The Big Think

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Rohingya refugees gather behind a barbed wire fence in a temporary settlement set up in the border zone between Myanmar and Bangladesh on April 25, 2018.
Rohingya refugees gather behind a barbed wire fence in a temporary settlement set up in the border zone between Myanmar and Bangladesh on April 25, 2018.

The World Needs a New Refugee Convention

For 30 years, right-wing parties and nativist leaders have whittled away refugees’ rights. In the wake of a global pandemic, seeking asylum will be nearly impossible unless the international community revises and modernizes its approach to people fleeing war.

vaccine-coronavirus-pandemic-covid-19-foreign-policy-illustration
vaccine-coronavirus-pandemic-covid-19-foreign-policy-illustration

The World Is Winning—and Losing—the Vaccine Race

Immunization to COVID-19 is supposed to solve our problems—but it's starting to trigger even bigger ones.

A soldier runs for cover in Libya.
A soldier runs for cover in Libya.

The End of Hope in the Middle East

The region has always had problems—but it’s now almost past the point of recovery.

ulrich-beck-chernobyl-covid-coronavirus-risk-society-1500x1000
ulrich-beck-chernobyl-covid-coronavirus-risk-society-1500x1000

The Sociologist Who Could Save Us From Coronavirus

Ulrich Beck was a prophet of uncertainty—and the most important intellectual for the pandemic and its aftermath.

China-superpower-two-paths-xi-jinping-foreign-policy-illustration_sized
China-superpower-two-paths-xi-jinping-foreign-policy-illustration_sized

China Has Two Paths to Global Domination

And a lot is riding on whether Washington can figure out which strategy Beijing has chosen.

Carter_Doctrine-Trump-Mike-McQuade_illustration-1
Carter_Doctrine-Trump-Mike-McQuade_illustration-1

RIP the Carter Doctrine, 1980-2019

Donald Trump has torn up a foundation of U.S. foreign policy, and is causing irreparable damage to the Middle East—and world order—in the process.

Foreign Policy illustration/Panayiotis Tzamaros/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Foreign Policy illustration/Panayiotis Tzamaros/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Economists on the Run

Paul Krugman and other mainstream trade experts are now admitting that they were wrong about globalization: It hurt American workers far more than they thought it would. Did America’s free market economists help put a protectionist demagogue in the White House?

U.S. President George W. Bush after meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao in Beijing.
U.S. President George W. Bush after meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao in Beijing.

The Untold Story of How George W. Bush Lost China

The U.S.-China relationship started veering wildly off track 15 years ago—but Washington stumbled badly in its response.

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Are America and Europe Aligned on China?

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The war in Ukraine has propelled the United States and Europe closer on a variety of foreign-policy issues. But do Washington and Brussels agree on how to deal with Beijing’s growing clout...Show more

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Inside the U.S.-China Tech War

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Over the last few years, the United States has moved to limit China’s technological rise. U.S.-led sanctions have imposed unprecedented limits on Beijing’s access to advanced computing c...Show more

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 24: U.S. President Joe Biden (R) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participate in a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on September 24, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden is hosting a Quad Leaders Summit later today with Prime Minister Modi, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide. (Photo by Sarahbeth Maney-Pool/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 24: U.S. President Joe Biden (R) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participate in a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on September 24, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden is hosting a Quad Leaders Summit later today with Prime Minister Modi, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide. (Photo by Sarahbeth Maney-Pool/Getty Images)

Is America Making a Bad Bet on India?

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For decades, the U.S. foreign-policy establishment has made the assumption that India could serve as a partner as the United States jostles with China for power in the Indo-Pacific region. B...Show more

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