Whenever South Korea and the United States engage in joint military exercises, North Korea responds with bellicose language, including frequent threats of military force. In this year’s round of threats, North Korea threatened to start a nuclear...

There are no subjects for international disputes that are more contentious than the question of territory. Control of geographic space by nation-states is one of the most critical subjects in international relations. Territory is among the most common...

When Iran was declared to have complied with the terms for an end to international sanctions, this triggered the lifting of wide-ranging limits on international trade and investment. Multinational corporations were lined up to enter the Iranian market...

As a source of examples of international relations in the news, you just can’t beat the conflict in Syria. This point was demonstrated again this week as Turkey shot down a Russian warplane that had strayed into its airspace. Russian intervention...

On September 28 the Seventieth Session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly began with an opening speech by the Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon. The Secretary General extolled the virtues of the UN and highlighted its successes in anti-poverty efforts...

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) came under criticism by politicians in the United States and a number of independent experts on nuclear security in the past week as it has emerged that the IAEA did not actually inspect a key Iranian nuclear...

Since the start of the Syrian Civil War in 2011 major powers have played a role in the conflict. Russian support for the Asad government has been continuous with military equipment, trainers, and diplomatic support in the United Nations Security Council...

The United States closed its embassy in the country of Cuba in 1961. That year (the same year President Obama was born) the United States sought to isolate the Cuban people and the island. More than half a century later the US President has announced...

Stephen Covey wrote, "Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships." How honest and or forthcoming should a leader or diplomat...

In 1988 the Buddhist teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, wrote, "In the West you have been struggling for many years with the problem of evil. For many years, the United States has been trying to describe the Soviet Union as the evil side. Some Americans...

Could a visit by Japanese prime minister to a shrine created in Meiji era (1869) be an act of aggression? On Thursday 26 December 2013, Japan's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, did just that - he made an official visit to a shrine in Tokyo . ...

Newspapers across Europe today read, " England humiliated by Pakistan ." To a student of international relations, headlines like these may indicate state-to-state tensions or a diplomatic slight or perhaps even an overt and intended coercive...

Think about the last time you were upset with something someone did to you. Did they apologize? Did the apology help with the destructive feelings of conflict? An apology at the personal or the international level is spoken or written statement that...

At a meeting of more than seven hours of intense negotiations in Geneva today, the United States, Russia, Ukraine and the European Union agreed to a plan aimed at defusing the conflict in Ukraine. The foreign ministers agreed to put on hold for...

The recent news story of Russian officials arresting an American diplomat, Ryan Fogle, third secretary of the Political Department of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, sounds a bit like an old James Bond movie. Russian officials made a big media splash of...

Yesterday, Pakistani security officials said they have arrested a former senior leader of a banned militant organization who was allegedly involved in the 2002 murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi ( click here for more ). For those...

Iranian and US diplomats held face-to-face meetings last night discussing proposals to end decades of diplomatic deadlock. Until September 2013, a direct conversation between leaders in Washington and Tehran had not occurred since 1979. It was...

Will Israel unilaterally strike against Iran's nuclear sites in the coming months? Earlier today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "Neither sanctions nor diplomacy have yet had any impact on Iran's nuclear weapons program...

Should and or can the United States afford to be engaged in rebuilding nations, governments, helping the poor in Africa, and elsewhere around the globe? Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a speech at VMI on Tuesday said, "In order for Americans...

The Iranian leadership maintains that its nuclear development program is for peaceful purposes - not weapons. Last November, the Iranians reached out to Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States, and Germany in an attempt to conclude a...

Many claim that the referendum vote by the people of Crimea to leave Ukraine for Russia is illegitimate. One group of Ukrainian women are fighting back and urging their countrywomen to "fight the enemy in any way!" This group ( click...

Yesterday in Austin, Texas President Jimmy Carter told an emotional story about the near failure of his attempt to broker a historic peace agreement between Israel and Egypt. Upon taking office in 1977, President Jimmy Carter and many others...

Anne Smedinghoff, a young American diplomat was killed Saturday (6 April 2012) while delivering books to children in Afghanistan ( click here for more ). Anne volunteered to take up the challenge of bringing about change - an unbelievable undertaking...

Today, Sunday 14 April, North Korea dismissed South Korea's proposal to resolve current tensions through dialogue. The North Koreans described the proposal as "a crafty trick" designed to disguise the South's hostility. US Secretary...

Economic sanctions are punitive economic actions - such as the cessation of financial ties - by one global actor against another to make known an objectionable behavior. The North Koreans are today experiencing yet another deliberate action intended...