Great Decisions in Foreign Policy

The Middle East has long been a turbulent region. Now nations are finding themselves drawn into a regional war. The incomplete regions of the Arab spring and the Syrian civil war have caused renewed fighting in Iraq.

Isis, the Islamic state in Iran an Syria shocked the global community in 2014 when it poured over the border into Iraq. Born amid the chaos of the Syrian civil war, and post invasion Iraq, Isis represents an enormous challenge to the US and world powers.

The US gained Kurdish trust by imposing a 12 year no fly zone over the region in the wake of the first gulf war in 1991. The Kurds were also spared much of the bloodshed following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Now the US is turning to its Kurdish allies to help stop the advances of Isis.

The worst refugee crisis since WW2 is underway driven largely by the conflict in Syria. They are fleeing their war torn countries to Europe and the US. But the US and Europe are having its own struggles with immigration and refugees.

Perhaps nowhere in the world is there a stranger relationship than that between North and South Korea. The south a vibrant democracy and to the north a paranoid and ruthless communist regime.

In December 2015, world leaders met to discuss the problem of climate change. Will the US and China be able to make real progress in the reduction of drought, rising temperatures, and the growing frequency of extreme weather events?

President Obama has finally made restorations with Cuba, signaling the end of almost half a century of mutual hostility. Can Obama and Castro undo the damage that has been done and reach agreements of human rights before leaving office? And is Cuba ready to reintegrate with its Latin American neighbors?