U.S. Foreign Policy

Why Biden thinks the way he does about foreign policy, what the future holds for an America on the brink, and what the Cold War policy of containment means for our current moment—all from our latest magazine issue.

Archival passages from writers such as Hillary Clinton, Kofi Annan, Zbigniew Brzezinski, and more show where we’ve been—and where we’re heading.

How FP set out to change the world.

How to spot a bad concept when you see it.

Continuity, not revolution, should guide the United States.

The next U.S. president isn’t an intellectual—and that’s a good thing.

In FP’s 50 years, its writers’ forecasts have ranged from prescient to spectacularly wrong. That’s because the field of international relations rewards catastrophic thinking.

Neither pure isolationism nor unchecked internationalism has served the United States well. It’s time for a third option.

Why Biden’s job will be so much harder than his predecessors’.

Looking back on 50 years of U.S. foreign policy and the lessons they hold for Washington today.

A look back at four years of big ambitions, a handful of successes—and many more failures.

Rebuilding Republican credibility in national security will require an honest look at Trumpism—and a return to our party’s foreign-policy principles.

What it takes to make a truly great secretary of state—and why the United States may not need one now.

The new administration will use foreign policy tools to promote climate goals, boost clean energy, and punish carbon-intensive production.

Continued Republican control of the Senate threatens to forestall both progressive cabinet picks and progressive policies.

Internecine tensions within the Democratic Party have been tamped down to defeat Trump—but that truce could be over Wednesday.

If Washington chooses to reengage with the world, it will need to first champion diversity and gender equality.

A survey of academics underscores sharp divergences on key issues but expects bipartisan alignment next year on China, cybersecurity, and counterterrorism.

How not to evaluate American grand strategy.

Jared Kushner cited Lewis Carroll’s classic as the key to understanding Trump. He’s right—just not in the way he thinks.