

Managing the tension between domestic politics and the demands of a global economy is one of the major challenges facing politicians around the world.

European leaders should be more willing to learn from the successes and failures of Latin America, a region that knows a great deal about economic crises, bank failures, excessive debt, and the empty promises of populism.

Today’s emergencies should not distract policy makers from thinking about the long-term challenges that will define the world—for the better or the worse—in the coming century.

American protestors are motivated by the belief that social mobility in the United States has stalled or even reversed, resulting in growing intolerance toward the extremely wealthy.

Iran is facing a number of domestic and regional pressures that might have been the motivation behind the alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States.

If economic growth in China—the world’s economic engine—were derailed by a financial, political, social, or international accident, the effect would be much more severe than anything that happens in Greece.

As Europe struggles to pull out of its current financial crisis, it is useful to look back at the five most common tactics that countries have historically used to climb out of debt.

The middle class is shrinking in developed countries and swelling in poor ones, feeding social and political instability as governments struggle to ensure that living standards continue to meet expectations.

Although the United States faces enormous problems—underscored by the recent downgrade of its credit rating and renewed economic worries—it will remain the most powerful country in the world.

Future conflicts will likely not be about culture or religion, but rather result from anger generated by the thwarted and unfulfilled expectations of a declining middle class in rich countries and a booming one in poor countries.