Internation Relations Theory

A meeting of top U.S. officials on Sudan last week was supposed to yield big recommendations on how to craft the right balance of incentives and pressures toward the Khartoum regime, which stands accused of fomenting genocide in Darfur and stirring instability in its autonomous southern region.

Barack Obama touched on some foreign policy issues in his State of the Union speech, eventually, toward the end, for a couple of minutes. Here are the important excerpts:

With Obama envoy Stephen Bosworth, above, finally visiting Pyongyang and a lot of nam

Adopted in 2005 at the United Nations’ World Summit, the doctrine of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) represents a remarkable evolutionary step for the international state system. R2P, which was pushed by then-UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in the wake of the Rwandan genocide, seeks to ensure that another Rwanda (or Cambodia or Holocaust) will never happen again.

By Josh Rogin, CQ Staff

Despite progress by U.S. and Russian leaders this week toward a new nuclear arms reduction treaty, it appears less and less likely that the Senate will ratify any agreement signed by the two governments before the end of the year.

As Sunni and Shiite Arabs dance in the streets to celebrate the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraqi cities, Iraq’s other major ethnic group is pleading for increased U.S. commitment and involvement in Iraqi affairs.

The peaceful, side-by-side rise of China and India has been taken for granted in many quarters. But tensions between the two giants are mounting, and Washington would do well to take note.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates plans to brief congressional leaders and announce Monday a “fundamental shift” in defense spending and priorities, his spokesman said Friday.

The White House has sent a clear message to lawmakers who want a say in President Obama’s new Afghanistan strategy: Thanks for the suggestions, and we’ll call you if we need you.