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U.S. Foreign Policy

Protesters hold banners and chant anti-government slogans in front of Kenyan police during a demonstration against tax hikes in Nairobi.

Washington Fails to ‘Read the Room’ in Kenya

President Ruto is valued by the White House but much less popular at home.

Analysis

Donald Trump and Joe Biden participate in the final presidential debate at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, on October 22, 2020.

Biden and Trump’s Debate Could Make Foreign-Policy History

International affairs have rarely been featured in presidential debates—but this week’s showdown could be an exception.

Argument

Gen. Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. Fang Fenghui, the chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, shake hands after signing an agreement.

What the United States Can Learn From China

Amid China’s rise, Americans should ask what Beijing is doing right—and what they’re doing wrong.

Argument

Stephen M. Walt

An area of the Passerelle Mimram pedestrian bridge which connects Kehl, Germany to Strasbourg, France is pictured on April 4, 2009 during the NATO summit.

Ukraine Needs a ‘Wet Gap Crossing’ to NATO

It’s time to use the U.S. military’s playbook for building a wartime bridge to Ukraine.

Argument

Ann Marie Dailey

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, wearing a bomber jacket with an F-16 jet embroidered on it, has a serious expression as he listens to an army officer wearing camouflage battle fatigues and a helmet. The officer points at something with one hand as he speaks to Lai. Other people are visible standing nearby, slightly out-of-focus in front of outdoor greenery.

The Taiwan Aid Bill Won’t Fix the Arms Backlog

To help Taipei, Washington needs to get smarter about weapons transfers.

Argument

U.S. soldiers look on as a digger attempts to extricate a U.S. Army vessel that ran aground at a beach in Israel's coastal city of Ashdod on May 25, 2024.

Biden’s Foreign-Policy Problem Is Incompetence

The U.S. military’s collapsed pier in Gaza is symbolic of a much bigger issue.

Argument

Stephen M. Walt

A U.S. solderi holding a gun and wearing a helmet provides cover for other soldiers seen behind him out of focus.

The U.S. Needs a New Purpose in the Middle East

It’s time to ditch both romantic ideals of remaking the region and the policy of retrenchment.

Excerpt

U.S. President Joe Biden is seen from the side as he stands at a podium at the White House as he delivers remarks. Biden is a man in his 80s wearing a black suit and tie. An electric light shaped like a candelabra is visible on the sculpted wall behind him.

Biden Outlines Israeli Proposal For Gaza Cease-Fire Deal

Hamas is “no longer capable” of carrying out another major attack against Israel, the U.S. president said.

Report

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud as they walk past portraits of the founding leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council at the council’s secretariat in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on April 29.

The U.S.-Saudi Agreement Is a Fool’s Errand

For the sake of the international order, Biden must abandon his proposed deal with Riyadh.

Argument

A crowd of students in graduation robes protest as they walk out from the George Washington University commencement ceremony and onto the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Three women standing closest to the camera shout, with the two on either side of the woman in the middle holding up a Palestinian flag behind her.

Campus Protests Reflect Impatience With U.S. Foreign Policy

The Biden administration’s disavowal of students’ concerns will only make things worse.

Argument

Howard W. French

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te at his party's headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan, on January 13.

When Will Washington Get Serious About Taiwan?

Its long-standing attitude toward the island is based on a set of military and political foundations that no longer exist.

Argument

Raymond Kuo, Michael Hunzeker, Mark Christopher

A woman in a futuristic suit lifts her hand above her head as she looks into the distance. Behind her is a robot soldier with a human head and a Western vigilante in cowboy hat and long coat, with a hole where his nose should be.

The True Horseman of the ‘Fallout’ Apocalypse

Amazon’s adaptation of the video game knows what Americans should really be afraid of.

Review

US President Joe Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrive for the family photo during the Jeddah Security and Development Summit (GCC+3) at a hotel in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coastal city of Jeddah on July 16, 2022.

Saudi Arabia Is on the Way to Becoming the Next Egypt

Washington is brokering a diplomatic deal that could deeply distort its relationship with Riyadh.

Argument

U.S. President Joe Biden and China's President Xi Jinping, both wearing dark suits, are seen from behind as they walk through a large wooden doorway. Biden reaches out to pat a hand on Xi's back. Small trees flank the entrance.

No, This Is Not a Cold War—Yet

Why are China hawks exaggerating the threat from Beijing?

Analysis

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about the situation in Kabul, Afghanistan from the East Room of the White House on August 26, 2021 in Washington.

The Original Sin of Biden’s Foreign Policy

All of the administration’s diplomatic weaknesses were already visible in the withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Review

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