Can Anyone Really Rule the South China Sea?

East Asian Powers Jockey for Islands and Atolls in an Ocean that Defies Man-Made Boundaries

Zócalo’s editors are diving into our archives and throwing it back to some of our favorite pieces. This week: The late political scientist and sinologist Aileen San Pablo-Baviera reflects on the man-made disputes over the South China Sea—its islands, atolls, and watery borders.

Wherever you go in the Philippines, the sea is never too far away.

I spent summers as a child laying on sunny beaches and playing in the waves. Sometimes we would go to an island where the white sand, framed by coconut trees, …

by Aileen San Pablo-Baviera | November 22, 2016

Can Liberal Democracy Be Its Own Worst Enemy?

Populists Are Attacking Modern Representative Government and It’s Past Time for Democratic Leaders to Fight Back

By Bruno Kaufmann | October 19, 2016

The rising populism in today’s Europe is not merely the result of recent decisions by politicians, but also must be understood as a consequence of long-term changes that started more …

Don’t Laugh, But Trump May Be Right on Russia

Foreign Policy Elites Are Still Invested in a Cold War With Moscow That No Longer Makes Sense

By Anatol Lieven | September 26, 2016

Donald Trump’s views on U.S.-Russia relations bring to mind something that Shakespeare points out in King Lear—that sometimes the court fool is the only person telling the truth.

Washington’s …

I Could Blame Peter the Great or Warren Beatty, But Either Way The Soviets Got to Me

I'd Better Brush up on My Russian Declensions as Our Cold War Nostalgia Gives Way to the Real Thing … Again

By Andrés Martinez | September 26, 2016

I never stood a chance. Of course Russia would seduce me.

It was the early 1980s and Robert Massie had just published his riveting Peter the Great biography (I devoured …

Why Do Russians Put Up With Putin?

Iron-Fist Control Provides Security in a Chaotic World, Says NPR’s David Greene

By Paul Bisceglio | November 10, 2015

From annexing Crimea to dropping bombs in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin has led his country down a path for the past two years that worries many Americans. Given his …

Why Be Afraid of Russia?

Washington and Moscow Have Competing Interests. But They Can Be Overcome.

November 6, 2015

Russia’s recent actions in Syria have raised new questions about the country’s foreign-policy goals and their meaning for the U.S. Doubts remain about the annexation of Crimea and how it …

international relations