Commentary

The global response to Cuba’s worsening humanitarian plight reveals a growing divide over whether limiting access to food and energy is an acceptable form of leverage or if there is a shared international responsibility for humanitarian intervention.

A US oil blockade has brought Cuba to the negotiating table. That gives Washington an “extraordinary opportunity” to influence the island’s trajectory and its relationship with the United States. Will Trump’s power play get in the way?

"It appears that President Trump has decided that he's going to be the president that brings democracy to Cuba," Council Nonresident Senior Fellow Cécile Shea says. "It's a dangerous goal."

Yasmeen Abutaleb, Ravi Agrawal, and Giles Whittell join Ivo Daalder to discuss the week's top news stories.

In 2022, there were about 170,000 troops stationed outside of the U.S. and its territories, according to the Department of Defense. As of June 2023, there were over 30,000 troops stationed in the Middle East alone, before America expanded its military presence following Hamas' attack on Israel in October. 

Deep Dish explores what makes Costa Rica a shining example of functionality.

From corruption to inequality, underlying factors hinder Haiti's progress post-President Moïse's assassination.

China's actions in Cuba reflect its increased parity with the United States on the world stage, argues Nonresident Senior Fellow Paul Heer.

US sanctions on Latin American countries have exacerbated the worsening economic and political conditions behind the current migrant surge.

Mass arrests have reduced crime in the short-term—but at a significant cost to human rights.