Indeed, the only certainty may be that Iran's nuclear program will be a major international issue in 2012 – quite possibly the most important one.
The killing of Osama bin Laden is a milestone, not a turning point, in what remains an ongoing struggle with no foreseeable end.
Few Americans cast their ballot in the recent mid-term elections on the basis of foreign policy.
Judging by Iraqi politicians' inability to form a new government months after national elections, their failure to provide essential services, and, above all, the continuing deadly violence, nation-building in Iraq is far from complete.
While the US remains the world's most powerful single country, it cannot maintain, much less expand, international peace and prosperity on its own.