2021

The trial of Chen Shui-bian strengthened democracy, despite fears of division.

Having a single host site would be a simple—and entirely traditional—fix for what ails the Games.

The pandemic has become an excuse for expanding authoritarianism.

As an artist, he made connections with the West. As prime minister, he’s struggling to do the same.

An overlooked summit shows the scale of the Chinese Communist Party’s ambitions.

Relabeling U.S. soldiers as “noncombat” won’t spare them from militia attacks.

Development finance institutions should follow California’s highly effective gender-equitable standards.

It’s not about the size of a spending package but about sharing brainpower and creating networks.

Allowing the Games to happen alongside an ongoing genocide would be a disaster.

“Republic of False Truths” defers any happy ending to the Arab Spring.

The new U.S president has crafted a novel approach to human rights that’s marked both by idealism and humility.

Look at what happened with the Soviet threat in the Cold War.

This week in FP’s international news quiz: a presidential power grab, new COVID-19 restrictions, and diplomatic visits to China.

Key cities including Herat and Kandahar could be the next to fall as Afghanistan’s nightmare continues.

U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration should listen to activists on the ground.

The biology of the delta variant has made mass revaccination an urgent necessity.

The United States has a new lens for its rivalry with China.

Experts said Washington needs an envoy to help shepherd Sudan’s tenuous transition to democracy.

Chinese coercion has strengthened democratic resolve.

Female leaders saved more lives in Brazil and reinvented stimulus policy in Argentina.

Tehran thinks it can have Chinese-style authoritarian prosperity—but Iranian leaders will never abandon revolution or offer citizens rising living standards in exchange for acquiescence.

Increased economic inequality has only added to widespread discontent.

It happened to us in Nigeria.

So far, Biden hasn’t signaled whether there will be any retaliation.

Maduro’s abject failure is consequential for the nation, the region, and the world.

Tokyo-Seoul relations remain mired in bad history and petty insults.

Institutions like the State Department need to scrap credentialism.

The United States can play a key role in supporting online liberty.

If Washington can sanction any company for legal activity it doesn’t like, China and others could do the same to U.S. businesses—making them uninsurable.

Scenarios and war games rarely take full account of civilian losses.

For both countries, national interests continue to trump personality-based politics.

Palestinians abroad are looking beyond the aging leader.

The place where the Arab Spring began is now a test for an administration that pledged to strengthen global democracy.

There are many incentives for cross-border military cooperation—even among adversaries—as climate change worsens.

The ongoing detention of the children of a key U.S. counterterrorism partner is just the latest irritant in U.S.-Saudi relations.

With ethnic warlords reviving their militias, the Afghan war—even without the U.S. military—is more balanced than it seems.

Shukria Barakzai, a prominent women’s rights advocate and former politician, shares her thoughts on the U.S. withdrawal and Afghanistan’s uncertain future.

The United States’ longtime partners in northern Iraq are watching Afghanistan go to pieces after the U.S. pullout with “wishful thinking.”

What life is like for the quarter-million residents of fortress villages in Tibet.

Tehran’s numbers don’t add up. They seem to be exaggerated to pressure Biden for sanctions relief.

From Morocco to Rwanda, governments and their intelligence services have allegedly used spyware to target everyone including opponents, monarchs, and foreign leaders.

Kyiv feels let down by supposed allies in Berlin and Washington.

Stopping the atrocities in Xinjiang requires reaching the Chinese public.

If Westerners are shocked at political developments in Tunisia, it’s because they described it as a straightforward success for too long.

Foreign powers should condemn Kais Saied’s power grab to halt long-term damage to the nascent democracy.

Senators quietly press U.S. President Joe Biden to reassess U.S.-Nigeria relations amid human rights concerns.

Chief advocate for alleged terrorists sanctioned by the United Nations announces his resignation citing red tape, rule-of-law issues.

The French president is making vaccines mandatory for many—sparking fresh protests ahead of next year’s elections.

After years of closely cooperating on everything from Iran to oil, the Arab Gulf is entering a moment of wariness.

The national security law is a direct threat to foreign firms.

From piracy to the Ever Given, colonialism left hard scars.

And here’s why that’s a national security issue.

His support for the pipeline abandoned a bipartisan consensus, got nothing in return, and made the world less secure.

As Blinken heads to New Delhi, he could find some surprising common ground on Afghanistan.

Intelligence assets who worked for the CIA now face deadly reprisals.

A hydroelectric project could force UNESCO to delist the spectacular World Heritage Site.

A new biography paints a portrait of a president who made vast progress on policy—and failed at smoke-and-mirrors PR.

How Soviet artists evaded censors to create their own visions of Tolkien.

