U.S. Government Resources: Foreign and International

See more about this topic in the Dickinson Legal Research Resources:
DSL LegalLinks: European Union
DSL LegalLinks: United Nations
Comparative Commercial Law Research Guide and Bibliography
Cross-Border Legal Practice Research Guide and Bibliography
International Environmental Law Research Guide and Bibliography
International Trade & the Environment Research Guide and Bibliography

Background Notes
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn

Publications from the U.S. Department of State that contain information on all countries that the U.S. has relations with, including facts on the country's land, people, government, and economy.

America.gov
http://www.america.gov

The Bureau of International Information Programs' website, America.gov, provides products and services for the foreign affairs community.

Central Intelligence Agency
http://www.cia.gov

The Central Intelligence Agency was created in 1947 with the signing of the National Security Act by President Truman. The CIA is an independent agency whose mission is to support the President, the National Security Council, and all officials who make and execute the U.S. national security policy by providing accurate, comprehensive, and timely foreign intelligence on national security topics, and by conducting counterintelligence activities, special activities, and other functions related to foreign intelligence and national security, as directed by the President.

CIA Publications
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/index.html

This CIA web site provides access to the Agency's major publications, as well as a link to the complete listing of published titles.

CIA World Factbook
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html

The World Factbook is prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency for the use of US Government officials, providing national-level information on countries, territories, and dependencies.

Country Studies (Library of Congress)
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html

The Country Studies/Area Handbook Series is designed to provide U.S. government officials and American citizens with information on foreign countries. Each study offers a comprehensive description and analysis of the country or region's historical setting, geography, society, economy, political system, foreign policy, and national security.

Department of Defense
http://www.defenselink.mil

The mission of the Department of Defense is to provide the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the security of the United States. The department's headquarters is at the Pentagon. The mission of DefenseLINK is to support the overall mission of the Department of Defense by providing official, timely and accurate information about defense policies, organizations, functions and operations. Also, DefenseLINK is the single, unified starting point for finding military information on-line.

Department of State
http://www.state.gov

The Department of State was established by act of July 27, 1789, as the Department of Foreign Affairs and was renamed Department of State by act of September 15, 1789. The Department advises the President in the formulation and execution of foreign policy and promotes the long-range security and well-being of the United States. It also determines and analyzes the facts relating to American overseas interests, makes recommendations on policy and future action, and takes the necessary steps to carry out established policy. In so doing, the Department engages in continuous consultations with the American public, the Congress, other U.S. departments and agencies, and foreign governments; negotiates treaties and agreements with foreign nations; speaks for the United States in the United Nations and other international organizations in which the United States participates; and represents the United States at international conferences.

Department of State: Regulations
http://www.state.gov/m/a/ips/c22793.htm

Search Department regulations, Foreign Affairs Manual and Foreign Affairs Handbook.

Economic Policy & Trade Practices
http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/rpts/eptp/

Reports prepared by the Department of State, which provided a single, comparative analysis of the economic policies and trade practices of countries with which the United States had significant economic or trade relationships. Although Congress abolished these reports in 2002, the reports from 1993-2001 are still available.

econsumer.gov - Multinational Governmental Site to Combat Internet Fraud
http://www.econsumer.gov

econsumer.gov is a joint effort though multiple countries to gather and share cross-border e-commerce complaints. The public site provides general information about consumer protection in all countries that belong to the ICPEN (International Consumer Protection Enforcement Network), contact information for consumer protection authorities in those countries, and an online complaint form.

Electronic Research Collections
http://dosfan.lib.uic.edu/ERC/index.html

The Electronic Research Collection (ERC) is a partnership between the Department of State and the Federal Depository Library at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). ERC is responsible for electronically archived information products produced by State Department from 1990 to 1997, and providing help and feedback to the public about other information sources of U.S. foreign policies and programs.

Embassy and Consulate Websites
http://www.usembassy.gov/

This U.S. Department of State site provides links to U.S. Embassy and Consulate websites. The links can be searched by region or key officer listing.

Export Information
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/export

This section provides an overview of exporting issues related to the Bureau of Customs & Border Protection, formerly the U.S. Customs Service. You will find links with information on the automated export system (aes)harbor maintenance fees, rulings and regulations, publications and forms, and more.

Foreign Trade Statistics
http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/www/index.html

This Census Bureau web site offers foreign trade information on A.E.S., regulations, statistics, and more.

Global Gateway
http://international.loc.gov/intldl/intldlhome.html

The Library of Congress Global Gateway website provides access to digital collections focusing on history and cultures around the world and to digital libraries built with international partners.

