The United States and its allies are far better off with the JCPOA than without it—especially since reviving the JCPOA does not prevent the United States and its allies from acting to counter Iran’s regional policies that they find threatening. Read the full article at: https://nationalinterest.org/print/feature/what-us-soviet-strategic-arms-talks-reveal-about-iran-nuclear-deal-187163
Russia’s Competing Policy Interests in Syria and the Middle East
As we near presidential “elections” in Syria, it is worth exploring what interests continue to drive Russia’s ongoing military intervention in that country, which has helped the Assad regime to not just avoid being overthrown (as it seemed on the verge of being in mid-2015), but also to regain control over much of the territory … Continue reading Russia’s Competing Policy Interests in Syria and the Middle East
Taliban Rule in Afghanistan Is Worse for Its Neighbors Than America
President Joe Biden has decided to withdraw American forces from Afghanistan by September 11 of this year, and the troops from America’s NATO allies that are still there will undoubtedly be gone by then too. It is possible that the weak Kabul government we have been supporting will somehow manage to stay in power and … Continue reading Taliban Rule in Afghanistan Is Worse for Its Neighbors Than America
What Would Be the Impact of Democratic Decline in America on International Relations?
Fortunately, the January 6, 2021 storming of Congress by Trump supporters seeking to disrupt the counting of the Electoral College vote certifying Joe Biden’s election as president failed. But the fact that the Capitol could be stormed at all—combined with the initial reticence of certain government officials to halt it and the continued, unrepentant support … Continue reading What Would Be the Impact of Democratic Decline in America on International Relations?
Russian-American Relations: From Trump to Biden
The incoming Biden Administration will inherit the same concerns about Russia that the Trump Administration had with it. These include arms control issues; Russian activity in Ukraine, Georgia, and other former Soviet republics; Russian involvement in conflicts in Syria and Libya; increasing European energy dependence on Russia despite European security concerns about it; Russia’s close … Continue reading Russian-American Relations: From Trump to Biden
What Should the Biden Administration’s Iran Strategy Be?
President-elect Biden has signaled that he wants the U.S. to rejoin the 2015 Iranian nuclear accord which the Trump Administration withdrew from in 2018. But while this goal is laudable, continuing differences between Iran on the one hand and the U.S. and some of its Middle Eastern allies on the other may not only limit … Continue reading What Should the Biden Administration’s Iran Strategy Be?
Foreign Policy Challenges Facing the Biden Administration
The election of Joe Biden as President of the United States allows American foreign policy the opportunity to return to its pre-Trump norm that held from FDR to Obama of supporting America’s allies against their common authoritarian adversaries, working cooperatively with other countries to deal with common problems through multilateral agreements and institutions, regarding the … Continue reading Foreign Policy Challenges Facing the Biden Administration
Three Things They Hate about Us: American Policies that Its Allies Deplore
The U.S. has alliances with many governments throughout the world. The most basic reason for these alliances is to advance the shared goal of defense against common adversaries. Defense alone, of course, is not the only basis of America’s relations with its allies. Trade and investment are an important feature of U.S. relations with many … Continue reading Three Things They Hate about Us: American Policies that Its Allies Deplore
Maintaining Harmony Among Friends: The Other Purpose of America’s Alliances
NATO’s first secretary general, Lord Ismay, is reputed to have quipped that the purpose of the alliance is “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down.” Post-World War II West Germany and post-Cold War unified Germany, of course, have borne no resemblance to either Wilhelmine or Nazi Germany and have not … Continue reading Maintaining Harmony Among Friends: The Other Purpose of America’s Alliances
No Easy Task: Managing Alliance Relations in a Multi-Adversary Environment
One of the main purposes served by America’s alliance relationships is to provide a means whereby the U.S. contributes to the security of its allies in order to protect them from other countries or forces that the U.S. and its allies both regard as threatening. The problem at present, though, is that not only do … Continue reading No Easy Task: Managing Alliance Relations in a Multi-Adversary Environment
