Foreign policy newsletters focus on how governments act abroad: diplomacy, security, aid and international institutions. They are more policy-oriented than the geopolitics page and are often written by people who worked inside those institutions.
Weekly digests and deep dives on single crises are both common. Pick by region and depth.
28 newsletters below, ranked by editorial quality and how recently they published.
Sinification presents Chinese-language perspectives on trade, economics and foreign policy, using translated excerpts, expert commentary and live conversations. Readers get analysis of how Chinese scholars and commentators view issues such as EU-China trade tensions, global imbalances and China's relations with Brazil.
Anne Applebaum's personal newsletter offers long-form commentary on US foreign policy toward Russia and Ukraine, transatlantic politics, corruption and democracy. Readers get her sharp, sourced analysis of Trump administration decisions and their conflicts of interest.
Tangle summarizes the leading arguments from across the political spectrum on major U.S. and world news, alongside quick hits and its own editors' takes. Readers get a balanced overview of the day's political stories plus occasional columns, such as Isaac Saul's new 'A Grain of Saul'.
Paul Krugman, a Nobel-winning economist, writes commentary on economics and US politics, drawing on data and charts alongside news reporting. Recent issues cover the effects of Trump administration policy on healthcare coverage and household finances, and its stance toward Russia and Ukraine.
The Maple is a reader-funded Canadian publication offering critical investigative reporting and commentary centred on working-class concerns. Its excerpts cover Canadian defence industry links to Israel, provincial minimum wage gaps, and government lobbying for foreign mining projects.
Trita Parsi, executive VP of the Quincy Institute, writes about the US-Iran conflict, stalled negotiations, and the risk of wider regional escalation involving Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan. The newsletter offers his analysis of Iranian strategy, cross-posted interviews and recordings of paid subscriber Q&A sessions.
A weekly interview series in which Yascha Mounk talks with authors and scholars about big ideas in politics, culture, strategy and technology. Readers get condensed transcripts of in-depth conversations with experts on topics such as the decline of reading, war strategy and AI in higher education.
Drop Site News is a reader-funded independent outlet that publishes daily news roundups and original reporting on politics and war, with a heavy focus on the Middle East. Readers get briefings on Iran, Gaza, Yemen, Lebanon and US politics, plus longer on-the-ground features.
A newsletter reporting from Kyiv on the war in Ukraine, combining on-the-ground human stories with analysis of US policy toward Ukraine. Each issue has a lead story plus a short list of latest headlines.
A newsletter by a veteran foreign correspondent covering New Zealand's foreign policy, diplomacy and place in global politics, mixing original reporting and interviews with curated reading. Issues include political profiles, election-season analysis and a weekly round-up of international news.
This newsletter draws on declassified government and intelligence documents to examine how diplomats and spy agencies shaped modern world order. Recent issues cover the Blair-Bush relationship around 9/11 and the Iraq War, and the Bush-Putin partnership.
A foreign policy newsletter by journalist Elise Labott offering commentary and analysis on global affairs, including the Ukraine war, the Middle East and women in political leadership. Issues mix opinionated takes on current events with interviews with authors and experts.
Public Notice is a daily-ish independent newsletter offering sharp, opinionated coverage of US politics and media, with a strong anti-Trump editorial stance. Readers get pointed commentary on executive power, foreign policy toward Ukraine and Europe, and the personnel and conduct of the Trump administration.
Interviews and commentary on US foreign policy, state surveillance, civil liberties, and Israel's war on Gaza, presented from a left, anti-establishment perspective. Issues pair guest conversations, often with investigative journalists, with promotion of host Chris Hedges' books and the reader-supported publication.
Short realpolitik analyses of foreign affairs, focused in these issues on US policy toward Russia and Ukraine under Trump. Readers get argued assessments of diplomatic moves, rebuttals of official claims, and recommended courses of action.
Daily essays, poems and video readings by Caitlin Johnstone and Tim Foley offering a radical left, anti-imperialist critique of politics, media and power, blended with spiritual themes. Readers get opinionated commentary on current news and on how narrative shapes public perception.
Richard Hanania's Substack covers foreign policy, American politics, and social science with provocative, contrarian takes on culture war issues. Recent posts also include his experiments using AI tools to learn and explain quantum mechanics.
A long-running newsletter by Phillips O'Brien offering a critical, strongly opinionated take on US policy toward Russia and Ukraine under Trump, with weekly updates and reality-check essays. Readers get a pointed, partisan analysis of sanctions, alliances and the front-line war.
A Substack covering European politics, migration, security and economics through a weekly news round-up and longer opinionated analyses. Readers get a strongly argued, right-leaning critical perspective on Western European governance alongside some explanatory reporting.
Seymour Hersh publishes investigative and political commentary on US politics and foreign policy, drawing on anonymous insider sources. Recent issues cover Trump's midterm election strategy, secret US-Iran nuclear talks, and political spending and conflicts of interest around the administration.
A daily progressive political newsletter by radio host Thom Hartmann, offering commentary on U.S. politics, foreign policy, economics and science. Recent issues argue that Congress should respond to the administration's waiver of Russia sanctions, and promote paid subscriber features such as live book club sessions.
Former Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger writes commentary on US politics, covering the Ohio governor race, a reported attempt by Trump appointees to have a voting machine secretly hacked, and other stories from an anti-Trump perspective. Readers get his take on current events, often built on reporting from outlets such as ProPublica, Axios and the New York Times.
A historian with professional political and Hollywood experience comments on current affairs, placing events like NATO-Russia tensions and US election politics in historical context. The issues are openly partisan, mixing news roundup with sharp opinion and quoting others at length.
Independent reporting and commentary on US foreign policy, centered on the Ukraine war, US-Russia relations and Middle East conflicts. Issues include original analysis alongside links to the author's interviews and media appearances.
Scott Ritter's Substack offers geopolitical commentary and analysis, often critical of Western policy toward Russia and Ukraine, alongside video episodes like Trump Watch and The Russia House. Readers get a strongly opinionated, former-weapons-inspector perspective on Middle East, European and US-Russia affairs.
A partisan progressive political newsletter by Cliff Schecter and David Shuster that attacks Trump's economic and foreign policy claims and promotes paid subscriptions. Readers get opinionated commentary on current US politics, with much of the substance behind a paywall.
Joanna Coles' Substack collects her commentary on Trump administration politics, often drawn from her Daily Beast podcast and her Inside Trump's Head show. Readers get opinionated takes on White House infighting, foreign policy toward Russia and Iran, and upcoming midterm politics, plus event announcements.
One short email a week with hand-picked newsletters from the index. Free, no spam, unsubscribe anytime.