Global Legal Information Network
http://www.glin.gov/search.action

The Global Legal Information Network (GLIN) is a database of laws, regulations, and other complementary legal sources. The documents included in the database are contributed by the governments of the members from the original, official texts which are deposited, by agreement of the members, in a server presently located at the Library of Congress. Searches can be done by jurisdiction, subject, date, or type of legal instrument, or by a combination of these elements.

Government Gazettes Online
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/gazettes/index.htm

The Documents Center at the University of Michigan sponsors this site of foreign legal gazettes on the web. The gazettes are listed by country, and are annotated to include title, URL, price, language, frequency, time coverage, and contents.

Health Information for International Travel
http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx

Travelers' health information, including specific destinations, vaccinations, and medical care, is provided at this Centers for Disease Control web site.

HLAS Online - Handbook of Latin American Studies;
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/hlas

The Handbook is a bibliography on Latin America consisting of works selected and annotated by scholars. Edited by the Hispanic Division of the Library of Congress, the multidisciplinary Handbook alternates annually between the social sciences and the humanities.

House Committee on Foreign Affairs
http://www.internationalrelations.house.gov/

The Committee on Foreign Affairs traces its origins to November 29, 1775. Although its title has changed frequently, the Committee's primary focus has been issues of international significance.

Human Rights Report
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt

The Country Reports on Human Rights Practices are submitted annually by the U.S. Department of State to the U.S. Congress. The reports cover internationally recognized individual, civil, political, and worker rights, as set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Links are provided for 1999 to current reports.

Import Information
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/import

This section provides an overview of importing issues related to the Bureau of Customs & Border Protection, formerly the U.S. Customs Service. You will find links with information on duty rates, HTS, rulings and regulations, publications and forms, and more.

Interactive Tariff and Trade DataWeb
http://dataweb.usitc.gov

The U.S. International Trade Commission's database that provides direct access to trade data and customized reports.

International Activities Related to Fossil Energy Programs & Topics
http://fossil.energy.gov/international

Energy- and business-related information for various countries and regions of the world can be accessed through this Department of Energy web site.

International Data Base (IDB)
http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/

The International Data Base (IDB) is a computerized data bank containing statistical tables of demographic, and socio-economic data for 227 countries and areas of the world.

International Judicial Assistance
http://travel.state.gov/law/info/judicial/judicial_702.html

This Department of State web site provides country-specific information, processing services, and other issues relating to judicial assistance abroad.

Iraq Update
http://usinfo.state.gov/mena/middle_east_north_africa/iraq.html

As part of the Department of State's International Information Programs, this site provides information on Iraq, including fact sheets, reports, maps, statistics and publications.

National Security Archive
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv

The National Security Archive, a non-governmental and non-profit institute, was founded by a group of journalists and scholars. The Archive, located at George Washington University, operates as a research institute on international affairs and as a library collecting and publishing declassified U.S. documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. Collections can be searched by keyword or by subject area.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
http://www.nato.int

NATO is an alliance of 26 countries from North America and Europe, committed to fulfilling the goals of the North Atlantic Treaty of 1949. The primary role of NATO is to ensure the freedom and security of its member countries.

Portals to the World
http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html

Links to electronic resources from around the world.

Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
http://foreign.senate.gov

This Committee is responsible for the foreign policy activities of the U.S. Senate. Its duties include: evaluation of treaties with foreign governments; discussion and approval of diplomatic nominations; written legislation pertaining to U.S. foreign policy, the State Department, Foreign Assistance programs, and many associated topics.

Trade And Related Agreements Database (TARA)
http://tcc.export.gov/Trade_Agreements/index.asp

The TCC's Trade and Related Agreements Database (TARA) provides the public with information on current trade agreements.

Trade Compliance Center
http://tcc.export.gov/index.asp

The Trade Compliance Center is part of the Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration. The website provides information about (and the text of) current trade agreements between the United States and its partners. The agreements cover manufactured products and services.

U.S. Agency for International Development
http://www.usaid.gov

USAID is an independent federal government agency that receives overall foreign policy guidance from the Secretary of State. The agency supports long-term and equitable economic growth and advances U.S. foreign policy objectives by supporting economic growth, agriculture and trade; global health; and, democracy, conflict prevention and humanitarian assistance.

U.S. Institute of Peace
http://www.usip.org/index.html

This independent, nonpartisan federal institution promotes the prevention, management, and peaceful resolution of international conflicts.

World News Connection - Official U.S. Foreign News Service
http://wnc.fedworld.gov

World News Connection (WNC) is an online news service that offers an extensive array of translated and English-language news and information.