5 Top Reads
List of 5 Top Reads articles
Biden and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Year
The U.S. president’s foreign-policy strategy came undone in 2023.
Is Russia’s Future a Forever War?
The Kremlin is hunkering down, but 2023 showed that its rule is less stable than it wants us to think.
2023 Was Another Record Year for Climate Change
As the world threatens to breach a critical global warming threshold, cooperation still seems to fall short.
The Year of the Israel-Hamas War
The events of Oct. 7 sparked a conflagration in the Middle East that has reverberated around the world.
A Grim Year for the Chinese Economy
How the sharp slowdown has impacted young people, the military, and more.
The Year Geopolitical Competition Returned to Africa
From Sudan to Mauritania, regional and global powers are jockeying for position on the continent.
Alliances Are Back at the Center of Power
States are increasingly focused on security and the age-old diplomatic instruments to achieve it.
Industrial Policy’s First Cracks Are Starting to Show
This year, state intervention solidified as the world’s new economic orthodoxy—and its weaknesses began to emerge.
What 2023 Taught Us in the Russia-Ukraine War
Foreign Policy’s best reads on the state of the conflict and the implications going forward.
The Year Policymakers Woke Up to AI
Artificial intelligence became more than just a buzzword in 2023.
Was 2023 the Year of the Global South?
From the halls of the United Nations to leaders’ podiums, policymakers fixated on the concept this year.
The Year’s Best Profiles
Life stories of the politicians who changed our world in 2022.
Our Best Long Reads From 2022
Foreign Policy’s best deep dives of the year.
5 News Stories That Packed a Punch
From Russian kill lists to refugees and rebels, these were among FP’s most impactful news stories this year.
Iran’s Revolutionary Year
Why Iran’s Gen Z is protesting, and why the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps won’t back down. These articles explain Tehran’s difficult 2022.