In Japan’s ancient cultural city of Nara, a rather surreal event unfolded in mid-January. A stage usually reserved for rather mundane diplomatic events, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi invited South Korean President Lee Jae-myung to play drums with her. As the two Asian leaders hammered out a lively cover of “Golden” from K-Pop Demon Hunters, […]
Tag: diplomacy
Meet the Man Doing America’s Diplomacy in the Shadows
On October 13, President Donald Trump stood in front of the Knesset to give a speech following the U.S.-brokered ceasefire and hostage exchange deal in Gaza. In his remarks, he thanked just a handful of Americans who made the agreement possible, figures like Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Before all […]
Netanyahu Faces the World, and the World Walks Out
When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the stage at the United Nations General Assembly on Sep. 26, 2025, symbolism freighted the event. His address was not merely a policy statement: It was a high-stakes performance under the twin shadows of war crimes allegations and a Trump pardon that cleared a path for him to […]
Diplomacy as Performance in Trump’s Saudi Strategy
Unlike most U.S. presidents who traditionally make their first foreign trip to Canada or Mexico, Donald Trump broke precedent in 2017 by choosing Saudi Arabia and returning again in 2019. These visits signaled a dramatic recentering of U.S. foreign policy around Riyadh, reflecting Trump’s fascination with Saudi wealth, spectacle, and geopolitical leverage. Yet, as Saudi […]
Chipping Away at the Bloc: Hungary’s Crossroads with the EU
Following the large-scale casualties of World War II, the human condition was at its trough. Some 75 million lost their lives, and a similar number of people were forced to flee their home countries. Consequently, the European Union (EU) formed, intended to create a coalition that negotiates intercontinental peace in the midst of conflict. However, […]
Panda-Monium: The Love Story of Pandas and Washington
In 1972, two ambassadors left China for the U.S. They did not speak a word of English or Mandarin. In fact, they could hardly walk on two feet. These were not people, but pandas, China’s national animal. Since arriving in America, they have become an enduring symbol of the goodwill and cooperation between China and […]
The Koreas: Stars of a Familiar Global Standoff
70 years after South Korea and North Korea called a ceasefire on their ongoing armed conflict, tensions have run high between the two countries, but not culminating in mass violence. Their diplomatic relations continue to remain frosty, and their differences have diverged further through their respective alliances with the United States and Russia. Given the […]
Reworking Rocky Relations: What Burkina Faso’s New Alliances Mean for the Region
Last month, Burkina Faso rocked global news when it announced the termination of its military agreement with France. The ex-colonial European power had been occupying the jihadist-hit West African state since 2014. It has dispersed around 400 special troops in efforts to expand its presence in the Sahel region. Burkina Faso is still combatting an […]
Confronting China: The Best Deterrence Lies in a Multilateral Alliance
In my last article, I detailed some of the strategic and technological changes that the U.S. needs to make to its military strategy to successfully deter China from military action in East Asia. Though maintaining our military edge is important, China is a rising power while the U.S. is in relative decline. China has both […]
Saudi Prince Signals Frustration With Palestinian Leadership
Saudi Arabia has been a crucial ally to the Palestinian struggle for statehood, supporting with diplomacy and finance essentially since the cause commenced in the early twentieth century. It comes as some surprise then that it might weaken its commitment with such a long standing cause for justice. Saudi Arabia has yet to enter “normalization” […]
A Precarious Peace: Israeli-Jordanian Relations
The 1994 Israeli-Jordan Peace Treaty ushered in an unprecedented era of diplomatic relations, brokering peace between an Arab nation and Israel in ways previously unimaginable. This peace process has enjoyed longevity into the present day; yet this historical peace was not without unease and will certainly crack under pressure if the United States and Israel […]
With Enemies Like These, Who Needs Friends? Vietnam’s Offshore Balancing Act
When the USS Carl Vinson made a port call to Da Nang, Vietnam last year, reactions both within the US and abroad were mixed. US government statements were muted, emphasizing the role of port visits in routine diplomacy but also linking them to ongoing freedom of navigation operations. Chinese state media generally issued condemnations of […]
Ukraine Wants Weapons, and NATO Should Give it to Them
Four years after Russia violated Ukraine’s territorial integrity and seized the Crimean Peninsula, it is clear that Putin got exactly what he wanted—and at little cost. While Russia used direct and decisive military action, the international community responded with underwhelming sanctions and words of admonishment. Years later, Ukraine remains tormented by constant attacks from pro-Russian […]
To Engage or Not to Engage: Diplomacy with North Korea?
Editors’ disclaimer: this debate was crafted during early 2018, before the development of new events between North and South Korea’s possible peace treaty that would formally end the Korean War. The contents discussed in the debate below ought to be evaluated as if such a groundbreaking event has yet to occur. RESOLVED: The United States […]
A New Sino-Soviet Split
Trump’s policy of pursuing closer relations with Russia has been the center of much ridicule, often dismissed without any consideration. Yet, if carried out correctly, it could become the next diplomatic revolution. Today, the United States is stuck in a quandary. Its two biggest rivals, China and Russia, are growing closer and closer together. In […]
The Waning Hermit Kingdom (Part II): The Challenges of Korean Reunification
In January 2014, the North Korean government supposedly announced that it had successfully landed a man on the sun. However, contrary to such macho announcements from government mouthpieces, the sun is beginning to set for the backwater Hermit Kingdom. Continued famine, declining international aid, and increased dissemination of non-governmental information (discussed in Part I) have […]
Three Decades Late: U.S.-Cuba Relations
Fifty-four years after diplomatic fallout, the United States and Cuba are finally ready to let bygones be bygones. In his State of the Union address on January 20, 2015, U.S. President Barack Obama called for Congress to reestablish diplomatic relations and to end the trade embargo with Cuba, “ending a policy that was long past its […]