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The world’s major industrial democracies have gathered to tackle the toughest global economic and security challenges. As they seek consensus, job one will be to avoid a rupture over trade.
Amber Bracken/Pool/Reuters
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
With both summits ahead, European leaders will have two opportunities to convince Trump about the importance of aiding Ukraine and ensuring European security.
Iran
It is difficult to assess potential outcomes, but it is clear this conflict will fundamentally reshape the Middle East’s security landscape.
Who calls the shots in Iran on economic policy, security, and domestic calls for reform? A look at the government’s organization chart indicates how complicated the answer is.
Military
The deployment of federal troops in Los Angeles has sparked concerns among some legal experts about the future of civilian-military relations in the United States. Two CFR experts weigh in on the potential implications.
America’s oldest military service turns 250 on Saturday. If you see an active duty, former, or retired member of the Army, wish their service a happy birthday.
The future of defense strategy requires restructuring forces for modern threats, focusing deployments on critical regions, accelerating tech integration, reforming procurement and budgets, revitalizing the industrial base, and investing in top talent.
United States
The White House’s latest travel ban imposes restrictions on citizens from nineteen countries. Many of those affected are contending with crises at home.
International students contribute essential research and tens of billions of dollars to the U.S. economy. The Trump administration has moved to curtail foreign enrollments to combat what it says is disruptive political activism and immigration abuses.
Refugees and Displaced Persons
The United States has long been considered a safe haven for refugees from around the world, but this could change following the Trump administration’s decision to suspend the country’s decades-old refugee resettlement program.
U.S. Dollar
There is too much talk about the dollar’s role as a reserve currency and too little talk about expectations of exceptional returns. Reserve accumulation hasn’t driven the financing of the U.S. current account deficit in recent years.
Tariffs were supposed to push the dollar up. What happened?
The War in Ukraine
On the eighty-first anniversary of D-Day, CFR President Michael Froman and senior fellows discuss the Trump administration’s diminished appetite for engagement in European security affairs—even as the Russia-Ukraine war drags on.
Russia holds a sizable advantage over Ukraine on troop numbers and weaponry yet the two sides have fought to a standstill. Russia this spring has ramped up attacks on civilian targets while resisting U.S. ceasefire calls.
Ukraine said it had used 117 drones to target airfields deep in Russian territory. The daring attack demonstrated low-cost precision strikes accessible to almost any state or militant group.
Strategic Initiatives
RealEcon
Assessing the role of the U.S. in the international economy and what's at stake for the American people.
Distinguished Fellow, Director of the Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies, and Director of the CFR RealEcon Initiative
Securing Ukraine’s Future
Timely, informed analysis and practical policy recommendations for both the public and policymakers.
General John W. Vessey Senior Fellow for Conflict Prevention and Director of the Center for Preventive Action
Events
CFR experts discuss Israel's strikes against Iran's nuclear program, Iran's possible response, and further implications for the region, including the potential for war.
The video and transcript of this media briefing will be posted on the CFR website.
Please join the Zoom event at least five minutes before the start of the presentation by using the below details:
Media Briefing: Israel, Iran, and What Comes Next for the Region
Zoom Webinar ID: 834 3522 4861
Passcode: 783613
Please join us for a livestreamed discussion on the future of the World Bank and lessons learned from Mr. Banga's distinguished career to open the 2025 National Conference
Speaker
Ajay Banga
President, World Bank Group
Presider
Michael Froman
President, Council on Foreign Relations
Introductory Remarks
David M. Rubenstein
Cofounder and Co-Chairman, The Carlyle Group; Chairman, Board of Directors, Council on Foreign Relations
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Note that the National Conference specifically convenes CFR members based outside of New York and Washington, DC.
Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Michael Faulkender addresses the current state of the U.S. economy and outlines the administration’s upcoming economic prioritiesThis meeting is presented by RealEcon: Reimagining American Economic Leadership, a CFR initiative of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies.If you wish to attend virtually, log-in information and instructions on how to participate during the question and answer portion will be provided the evening before the event to those who register. Please note the audio, video, and transcript of this hybrid meeting will be posted on the CFR website.
Panelists discuss what to expect from the upcoming NATO Summit at The Hague amid an uncertain geopolitical and political environment.For those attending virtually, log-in information and instructions on how to participate during the question and answer portion will be provided the evening before the event to those who register. Please note the audio, video, and transcript of this hybrid meeting will be posted on the CFR website.
Explainers
How Vaccines Changed the World
Vaccination campaigns have nearly eradicated some of the most deadly and transmissible diseases. In a rising tide of vaccine hesitancy, however, outbreaks are cropping up again.
Expert Spotlight
Kat Duffy
Senior Fellow for Digital and Cyberspace Policy
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Corporate Governance Digital Policy
Featured Publications
Few Americans have done more than Jerome A. Cohen to advance the rule of law in East Asia. The founder of the study of Chinese law in the United States and a tireless advocate for human rights, Cohen has been a scholar, teacher, lawyer, and activist for more than sixty years. Moving among the United States, China, and Taiwan, he has encouraged legal reforms, promoted economic cooperation, mentored law students—including a future president of Taiwan—and brokered international crises.
In this compelling, conversational memoir, Cohen recounts a dramatic life of striving for a better world from Washington, DC, to Beijing, offering vital first-hand insights from the study and practice of Sino-American relations. In the early 1960s, when Americans were not permitted to enter China, he met with émigrés in Hong Kong and interviewed them on Chinese criminal procedure. After economic reform under Deng Xiaoping, Cohen’s knowledge of Chinese law took on a new importance as foreign companies began to pursue business opportunities. Helping China develop and reconstruct its legal system, he made an influential case for the roles of Western law and lawyers. Cohen helped break political barriers in both China and Taiwan, and he was instrumental in securing the release of political prisoners in several countries. Sharing these experiences and many others, this book tells the full story of an unparalleled career bridging East and West.
Public Health Threats and Pandemics
A detailed exploration of the most sweeping government border closures in human history during the COVID-19 pandemic and the implications for the future of global mobility.
Son of the Midwest, movie star, and mesmerizing politician—America’s fortieth president comes to three-dimensional life in this gripping and profoundly revisionist biography.