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RAND's international affairs research comprises a range of cross-cutting issues, including global economies and trade, space and maritime security, diplomacy, global health and education, nation building, and regional security and stability. RAND also analyzes the policies and effectiveness of international organizations such as the UN, NATO, European Union, and ASEAN.

Report
Reconstructing Ukraine: Creating a Freer, More Prosperous, and Secure Future
Ukraine's reconstruction may be the largest rebuilding effort in modern history and it's not too early to start planning. Recovery will require an end to the fighting, but ultimate success hinges on a U.S.-European partnership and the establishment of durable post-war security arrangements.
Jun 14, 2023
Commentary
The Global Movement Against China's Economic Coercion Is Accelerating
There is much the West can do to push back against Chinese economic pressure, and many reasons to do so. Doing so is a core interest of the United States, which now places itself in competition with China over the shape of the international order.
Jun 9, 2023

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Blog
Teacher Well-Being, Russian PMCs, AI Conspiracy Theories: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on how America's teachers are doing, the proliferation of Russian private military companies, preparing for conspiracy theories about artificial intelligence, and more.
Jun 23, 2023
Commentary
Six Different Ways: Ukraine Lessons for Japanese Defense Planners
Japanese leaders have already begun internalizing key lessons from Ukraine. But Japanese officials are silent on whether they are preparing for a short conflict or a long one. This matters because, as the Ukrainian war demonstrates, a protracted struggle could require different plans from the ones Japan is possibly making.
Jun 23, 2023
Report
Simulating Chinese Gray Zone Coercion of Taiwan: Identifying Redlines and Escalation Pathways
This paper shares the results of an exercise hosted by the RAND Corporation to explore the risk of escalation from Chinese activities in the gray zone to conventional war. The results showed an overall low risk of Taiwanese escalation.
Jun 22, 2023
Commentary
How to Reform and Reconstruct Ukraine After the War
Hostilities in Ukraine are ongoing, but it is not too early to consider post-war reconstruction. Indeed, the United States and Europe have already begun planning what will probably be the most ambitious post-war rebuilding effort in modern history.
Jun 21, 2023
Report
Great-Power Competition and Conflict in Latin America
This report explores the potential for competition and conflict among the United States, China, and Russia in Latin America; where competition might turn into conflict; what form that conflict might take; and the implications for the United States.
Jun 20, 2023
Commentary
How Not to Help Ukraine
Good strategy involves clearly defining your objectives (ends), developing practical methods to accomplish them (ways), and then allocating sufficient resources (means) to turn these objectives and methods into reality. The debate over congressional support for Ukraine aid largely revolves around means. But what of the other two legs of the strategic triad?
Jun 17, 2023
Report
Scientific and Technological Flows Between the United States and China
Leaders from both the United States and China have recognized scientific and technological dominance as a national priority. But what are the potential benefits and risks of U.S.-Chinese scientific research collaboration?
Jun 15, 2023
News Release
Successful Reconstruction of Ukraine Will Depend on Early Action, Bipartisan U.S. Effort, and U.S.-Europe Partnership
Durable Ukrainian reconstruction will require an end to the fighting, but ultimate success hinges on a U.S.-Europe partnership and the establishment of effective post-war security arrangements.
Jun 14, 2023
Report
Antarctica at Risk: Geostrategic Manoeuvring and the Future of the Antarctic Treaty System
Leveraging open-source literature and a tabletop exercise, the authors examine the possible implications that geostrategic manoeuvring in the Antarctic in the coming decades might have on the longevity and resilience of the Antarctic Treaty System.
Jun 13, 2023
Testimony
Chinese Strategy in the Freely Associated States and American Territories in the Pacific: Implications for the United States: Addendum
Document submitted June 5, 2023, as an addendum to testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs on May 16, 2023.
Jun 12, 2023
Blog
Extremist Beliefs Among Veterans, Space Traffic, Teacher Well-Being: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on whether extremist beliefs are more prevalent among veterans, why it's time to manage traffic in outer space, crises facing the Russian military, and more.
Jun 9, 2023
Journal Article
Entente Versus Alliance: When Should States Be Friends but Not Allies?
This essay examines the conditions under which states choose to adopt formal alliances or instead craft ambiguous relations, commonly known as ententes.
Jun 8, 2023
Journal Article
Competitive Alliances and Civil War Recurrence
Why do internal wars start anew after they apparently end? This essay examines competition between allied rebel groups in civil wars as a contributor to civil war renewal.
Jun 8, 2023
Commentary
The Case for a Governance-First U.S. Security Policy in the Sahel
Both terrorism and coups are on the rise in the Sahel. To reverse this troubling trend, the United States could ramp up support aimed at improving security governance, professionalizing militaries, and strongly sanctioning all forms of military takeovers in the region. This would require a real shift from the current U.S. security approach in the region.
Jun 8, 2023
Commentary
Countries Buy Defective Chinese Military Equipment. Why?
China's defense industry has exported malfunctioning and defective military equipment in recent years—leaving countries short of what's needed for their security while also draining military budgets. So why do countries continue to order military equipment from China?
Jun 8, 2023
Journal Article
Invisible Blockades and Strategic Coercion
The use of naval mines goes back more than two centuries, but the use of these weapons by both Russia and Ukraine has renewed discussion about the value of this technology for modern warfare.
Jun 7, 2023
Report
U.S.-China Rivalry in a Neomedieval World
The neomedieval era, which began around 2000, is characterized by weakening states, fragmenting societies, imbalanced economies, and informalized warfare. What do these conditions mean for competition—and potential conflict—between the United States and China?
Jun 6, 2023
Journal Article
An Unwinnable War: Washington Needs an Endgame in Ukraine
While the Western response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine was clear from the start, the objective has been nebulous. After over a year of fighting, the likely direction of this war is coming into focus.
Jun 6, 2023

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RAND Topic:
International Affairs

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Benjamin J. Sacks

Policy Researcher

Benjamin Sacks is a policy researcher at the RAND Corporation and a professor of political geography at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. At RAND, Sacks employs mixed-method approaches to examine the history, political geography, public diplomacy, and networks of major power competition, defense…
James Black

Assistant Director, Defence and Security

James Black is assistant director of the Defence and Security research group at RAND Europe. In addition to group management responsibilities, he leads the Defence Strategy, Policy and Capability research portfolio. He also serves as European Lead for the RAND Space Enterprise Initiative, a…

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