Peter Beinart

Peter Beinart

Biden Could Make the World Safer, but He’s Too Afraid of the Politics

President Biden has the chance to avert a nuclear crisis that could push the United States to the brink of war and threaten the coalition he’s built to counter Russia. But he isn’t seizing it for one overriding reason: He fears the political blowback. Since taking office, Mr. Biden has pledged…

When Will the US Stop Lying to Itself About Global Politics?

At the heart of the current crisis between Washington and Moscow is this: Vladimir Putin has massed troops on Russia’s border with Ukraine and implied that he may invade unless he receives a guarantee that Ukraine will never join NATO. The Biden administration rejects that demand out of hand…

Biden Thinks He Can Have It Both Ways on China. He’s Wrong.

The choreography has been exquisite. President Biden spent his first nine months in office trying to gain leverage over China: He patched up trade disputes with America’s allies. He hosted the first-ever in-person meeting of leaders of “The Quad,” which forged deeper ties between the United States,…