Foreign Policy Blogs

Development

Africa’s Success Story: Child Mortality Declines

Africa’s Success Story: Child Mortality Declines

Last week’s print edition of the Economist reports “the best story in development,” which describes huge declines in child mortality across Africa.  Too often, good stories about Africa are buried in the back pages of newspapers and magazines.  In this case, the headline is sensationalist but true.  The trends of child mortality in a majority of African […]

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A Perspective on Syria: Seven Pictures About A Week in Homs

A Perspective on Syria: Seven Pictures About A Week in Homs

Bashar-al Assad’s all too deadly caricature as an ass.  The Syrian Army lying in wait. Night-vision shots of night-time attacks. A bombed out car. An anti-Qaeda revolutionary insurgent who insists that al Qaeda’s presence in Syria, the popular narrative nowadays, is more tall-tale than truth; that the attacks roiling the country have been mainly perpetrated […]

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What If the Rest of the World Voted for the U.S. President?

What If the Rest of the World Voted for the U.S. President?

In my past two blog posts, I discussed new polling on Americans’ foreign policy views and the U.S. domestic reaction to the Chen Guangcheng case. This week, I highlight Gallup findings on how the rest of the world evaluates U.S. leadership. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!  In the race to November, professional political […]

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The GBCHealth Conference: Public-Private Partnerships for Stronger Global Health?

The GBCHealth Conference: Public-Private Partnerships for Stronger Global Health?

 At the GBCHealth Conference in New York last week, business, civil society, government, and other key stakeholders gathered to discuss the role of business in global health. Topics discussed included HIV/AIDS thirty years into the epidemic, health programs in the workplace, and women’s health. The GBCHealth Conference is a major forum for global health experts, […]

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Testing democracy’s resolve: a look at Greece and Mexico

Testing democracy’s resolve: a look at Greece and Mexico

No one ever said democracy is easy (well, if anyone did, they shouldn’t have). It offers the promise of freedom and the ability of people to choose who governs them. But constant vigilance is required to ensure democracy holds on, and prevents government from transforming into something more sinister. Democracy exists today in many parts […]

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F.D.A. Panel Recommends HIV Prevention Drug

F.D.A. Panel Recommends HIV Prevention Drug

An advisory panel for the U.S. Federal Drug Administration (F.D.A.) voted 19-3 to recommend the use of Truvada, a combination antiretroviral drug, for the prevention of HIV among people at high risk of infection. Although this is not a full F.D.A. approval, it paves the way for a decision in mid-June. The endorsement follows a […]

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Global Fund Announces $1.6 Billion in Additional Funding

Global Fund Announces $1.6 Billion in Additional Funding

In a positive turn, the Global Fund announced on Wednesday that it has more funding to give out than it originally anticipated.  To the tune of $1.6 billion.  Where, you might ask, did that come from?  In their “news flash” released yesterday, they write: There were many factors that piled up on the plus side of the […]

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Two Views on the Chen Guangcheng Controversy

Two Views on the Chen Guangcheng Controversy

This week, I discuss the U.S. domestic reaction to the Chen Guangcheng case. In this post, I also have the pleasure of featuring guest analysis by Atlantic fellow Helen Gao, an emerging voice on U.S.-China relations (see Gao’s story archive here). Last week, I wrote about new polling on Americans’ foreign policy views; next week, […]

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Democracy party in Myanmar joins parliament; now what?

Democracy party in Myanmar joins parliament; now what?

In my first article I wrote about the historic election in Myanmar in which the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by former political prisoner Aung San Suu Kyi, gained seats in parliament for the first time ever. Last week NLD’s elected members took their oaths of office to officially begin serving in parliament (though […]

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UN Adopts Resolution on Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health

UN Adopts Resolution on Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health

Last week, I wrote about new findings on the precarious well-being of adolescents worldwide.  The studies in The Lancet and UNICEF’s “report card” were released in advance of last week’s United Nations Committee on Population and Development (CPD) session, which focused on adolescents this year.  On Friday, the CPD adopted a resolution affirming the sexual and […]

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Lessons in Sustainability: The Global Health Council

Lessons in Sustainability: The Global Health Council

On April 20th, the Global Health Council created shockwaves in the global health community by announcing that it will close its doors in “the coming months”.  This was only 1 week after announcing the cancellation of its flagship conference.  As I read the reports, I kept asking myself, is this yet another casualty of recent funding […]

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Election 2012 Update: New Data on Voters’ Foreign Policy Priorities

Election 2012 Update: New Data on Voters’ Foreign Policy Priorities

As election season approaches, American voters’ beliefs about foreign policy issues are increasingly clear. According to a recent Pew “Public Priorities” survey, voters’ concerns about the economy trump all other concerns, with 86 percent of Americans classifying the economy as “a ‘top priority’ for the president and Congress this year” as opposed to 68 percent […]

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The Kids Aren’t All Right

The Kids Aren’t All Right

A series published in The Lancet last Wednesday found that adolescents today face greater risks to their physical and mental health than in the past.  The success of childhood survival programs and a greater focus on children’s health means that more youths are entering adolescence.  Although this is clearly outstanding news, it means that the programmatic […]

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Russia’s opposition looks to bring protesting back to its roots

Russia’s opposition looks to bring protesting back to its roots

  It’s an interesting time to be in Russia. As democracy goes, the country seems to be going backwards and forwards at the same time. The holding of free and fair elections is widely considered one of the hallmarks of a stable democracy. Here Russia seems to be struggling. In March Vladimir Putin won a […]

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Chester A. Arthur, Communism, and Egypt’s Constitutional Court

Chester A. Arthur, Communism, and Egypt’s Constitutional Court

Just as the blogosphere was starting to become familiar with the likely frontrunners in Egypt’s upcoming presidential race, the election commission disqualified three of the most most visible candidates, upholding this decision on Tuesday. The commission deemed candidates ineligible for various reasons: Salafist preacher Hazem Abu Ismail’s mother was an American citizen, Muslim Brotherhood financier Khairat al-Shater […]

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