The November 2020 election of Joe Biden ended Donald Trump's extraordinary tenure. However, it doesn't inevitably indicate a return to previous policies, as American society's expectations have changed. Indeed, there is a call for a strong federal state on economic and social issues on the one hand, and on the other hand an increased mistrust vis-à-vis American interventionism. The magnitude of these transformations shows how necessary is a monitoring and analysis of the ever-evolving American political landscape — especially since they resonate with comparable political developments in Europe and in the rest of the world.
Founded in 2000, Ifri's United States Program aims to understand American culture and politics from the inside. Furthermore, it studies the evolutions of the country’s foreign and defense policies. It lastly actively contributes to maintaining close trans-Atlantic ties, producing and broadcasting research on the United States in France and Europe while also regularly welcoming U.S. academics and officials to Paris.
Building on field missions and a large network of journalists, business executives, diplomats, academics and researchers from American think tanks, the program's analysis are offered in two main formats: the Potomac Papers, which are about 30 pages long notes that feature our latest research activities, and the Chroniques Américaines, which cover the country's social and political current events.The program also organizes research seminars and, since 2000, a major annual conference in December. As to inform the largest audience possible, our experts regularly intervene in the media, both in the written press and audiovisual sector. Our researchers also contribute to Ifri's main publications, RAMSES and Politique étrangère. Through this program, Ifri associated with the «Time to Sign Off» (TTSO) Newsletter and Slate.fr to air the "Trump 2020" Podcast (available in French) every Wednesday from June 2019 to January 2021, focusing on the U.S. presidential elections. The partnership is renewed with the "New Deal" Podcast (also available in French) to report on U.S. current political events every Thursday.
Research Fellow, Head of Ifri's Americas Program
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Advisor to the Americas Program
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Advisor to the Americas Programme
...The U.S. program publishes in-depth analyses on American domestic and foreign policy issues in the form of:
The recent assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the father of Iran's nuclear program, echoes that of Qassem Soleimani in January 2020 and illustrates the policy of "maximum pressure" which has prevailed these past four years. In this context, Joe Biden's election gives rise to high...
One of Donald Trump’s campaign promises in 2016 was to end China’s “cheating” on trade and to reduce America's trade deficit by imposing significant tariffs on U.S. imports of Chinese products. This study draws up a first assessment of his policy - and of the "trade war" which stemmed from it....
This special issue of Politique étrangère focuses on the proceedings of the Conference organized by the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri) for its 40th anniversary, held on April 10th, 2019, in Sorbonne University's Grand Amphithéâtre.
I am writing this seventh letter on Sunday, November 8. Yesterday, the world press proclaimed the victory of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. However, Donald Trump has filed lawsuits in several states, which few people believe have any chance of succeeding. At this point, then, the present...
Since the start of the 21st century, the flaws of the Electoral College, which completes the election process of the president of the United States by indirect universal suffrage, are the target of stronger than ever criticism.
As international relations are increasingly reorganized around the US-China rivalry, the tensions between these two great powers are shaping a growing number of sectors, and the exchange of sensitive technologies in particular. This is a critical issue for European companies today. <...>
The next few years will be tumultuous ones in the United States. The dependency of foreign policy on domestic policy is unlikely to diminish. Whether in the rivalry with China or the predominance of Israeli interests in Middle East policy, for example, it is hard to imagine Biden taking a big...
Located in the heart of a mostly Republican Midwest, Minnesota stood out in the 2016 presidential election, with Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton winning 46.5 % of the vote, in keeping with the State’s Democratic tradition. In the 2020 presidential campaign Minnesota has been a...
The COVID-19 crisis has hit the countries of the European Union (EU) hard.
Donald Trump’s election to the White House appeared to be the beginning of a profound change in the United States’ immigration policy. He reneged on bipartisan consensus that recognized the “positive contribution” of immigration to the country. This resulted in an increase in policies that...
Since 1983, the QUAD gathers every year, the SWP, RAND Corporation, Chatham House and Ifri.
The global environment for trade is undergoing significant changes.
The Ifri Program on North America held a seminar around Jocelyn Kiley, Associate Director for Policy Research, Pew Research Center (see her bio on the Pew website).
How the French see their place in the world? A new survey carried out by the Pew Research Center analyzes the perception of European countries regarding global threats and their role in world affairs. This conference will give the opportunity to examine the relation that French have with their...
Please register at usa@ifri.org, mentioning which panel you wish to attend. Due to the limited number of seats, please let us know if you cannot participate after registering, so that we can reattribute your seat.<...>
Kevin Rudd, 58, is a world renowned expert on China. He is fluent in Mandarin and in particular plays a major role in informal relations between the US and China, the main theme of this lunch debate.
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From Ferguson to Baltimore, racially-linked police brutality has captured Americans' attention. President Barack Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing
Beijing flexes its economic muscle with frequent success in pursuit of Chinese geopolitical aims. By contrast, the United States has largely forgotten the historic role of geoeconomics in American foreign policy. The United States must come to grips with the reality that the...
Meeting chaired by Thierry de Montbrial, Executive Chairman, Ifri.
By invitation only.
Working language: English.
The United States Program and the Center for Security Studies at IFRI hosed Robert Litwak, Vice-President and Director of Security Studies at the Woodrow Wilson Center for a closed seminar on April 22.
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An interview with Henry Olsen, Senior Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC).
An interview with Julie CERQUEIRA, Executive Director of the U.S. Climate Alliance.
PARIS — President Emmanuel Macron was put on the spot this year in front of a room full of journalists when one asked, provocatively: Which man is more dangerous, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un; or Donald J. Trump?
3 questions to Karlyn BOWMAN, Senior Fellow, American Entreprise Institute
Has Trump changed his views of transatlantic relations? What should Europeans do? Is Trump's Russia policy dictated by the Russia probe?
Is the American economy doing well? Will the Tax Reform change this? How could the bond markets evolve in 2018?
The 16th edition of Ifri's annual conference on the United States, organized by Ifri's North America Program on December 7th, 2017, reviewed the key events and evolutions of the Trump administration's first year in office.
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An interview with Jon WOLFSTHAL, nonresident scholar, Nuclear Policy Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
The provocative, contemptuous and threatening style of the American president even irritate Republicans. Facing his overflows at the national and international levels, what mechanisms could limit the potential damages ?