Danish Siddiqui’s death should have been a moment of national unity. The prime minister made it the opposite.

In some Afghan towns, women are fleeing ahead of insurgent takeovers.

How Nord Stream 2 made everyone in Washington mad at one another.

This week in FP’s international news quiz: Olympics obstacles, a spyware scandal, and a bold quarantine escape attempt.

How Reykjavik successfully managed the pandemic and brought tourism back.

Despite its worsening pandemic, Tokyo’s vaccine diplomacy has gained traction.

Some economists warn inflation is a ticking time bomb.

At the White House on Monday, the Iraqi leader needs a guarantee that Biden won’t use Iraq’s independence as a pawn in negotiations with Iran.

Decades of sex abuse turned American gymnasts away from their federation. Will other sports follow suit?

The OSCE’s peace effort in Nagorno-Karabakh is outdated and unhelpful. Laying it to rest can pave the way for real reconciliation and reconstruction.

Foreign Policy asked nine global experts for their takes on the administration’s agenda.

The unpopular Brazilian president suggests he could challenge the results of next year’s election.

Thomas Bach has joined a long line of IOC chiefs who have been hated by everyone associated with the Games.

Billionaire rocket launches and ongoing cyberattacks reveal that, without norms governing conflict, there could be chaos.

Turkey is more politically unstable today than at any other point in recent years.

Biden’s sacking of Trump appointees at international financial institutions has left a vacuum.

Yet more turnover at the Pentagon for the administration.

A misguided effort at countering espionage needs a serious rethink.

U.S. companies are resisting public-private partnerships against cyber-hacking attacks facilitated by foreign governments.

Beijing is looking to build a unified legal and security system.

COVID-19 threatens to accelerate longer-term rebellion, violence, and political upheaval.

Bamiyan, home to the Taliban-wrecked Buddhas, might be the start of Afghanistan’s pushback against the insurgents.

Beijing’s development projects are flashy, fast, and relevant. Why aren’t Washington’s?

Robert Kaplan’s selective reading of history bolsters proponents of a centralized state while ignoring the legitimacy of federalists’ demands.

It’s time to speak plainly about the deadly effects of global warming—and their unjust impact across racial lines.

The administration’s core foreign policy is all about confronting China—and far riskier than Washington seems to realize.

John Bass has served in some of the most difficult diplomatic assignments abroad, including Turkey and Afghanistan.

A journalist hacked by Pegasus says he will survive, but Indian democracy may not.

China’s reluctance has stifled diplomatic efforts—but they haven’t been futile.

Beijing has its eyes set on using Afghanistan as a strategic corridor once U.S. troops are out of the way.

The Israeli prime minister seems to be charting a new course aimed at reducing tensions with the Biden administration in advance of a White House visit.

Unlike Trump, Israel’s former leader never built a personality cult—and doesn’t have enough diehard fans to keep his election fraud myth alive.

President Cyril Ramaphosa believes the violence is politically motivated, but it looks more like an uprising of the poor and unemployed.

Israeli leaders press for legal measures after the ice cream company announced it would halt sales in Jewish settlements.

The old trade order has gone out the window at breathtaking speed. What comes next is very slippery.

What happens to the country after the forever war ends?

Political chaos is worsening the third wave of the coronavirus.

Six years after Washington gave $5 million to set up a war crimes court, nothing has happened.

They say the effort seeks to reverse decades of encroachment by the executive branch.

The pandemic ends by getting shots in arms.

Washington should refuse a security waiver and block $300 million in military assistance to Egypt until Cairo cleans up its act on human rights.

Nayib Bukele has turned Bitcoin and Twitter into political tools.

The collapse of Lebanon is intensifying a conflict in the Mediterranean that has mostly taken place in the shadows.

Meth is even more profitable than heroin—and is turbocharging the insurgency.

Progress doesn’t happen unless the ambitious get it off the ground.

A web of treaties, agreements, and nonprofits is dedicated to curbing nukes. Some hope to get rid of them altogether.

The backbone of Israel’s support in the United States is a group of evangelical Christians, but their power is threatened by the changing of the political guard.

The Hariri tribunal hasn’t led to a single arrest. Biden should let it expire and help Lebanon in better ways.

The U.S. president’s hard-line rhetoric belies the island’s humanitarian crisis and cedes an opportunity to shape what comes next.

European soccer administrators have stifled the beautiful game. It’s time to rein them in.

One of the country’s most powerful women has remained rooted in a traditional community. But religious parties still won’t let her run for office.

New infrastructure technology will tip the scales in favor of authoritarianism or democracy worldwide.

Since the war began, America has had one lens for Central Asia. What happens now?

