Authors

The Realist Prism: Horse Trading with Beijing

By Nikolas Gvosdev 20 Nov 2009 | World Politics Review During his trip to Asia, President Barack Obama laid out a grand vision for a U.S.-China partnership, working together to solve the world's most pressing issues. It sounds very dramatic, almost like a form of co-dominion, with two global powers sharing the burdens of maintaining the international order. There's just one small problem: That is not what the United States is offering.

Obama's First Steps: What Comes After the 'Listening Phase'?

By Nikolas Gvosdev 05 May 2009 | World Politics Review The first steps of Barack Obama's presidency have given him and his team some breathing room, instituting a "zone of separation" from the policies and approaches of their predecessors. This should not be dismissed out of hand. But so far, what Obama largely has done is to make promises -- ones that have been well-received, for the most part, but not yet implemented.

Obama: Wilsonian Idealist or Progressive Realist?

By Nikolas Gvosdev 10 Nov 2008 | World Politics Review How is President-elect Barack Obama planning to shape the foreign policy of his administration? Is he a Wilsonian idealist? A progressive realist? Some mix of the two? The answer remains somewhat of a mystery. He may be tempted to follow the long line of Democratic presidents who have articulated a highly idealistic view of what America should accomplish around the globe. What remains to be seen is how comfortable the Obama administration will be with "80 percent solutions," where some key objectives are met and others are not.