Last June, representatives from more than 100 nations met in Warsaw, Poland, to draft the guiding principles of a "Community of Democracies." U.S. organizers of the conference described the resulting "Warsaw Declaration" as an unprecedented effort to form a global consensus on the elements of democracy and to cooperate in their promotion and defense. Is it? Or is it a well-meaning but largely empty exercise in legacy-hunting by the outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright? Herewith the first installment of a new Foreign Policy feature that decodes and deconstructs noteworthy public documents.
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Foreign & Public Diplomacy
A new biography of George Kennan, the father of containment, raises questions about whether the old Cold War—and the emerging one with China—could have been avoided.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks on the DISCLOSE Act.
The United States is the only Western government that routinely rewards mega-donors with top diplomatic posts.
Chinese President Xi jinping toasts the guests during a banquet marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China on September 30, 2019 in Beijing, China.
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The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the East Coast as seen from Surfside Beach, South Carolina, on Feb. 4. Randall Hill/Reuters
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled a much-anticipated visit to China after the discovery of a Chinese surveillance balloon flying over U.S. territory. The very public spat over ...Show morealleged spying is just the most recent example of strains in the world’s most important relationship.
Beyond the kerfuffle over the balloon, what are the broader impacts on Washington’s China policy? How much of a setback does the incident represent? What are the global ramifications to watch out for?
Join FP’s Ravi Agrawal for a discussion with Emily S. Weinstein, a research fellow at Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, and James Palmer, a deputy editor at Foreign Policy and the author of FP’s weekly China Brief newsletter. FP subscribers can send in their questions in advance.
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - DECEMBER 29: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir react after sworn in at the Israeli parliament during a new government sworn in discussion at the Israeli parliament on December 29, 2022 in Jerusalem, Israel. Conservative Benjamin Netanyahu and a bloc of nationalist and religious parties won a clear election victory last month and will be sworn in as government to the Knesset today. This completes Netenyahu's political comeback with a record sixth term in office. (Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)
The new Israeli government is said to be the most far-right, religiously extreme, and ultranationalist coalition in the country’s history, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-ser...Show moreving prime minister.
Is Israel’s democracy really at risk? What would the government’s planned judicial overhaul mean for Israel’s standing, global cooperation, and economic investments? How does the new government complicate matters for U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security strategy?
Join FP’s Dan Ephron in conversation with Amir Tibon, a senior editor and writer at Israel’s Haaretz newspaper. They’ll discuss Israel’s new far-right government, its plans to overhaul and weaken the judiciary, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ongoing corruption trial, and U.S. policy on Israel under President Joe Biden.
A Russian flag at the Embassy of Russia is seen through a bus stop post in Washington, DC on April 15, 2021. - The US announced sanctions against Russia on April 15, 2021, and the expulsion of 10 diplomats in retaliation for what Washington says is the Kremlin's US election interference, a massive cyber attack and other hostile activity. President Joe Biden ordered a widening of restrictions on US banks trading in Russian government debt, expelled 10 diplomats who include alleged spies, and sanctioned 32 individuals alleged to have tried to meddle in the 2020 presidential election, the White House said. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Over the last year, the United States has launched dynamic and escalating sanctions to hurt Russian President Vladimir Putin and his allies. The moves haven’t prevented Putin from waging...Show more war in Ukraine, but they have severely hurt the Russian economy. Even so, according to a forecast from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Russia’s economy is set to expand by 0.3 percent in 2023, even as a country like the United Kingdom sees its GDP shrink.Does this mean sanctions haven’t worked?
FP’s Ravi Agrawal spoke with two experts on sanctions: Agathe Demarais, global forecasting director at the Economist Intelligence Unit and author of Backfire: How Sanctions Reshape the World Against U.S. Interests; and Nicholas Mulder, an assistant professor of history at Cornell University and author of The Economic Weapon: The Rise of Sanctions as a Tool of Modern War. FP subscribers can watch or read a condensed version of the interview.
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