Council on Foreign Relations: "The World This Week" 1/6/2023

 

The World This Week January 6, 2023

Two Years After January 6, Reasons for Optimism Christopher M. Tuttle An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while supporters of then U.S. President Donald J. Trump riot in front of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021. Leah Millis/Reuters In the twenty-four months since rioters breached the U.S. Capitol, the capacity of the American system to overcome even the gravest challenges has quietly been on display. Read more on Renewing America

What to Expect From a Divided Government James M. Lindsay The 118th Congress looks set to produce more turbulence than progress. Congress can act only when the House and Senate agree. But agreement could be scarce over the next two years. Read more on The Water’s Edge

What in the World Will Happen in 2023? Richard Haass This year, Iran will likely be the dominant issue, while the sleeper story of the year will be Japan’s emergence as a major geopolitical actor. Read the analysis

Foreign Policy Issues That Trouble Experts in 2023 Paul B. Stares The risk of a major military confrontation between the United States and either Russia or China—and conceivably both simultaneously—has replaced the risk of a domestic terrorist attack as the primary concern for American foreign policy experts. Read the analysis

Crises to Watch in 2023 In CFR’s annual Preventive Priorities Survey, experts identified top concerns as a crisis around Taiwan, escalation of the war in Ukraine or instability in Russia, and nuclear weapons development by Iran and North Korea. Read the Report

Lula Is Back. What Does That Mean for Brazil? On January 1, 2023, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, commonly known as Lula, was inaugurated as president of Brazil more than a decade after his second term ended. He faces slow economic growth, rising poverty, high crime rates, and an education crisis. Get the quick take

Iran’s Protesters Want Regime Change Eric Edelman and Ray Takeyh Iranian protesters today are not calling for reform but for the extinction of the Islamic Republic. The United States should help from afar by increasing sanctions and improving communication among the demonstrators. Read more on ForeignAffairs.com

Lost Chances on Immigration Reform Hurt Economy Edward Alden and Tess Turner Congress missed a major opportunity to pass immigration reforms that would help the United States compete. Both parties showed that they would rather keep immigration as a political issue than take the risk of attempting serious reforms. Read more on Renewing America

Zambia’s Bet on Democracy Michelle Gavin Zambia’s leaders, who have been laser-focused on addressing the country’s crippling economic crisis, closed out 2022 by pivoting to legal reform to strengthen democracy.  This encouraging progress should prompt international support. Read more on Africa in Transition

China’s Global Influence Campaign In this episode of The President’s Inbox podcast, CFR’s Joshua Kurlantzick sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how China uses its media power to influence the domestic politics of countries around the world. Listen

Inside CFR U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai discusses the role of trade policy in the global economy, current U.S. trade strategy, and the Joe Biden administration’s trade agenda for the year ahead. Watch the discussion

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