Features
The Alliances That Matter Now
Multilateralism is at a dead end, but powerful blocs are getting things done.
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An illustration shows the G-7 logo as a steering wheel of a ship with the flagged boats of India, South Korea, and Australia on the horizon. The G-7 Becomes a Power Player
Russia’s war and China’s rise are turning a talking shop into a fledgling alliance of democracies.
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An illustration shows two large hands with pinky fingers — and their own tiny hand tips — extended in a small handshake for a story about minilateral alliances. The Nimble New Minilaterals
Small coalitions are a smart alternative to cumbersome multilateralism and formal alliances.
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An illustration shows an expanding shield with the NATO alliance logo on it. NATO’s Remarkable Revival
But the bloc’s future could look very different from its past.
Arguments
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A line of Liberian children, dressed in matching uniforms of yellow shirts and navy blue shorts, hold Chinese flags as they lean over to see farther up the road. Aid Is the Next Battleground Between China and the West
The global south’s debts have reached alarming levels, and Beijing is tightening the screws.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a signing ceremony in Moscow. Xi Jinping Is Trying to Adapt to Failure
China is in a far worse position than when he took office.
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A crowd of protesters gather behind a burning effigy of a man. A blue sky and some short buildings are visible behind them. Some of the protesters are waving their fists, and one shouts into a megaphone. Manipur Crisis Tests Modi’s India
Spiraling violence in the northeastern state takes cues from the ruling party’s majoritarianism.
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A sailor walks on the deck of an Indian Navy submarine at a naval base in Mumbai. India Is Becoming a Power in Southeast Asia
New Delhi and its partners are inching together to balance Beijing.
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People walk past the art installation "The World Turned Upside Down" by Mark Wallinger on September 07, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. Europe’s Losers Have Become Its Winners Again
The balance of power in Europe is changing—just as it always has.
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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen leans in to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as they walk away from a press conference. They stand elbow-to-elbow and smile as they walk, von der Leyen wearing a blue suit jacket and Zelensky in a military-green polo shirt. The EU Isn’t Ready for Ukraine to Join
If you think Kyiv’s path to NATO is hard, wait until you see its struggle to enter the EU.
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Smoke plumes billow from a fire at a lumber warehouse in Khartoum. How Sudan Became a Saudi-UAE Proxy War
Gulf heavyweights view the conflict as an opportunity to cement their hegemonic status in the Middle East.
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A man wearing a matching patterned shirt and pants leans close to a display case of food next to a bus station on a cloudy day. Next to the display case is a campaign poster showing images of the president and vice president, along with green and red text reading "The team to reconnect Nigeria." Will Bola Tinubu’s Reforms Help or Harm Nigeria?
Removing fuel subsidies and floating the naira’s exchange rate may please international lenders, but the policies could trap millions in poverty.
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A woman confronts police during a protest against the government's plan to overhaul the judiciary at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, Israel, on July 11. Women Will Be the Biggest Victims of Israel’s Judicial Reforms
The country’s Supreme Court has played a pivotal role in securing gender equality. Neutering it will deal a blow to women’s rights.
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A U.S. flag waves over the U.S. Treasury Department in Washington, D.C., on May 8. America’s Love of Sanctions Will Be Its Downfall
Measures intended to punish autocrats are eroding the very Western order they were meant to preserve.
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Police officers patrol a neighborhood amid gang-related violence in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti. More Police Won’t Solve Haiti’s Crisis
Gang leaders in the country aren’t independent warlords. They are part of how the state functions.
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U.S. presidential candidate Joe Biden pauses while speaking at the SEIU Unions for All Summit in Los Angeles. Cluster Bombs and the Contradictions of Liberalism
Do liberals really believe what they say about their foreign-policy ideals?
Deterrence in Taiwan Is Failing
The United States has committed to keeping the peace but isn’t doing enough to stop the war.
Review
Let There Be Microchips
The semiconductor and its near-divine creation story.
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People line up outside a store in Siberia in early 1991 before the collapse of the Soviet Union. An Epic History of the Soviet Everyday
Karl Schlögel re-creates a lost world of long lines and shared spaces.
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U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer speaks at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on U.S. trade in Washington on June 17, 2020. Trump Trade War Mastermind Is Back With a Dangerous New Plan
Robert Lighthizer wants total decoupling from China—without thinking through the consequences.
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Two Black Lives Matter protesters wearing T-shirts and surgical masks around their chins gather in London's Hyde Park in 2020. One holds a sign that says "Britain is racist!" Britain’s Racism Isn’t America’s
The United Kingdom needs to examine its own bigotries.
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An illustration shows a reimagined Nigerian flag with planes and arrows and the word "Japa" for the country's emigrant population who have fled the country. The Word That Captures Nigerians’ Feelings About the Future
“Japa” contains both the hope and the pain of wanting to leave one’s country behind for better opportunities.
Recent Issues
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A Foreign Policy magazine cover illustration shows a glowing AI projection figure emerging from a pile of technological machinery and semiconductors. The on-image text reads: The Scramble for AI. Paul Scharre, Stanley McChrystal, Alondra Nelson, and more thinkers on the dawn of a new age in geopolitics. Erik Carter illustration for Foreign Policy -
Spring 2023 Foreign Policy magazine cover -
Lessons-Next-War-Foreign-Policy-magazine-cover-Winter-2023
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