International politics is puncturing the veneer of global sportsmanship.

Prioritizers understand that U.S. resources are not immune from scarcity.

Despite recent reforms, Venezuela’s oil sector faces a long read to recovery after two decades of mismanagement, corruption, lack of investment, and a dearth of expertise.

Virtually all national financial markets are tied to the U.S. Treasury market. This makes it a potentially powerful target for European pressure.

India’s government appears willing to weaponize sports for political purposes, exactly the behavior the International Olympic Committee has warned against, writes Bobby Ghosh.

Costa Rican President-elect Laura Fernández has pledged to use the full scope of her executive power as president, saying that she will bring about “a profound and irreversible” change in the country.

European leaders have called for direct talks with Russia as the EU seeks to slowly but surely reduce its dependence on the United States.

Tensions are high after a U.S. aircraft carrier shot down an Iranian drone in the Arabian Sea, just days ahead of planned nuclear talks. So, what’s next for negotiations? Karim Sadjadpour will join FP Live on Monday, Feb. 9 to discuss. Register here:

Football isn’t just a mainstay of U.S. culture—it’s also an enormous business. Adam Tooze discusses how the economics of football shape American culture.

The 1936 Summer Olympics loom large in memory, but the Winter Olympics from that same year offer an even more dramatic vantage point on Nazi ideology, argues Paul Hockenos.

Weeks before threatening Greenland, the Trump administration used many of the same tactics to sabotage a maritime treaty on greenhouse gas emissions, writes columnist @elisabethbraw.bsky.social.

Trump has repeatedly called on Cuban leaders to make a deal, and administration officials have anonymously revealed that Washington is seeking regime change by the end of this year.

The recent border crisis with Cambodia has reignited pro-military sentiment in Thailand ahead of its national election.

The Trump administration’s creative, if controversial, moves in Venezuela offer a way forward on Iran, writes Esfandyar Batmanghelidj.

Erdogan is a leading beneficiary of Trump’s force-based international disorder, argues Halil Karaveli.

Ottawa has announced ambitious military spending plans, including in the sparsely protected Arctic.

Unless the situation on the ground meaningfully improves, optimistic predictions about the Board of Peace simply serve to excuse continued Palestinian suffering, write Natasha Hall and Hardin Lang.

Although U.S. officials have described Africa as “peripheral” to Washington’s interests, African engagement is necessary for the White House’s efforts to counter China’s grip on critical minerals.

Western sanctions helped to kill the hopes of Iranians who sought to transform the country from within, writes Trita Parsi.

The two sides are poised to move forward with negotiations, even as the precise agenda of the discussions remains up in the air. foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/05/u...

Mohammed Ibrahim is one of hundreds of Palestinian children who report physical abuse in Israeli detention.

The Trump administration’s inaugural Critical Minerals Ministerial represents one of the White House’s most aggressive moves to secure new supply chains independent of China.

The U.S.-India trade deal announced on Monday by Trump delivers a major boost to a floundering relationship.

The Philippines is aiming to conclude negotiations on a South China Sea code of conduct between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China this year.

Prioritizing GDP-based targets doesn’t necessarily strengthen military capabilities.

In courting Trump, Latin American leaders could undermine the region’s long-term strategic interests and endanger their own political survival.

Once sacrosanct, the enormous U.S. aid package to Israel is now in doubt, writes David E. Rosenberg.

Trump wants an American sphere of influence in the Western Hemisphere, but he is unwilling to grant similar dominions to Putin and Xi, columnist Matthew Kroenig writes.

Europeans are grappling with not only major security and defense challenges, but also fundamental questions about their understanding of peace.

World Brief: Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy threaten trilateral peace talks, a new report details significant democratic backsliding globally, and Israeli strikes in Gaza kill dozens of people. foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/04/r...

Trying to preserve NATO’s old formula of U.S. dominance and European submission is an increasingly bad bet, writes columnist @stephenwalt.bsky.social.

The Putin regime uses Russian sporting glory as propaganda to validate its rule.

FP’s @beijingpalmer.bsky.social offers a primer on how the ancient philosophy became a potent force in modern-day China.

Malaysia has demonstrated that it is possible not only to enter but also to remain in Trump’s good graces, even as it opposes some of his actions, writes Derek Grossman.

Canada is now witnessing a U.S. government openly menacing not only Canadian sovereignty but even Canadian nationhood itself, argues Casey Michel.

Countries with a critical niche may be best primed to endure great-power competition, argue Ramon Pacheco Pardo and Robyn Klingler-Vidra.

Reducing the U.S.-Africa trade relationship is counterproductive to the Trump administration’s core priorities around economic prosperity and geopolitical power, argues Landry Signé.

The long-term impact of protests often depends on translating street pressure into institutional action.

It is time for the U.S. and Europe to translate transatlantic energy cooperation from shared intent into tangible outcomes, writes Stavros Papastavrou.

Money doesn’t trump what the Kremlin sees as its core security interests.

Join FP Live this week for a special one-on-one discussion with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis about European defense, foreign policy, immigration, and transatlantic relations. Live on Feb. 5 at 10:00AM ET: foreignpolicy.com/live/greece-...

The 2026 Winter Olympics have managed to disappoint almost everyone without enraging anyone, writes Bobby Ghosh.

Trump said Modi had agreed to “BUY AMERICAN” by investing more than $500 billion in U.S. industries such as agriculture, technology, and energy, although there are currently no further details on the timeline for such a deal, FP’s @iyengarish.bsky.social writes.

World Brief: India and the United States strike a trade deal, Gaza’s Rafah border crossing reopens, and right-wing candidate Laura Fernández wins Costa Rica’s presidential election. foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/02/u...

Not even Milei has severed ties with China, which produces untold heartburn in Washington. foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/02/t...

Ideological kinship and realpolitik are bringing Israel and Europe’s far right together. foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/02/i...

Economics columnist Adam Tooze explores Xi Jinping’s military modernization campaign and Beijing’s yearslong purge of the top ranks of the People’s Liberation Army. foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/30/c...

For both the Turkish and Syrian governments, a recent victory against the Syrian Democratic Forces will prove empty without steps to address Kurdish political aspirations, argues Henri J. Barkey. foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/28/r...

Bush’s use of the Insurrection Act does not support Trump’s expansive interpretation of this authority. In fact, it illustrates the opposite, writes columnist Julian E. Zelizer. foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/02/i...

By lasting longer than World War II, the invasion of Ukraine has shattered the Kremlin’s most sacred myth, writes Alexey Kovalev.