China's DF-41 nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles are seen during a military parade at Tiananmen Square.

China Is Radically Expanding Its Nuclear Missile Silos

With more weapons likely, it’s time to go back to arms talks.

An aerial display of J-10 fighter jets of China’s People’s Liberation.

The World Doesn’t Want Beijing’s Fighter Jets

Snazzy weapons mean a lot less if you don’t have friends.

A display commemorates the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Chinese Communist Party in Shanghai on June 30.

Chinese Communist Party Marks Centennial

One hundred years since its founding, the party commands more control inside China than ever before.

The Biden Agenda

A sortable guide to the administration’s policies—and the people putting them into practice.

Shadow Government

A front-row seat to the Republicans’ debate over foreign policy, including their critique of the Biden administration.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, U.S. President Joe Biden, and French President Emmanuel Macron during the G-7 Summit in Cornwall, England, on June 11.

Biden Is Falling Into the Same Trap With Europe as Obama

Washington’s myopic focus on Berlin and Brussels is a grave mistake.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II visits Barbados in the 1970s.

Barbados Is Ready to Say Goodbye to the Queen

This year, it plans to become a republic—here’s why, and what that means for others in the region.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet removes her face mask before a press conference at the United Nations in Geneva on Dec. 9, 2020.

Biden Needs an International Organizations Strategy

A U.S. State Department czar should lead a campaign to stop China and Russia from gaining control of multilateral agencies.

Community residents look at a poster of "Black Wall Street" in Tulsa.

How the Tulsa Race Massacre Vanished

And why it’s not enough to recover its history.

Political leader Lee Jun-seok waves the People Power Party’s flag.

Why So Many Young Men in South Korea Hate Feminism

Loss of privilege has driven an ugly turn to the hard right.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a welcoming ceremony.

Can Biden Solve the North Korea Puzzle?

Biden opened the door for talks with Kim Jong Un, but Pyongyang is playing hard to get.

Empty security gates to the U.S. check-in area at Pearson International Airport in Toronto

As Europe Reopens for Travel, North America Is Staying Shut

Scientists say it’s safe for vaccinated people to travel, but the politics of fear is keeping borders closed.

French President Emmanuel Macron plants a tree.

Lebanon’s Failure Is Partly Macron’s Fault

France developed a plan to save its former colony. It went wrong from the start.

Syrian refugees recharge their mobile phones from an extension attached to the van of a nearby TV crew as they rest beside the highway on their way to the border between Turkey and Greece in Edirne, Turkey, on Sept. 17, 2015.

Cryptocurrency Isn’t All Bad

The blockchain holds the key to sustainable development for the world’s poorest people.

An Irish mural addresses revenge porn.

The World Hasn’t Figured Out How to Stop ‘Revenge Porn’

Various countries have outlawed the practice—but the laws don’t seem to be working.

Then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a business leaders breakfast at the St. Regis Beijing hotel in Beijing on Dec. 5, 2013.

Biden Opens Sneaky New Front in Trade War Against China

To understand the administration’s new stance, look to the South Korean semiconductor firm Magnachip.

Anthony Fauci briefs the press on COVID-19.

The Pandemic Proves Only Technocrats Can Save Us

Populist politicians love to belittle experts, but when it’s a matter of life and death, the precautionary principle and expertise are what counts.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga attends a news conference at his official residence in Tokyo.

Suga’s Olympic-Sized Gamble

Backed by the G-7, Japan’s prime minister will likely go ahead with the games. How they play out will determine his survival.

Joe Biden hugs an attendee.

The Geopolitics of Empathy

How our understanding—or misunderstanding—of other countries’ perspectives shapes global order.

In the Magazine

In the Magazine

biden-foreign-policy-report-card-100-days-nicolas-ortega-illustration

The Biden 100-Day Progress Report

We asked 25 experts to grade the administration’s start on foreign policy

An illustration combining images of Janet Yellen and Mario Draghi.

Janet Yellen and Mario Draghi Have One Last Job

The U.S. treasury secretary and the Italian prime minister have spent decades shaping this economy. But can they control what comes next?

How Biden Will—and Won’t—Battle the Pentagon

What the new president really thinks about the military—and what the military really thinks about him.

The Most Vital 100 Days Since FDR

Just like Roosevelt, Biden must show that government still works.

A FOCUS ON RACE AND FOREIGN POLICY

race-international-relations-colonialism-foreign-policy-illustration

Why Is Mainstream International Relations Blind to Racism?

Ignoring the central role of race and colonialism in world affairs precludes an accurate understanding of the modern state system.

Black Lives Matter Protest London

When Did Racism Become Solely a Domestic Issue?

International relations theorists once explored racism. What has the field lost by giving that up?

People protest against anti-Asian violence.

We Don’t Have the Words to Fight Anti-Asian Racism

Tangled questions of Asian identity need answers that aren’t defined by U.S. terminology alone.

Students march in a racial justice protest

Did America’s Racial Awakening Reach IR Professors?

Nearly half of international relations scholars spent more time in class on race and racial justice—but with key demographic differences.

visual stories

Sea snot in Turkey

The Month in World Photos

A devastating condominium collapse in the United States, a deadly airstrike in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, and a respite for wild elephants in China.

A Palestinian activist confronts a soldier in Jerusalem.

A Deeply Divided Israel Greets New Coalition Government

The “change government” of Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid promises little more than an end to Netanyahu.