021 The President's Inbox
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
Transition 2021

Transition 2021: How Much Foreign Policy Leverage Is Trump Leaving Biden?

Each Friday, I look at what is happening in President-Elect Joe Biden’s transition to the White House. This week: The Biden administration may have less leverage to strike winning deals than he, and many of his critics, might think.

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay December 18, 2020 The Water's Edge
Transition 2021

The World Next Year: Transitioning Into 2021

Hosts James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon are joined by Shannon K. O’Neil to unpack the extraordinary year of 2020, and forecast international challenges and developments in 2021.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay, Robert McMahon and Shannon K. O'Neil December 17, 2020 The World Next Week
Middle East and North Africa

What Is U.S. Policy on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

The United States has long tried to negotiate a resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but several factors, including deep divisions between and within the parties and declining U.S. interest in carrying out its traditional honest-broker role, hurt the chances of a peace deal.

Backgrounder by Kali Robinson December 15, 2020
Transition 2021

TPI Replay: Richard Haass on Biden’s Foreign Policy Challenges

In this special Transition 2021 series of The President’s Inbox, James M. Lindsay sits down each week with experts to discuss the challenges facing the incoming Biden administration. This week, CFR President Richard Haass assesses the world that President-Elect Biden will inherit. Haass’s most recent book is The World: A Brief Introduction.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay and Richard N. Haass December 8, 2020 The President's Inbox
Transition 2021

Transition 2021: How Will Biden Handle Russia?

Heather A. Conley, senior vice president for Europe, Eurasia, and the Arctic and director of the Europe Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Ambassador Stephen Sestanovich, CFR’s George F. Kennan senior fellow for Russian and Eurasian studies, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss a Biden administration’s approach to U.S.-Russia relations.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay, Heather A. Conley and Stephen Sestanovich December 1, 2020 The President's Inbox
Nigeria

Nigeria and the Nation-State

Former Ambassador John Campbell illustrates the history and importance of Nigeria, a country too often overlooked by the West.

Book by John Campbell December 1, 2020
Transition 2021

Transition 2021: Do Germans Believe America Is Back?

President-Elect Joe Biden has his work cut out for himself in his effort to restore allies’ trust in U.S. foreign policy.

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay November 23, 2020 The Water's Edge
Transition 2021

Transition 2021: Should Lame-Duck Presidents Make Major Foreign Policy Decisions?

Each Friday, I look at what is happening in President-Elect Joe Biden’s transition to the White House. This week: Donald Trump is using all the powers of his presidency and creating a host of problems for the incoming Biden administration.

Blog Post by James M. Lindsay November 20, 2020 The Water's Edge
Nigeria

Nigeria and the Nation-State

In Nigeria and the Nation-State, John Campbell explains what makes Nigeria different from other countries in Africa, how it works, and why understanding it is vital if we are to avoid the mistakes the United States made in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq, as U.S. security and economic relations with Africa intensifies.

Teaching Notes by John Campbell November 16, 2020