How we got here -- Crises of our own making -- Two unsolved problems -- The virtue of openness: China and the Far East -- The state with unnatural boundaries -- The indispensable partnership -- The politics of cultural dignity -- The first hundred days.

The status of the United States as a world power, and the nature of power itself, are at a historic turning point, a time when the nation's decisions could determine how long it remains a superpower. It is essential that we understand and adapt to the new security environment in which we find ourselves. Zbigniew Brzezinski and Brent Scowcroft, both former National Security Advisors under markedly different administrations, dissect, in moderated conversations, the most significant foreign policy challenges facing the U.S.: the Middle East, Russia, China, Europe, the developing world, the changing nature of power in a globalized world, and what Brzezinski has called the "global political awakening." While one author is a Republican and the other a Democrat, they broadly agree on the need to adapt to a new international environment. Where they disagree, their exchanges are always both deeply informed and provocative.--From publisher description.