President Joe Biden took office a year ago with a promise to restore America’s role as a world leader, re-engage with allies and rebuild alliances that had frayed under Donald Trump’s “America First” approach. “America is back. Diplomacy is back,” Biden said.

We had high hopes for the future of U.S.-Russian relations after the collapse of the Soviet Union three decades ago. The Cold War had ended, and Russia seemed for a time to be moving in the direction of openness and democracy. But those hopes were soon dashed.

The United States emerged in the 20th century as the world’s most powerful and competitive nation. Our economy, our technology and our political system became the envy of all others. But in recent years, many observers have claimed that America is losing its edge.

The rise of China is the most formidable challenge that American foreign policy faces. With its population of nearly 1.5 billion people and its rapid growth, China has transformed itself into an economic and political powerhouse.

Twenty years ago, the United States was intently focused on terrorism. The 9/11 attacks had killed 3,000 Americans and profoundly shaken our national sense of safety and security. President George W. Bush declared we were fighting a “war on terror” and vowed we would defeat terrorist organizations. Since then, we have taken important steps to… Read more »

The world is approaching a water crisis that will impact the lives of several billion people, according to the World Meteorological Organization. We can’t solve this crisis easily, but there are many things we should do.

Here in the United States, we have grown accustomed to thinking we will always have access to plentiful, clean water. We just assume we can turn on the tap and get all the water we need.

The question of what role religion should play in American public life is difficult and controversial. It produces a lot of heated debate and no easy answers.

I am often asked how the world has changed since I got involved in politics. If I were to try to answer the question with one word, the word would be intensity. Everything, it seems, has become more intense.

What does it mean to be an American? I suspect each of us would answer this question in our own way, depending on our experiences. But there are features of the American identity, certain qualities of what it means to be an American that many of us hold in common.