Chinese history shows what happens when an old system loses its force.

This week in FP’s international news quiz: Olympics preparations, diplomatic visits, and the rise of TV presidents.

Beijing would have preferred U.S. troops to stay.

Inexperienced companies rushing into badly regulated new sectors is a recipe for disaster.

After three straight electoral victories by Viktor Orban, an unlikely coalition senses a chance to halt the country’s slide into authoritarianism.

The resignation of Saad Hariri is forcing the country to reckon with just how bad things have gotten.

The Emirati government should extradite the Gupta brothers. Sheltering them risks damaging its diplomatic and financial reputation.

The United States will donate 25 million doses as African countries reel from a third wave of COVID-19.

Unprecedented nationwide protests are the product of economic strain—and newfound digital connectivity.

Calls are growing louder to fix the “golden visa” program that has flooded the United States with dubious foreign money.

Belgrade is vital to Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. But as China takes over old industrial sites, Serbian citizens are suffering the environmental consequences.

The answer is yes—but more depressing than you think.

A new survey shows Beijing’s foreign aid footprint has grown, but it falls short in other areas.

Pedro Castillo, who takes office this month, will likely face a renewed governability crisis as president.

Hopes for a fast deal—or any deal at all—are fading.

It’s still unclear if the Senate bill can garner enough Republican votes to pass.

Americans need a national green tech strategy.

Social equality needs to be more than a coat of paint.

Biden and Merkel will make all the right noises at their meeting this week. But deep transatlantic tensions persist.

Hovering over Germany’s China policy is a cloud of gloom and fear.

Ten years after independence, Africa’s youngest country remains mired in conflict and poverty.

The European allies that fought alongside the United States will face the fallout as thousands of refugees flee the Taliban, giving fodder to far-right parties.

There is no sweet spot to keep both Beijing and Washington happy, but that hasn’t kept Singapore from trying.

The terrible truth is decades after the Bosnian War, the world has become too accustomed to war crimes.

The nation’s poverty and chaos has been shaped by Washington for decades.

The 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas has unified disparate Palestinian enclaves.

Lashing out at vulnerable minorities is the hallmark of a weak bully who fears losing power.

Digital tools have multiplied collective power around the world. Leaders must invest in sustaining it.

The island hasn’t seen anything like this for decades.

A new party is betting that unabashed leftist politics is the only way to defeat the president.

After decades of supporting the Afghan government, New Delhi is planning for its potential fall.

The challenge for deep decarbonization of the grid

Droughts, heat waves, and floods are the new normal—unless policymakers get serious.

A vibrant society is under threat from the authoritarian government.

The gaffe-prone Japanese politician was the perfect vehicle for plausible deniability when signaling support for Taipei.

What Haiti needs is state building, not another round of misbegotten aid.

In an effort to outflank the populist right, the ruling Social Democrats have adopted one of the harshest refugee policies in the world.

A charming animation turns turtle ships into giant monsters.

Diminishing tourism has created new incentives for the illegal wildlife trade.

Our reliance on data and devices has made us extremely vulnerable. The first step is knowing where everything is.

Ben Rhodes’s new book about global politics reveals the limits of the Obama administration’s worldview.

But the rival powers strike a compromise that prevents catastrophic shut-off of lifesaving aid to Syrians.

The United States needs to act fast to strengthen ties and reassure partners.

The Biden administration ships millions of vaccines to the region as its public health crisis worsens.

Afghanistan’s foreign minister on what may await his country after the U.S. withdrawal.

Progressive groups warning Biden against a tougher stand on China are reading the risks wrong.

Moscow’s geopolitical moves are driving murderous private actors.

The president said this withdrawal will be nothing like what happened in 1975, but there are some striking parallels.

This week in FP’s international news quiz: presidential condemnations, coronations, and assassinations.

We asked leading economists and thinkers to define the post-pandemic age.

The Chinese Communist Party’s anniversary celebration is taking place amid a nuclear buildup.

By reducing U.S.-Mexican relations to migration, Biden is letting himself be played—and ignoring a crisis south of the border.

How to make sense of Washington’s longest war ever.

Since Washington launched the Wuhan lab leak investigation, Beijing has been pushing bizarre narratives.

The country seems on the verge of falling apart. Here’s why it won’t.

What the world has misunderstood about the German chancellor.

International observers have stood by as Haiti’s political crisis escalated.

Pedro Sánchez’s pardons represent a balanced response to a divisive issue—but both sides have denounced him.

By imprisoning a former president, the country has set an example for constitutional democracies across the world.

Afghanistan will get an injection of contractor support and planes for its beleaguered Air Force.

On Telegram, pet care, gardening, and corruption scandals have replaced religious fervor.