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President Donald Trump talks with a child dressed as a skeleton with a "Make America Great Again" hat while hosting Halloween at the White House on the South Lawn October 30, 2017 in Washington.
President Donald Trump talks with a child dressed as a skeleton with a "Make America Great Again" hat while hosting Halloween at the White House on the South Lawn October 30, 2017 in Washington.

How Fear Killed Liberalism

Political anxieties have piled up and put an end to an era of public optimism.

Hezbollah supporters chant slogans during a protest against a planned visit of a U.S. envoy to south Lebanon.
Hezbollah supporters chant slogans during a protest against a planned visit of a U.S. envoy to south Lebanon.

Washington Has One Chance to Help Disarm Hezbollah

As Lebanon moves to confront the country’s most dangerous militia, U.S. support will be vital.

A soldier stands at the border crossing with Eritrea in Humera, Ethiopia.
A soldier stands at the border crossing with Eritrea in Humera, Ethiopia.

Ethiopia Could Still Avert the Next War With Eritrea

Keeping the Pretoria Agreement in a comatose state should not be seen as an end in itself.

Europe

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shakes hands with South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa during the G20 Foreign Minister Meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa on Feb. 20.
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shakes hands with South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa during the G20 Foreign Minister Meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa on Feb. 20.

Why the Global South Won’t Quit Russia

Americas

Ecuadorian Vice President María José Pinto, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and Colombian President Gustavo Petro speak during the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization summit in Bogota on Aug. 22.
Ecuadorian Vice President María José Pinto, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and Colombian President Gustavo Petro speak during the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization summit in Bogota on Aug. 22.

Amazon Summit Shows Scant Progress

The cover of Foreign Policy's Summer 2025 issue shows Donald Trump walking into a time portal of historical picture frames.
An illustration depicts historical moments from the past in the curtains of the Oval Office: Julius Caesar, the Cultural Revolution in China, and three American presidents. The room shows an empty chair at the Resolute Desk and a presidential seal on the rug.
An illustration depicts historical moments from the past in the curtains of the Oval Office: Julius Caesar, the Cultural Revolution in China, and three American presidents. The room shows an empty chair at the Resolute Desk and a presidential seal on the rug.

Why Compare the Present to the Past?

Thinking via historical analogy has become the preferred way to confront our anxieties.

An American Caesar

Comparing two leaders, two millennia apart.

Shadow-government-democrats-blue-cutout-3-2
Shadow-government-democrats-blue-cutout-3-2

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Trump and Cook shape hands next to a poster board that reads: "Apple American Manufacturing Program."
Trump and Cook shape hands next to a poster board that reads: "Apple American Manufacturing Program."

Trump’s Economic Policy Is More Radical Than You Think

So why aren’t the president’s latest economic moves generating more alarm?

An illustration shows the back of a person wearing a graduation cap with a globe motif on it. A hand reaches in to move a locator pin on the top of the cap/map.
An illustration shows the back of a person wearing a graduation cap with a globe motif on it. A hand reaches in to move a locator pin on the top of the cap/map.

So You Want to Work in International Affairs

A veteran practitioner’s 12 tips to land that first job.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the West Lake State Guest House in Hangzhou, China, on Sept. 4, 2016.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the West Lake State Guest House in Hangzhou, China, on Sept. 4, 2016.
A pro-Trump supporter wears an Israel hat and an American flag ear covering outside of a security check point in Milwaukee on July 18, 2024.
A pro-Trump supporter wears an Israel hat and an American flag ear covering outside of a security check point in Milwaukee on July 18, 2024.

America’s Relationship With Israel Is a Moral Hazard

It’s time for Washington to shift from patron to partner.

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Visual Stories

A man and child hold hands as they walk along rubble- and grass-covered railroad tracks. Palm trees and power lines frame the scene.
A man and child hold hands as they walk along rubble- and grass-covered railroad tracks. Palm trees and power lines frame the scene.

From Berlin to Baghdad on the Ruins of a WWI Railway

The unfinished line traces a fractured region still beset by competing imperial projects.

A large column looms over a small person standing atop a large field of rubble holding up a phone to take a photo.
A large column looms over a small person standing atop a large field of rubble holding up a phone to take a photo.

Life Returns to Palmyra

After more than a decade of exile, locals are finally coming home.

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