Foreign Policy

1
Foreign Policy

• POSC 121
• Braunwarth

2
Goals of the State

• Can one be completely independent autonomous
  and self-sufficient
• No we are all interdependent
• Foreign Policy States conduct to promote goals
  of Security Stability and Prosperity
• Generally constructed by elites out of the public
  eye.
• What is the (dis)advantage of this
• Do not have the benefit of public feedback but
  often dont want to tip our hat to others

3
Realism v. Idealism

• Idealist school of thought says we can use our
  power to do good in the world
• Promotion of Democracy Abroad
• will further both our values and interests
• Acting Altruistically
• have both the means and obligations to help
  others who are in need
• Respond to Grievances against us
• Weve created a lot of our own enemies

4
Excerpts from Carters Nobel Peace Prize speech

• War may sometimes be a necessary evil but no
  matter how necessary it is always an evil never
  a good. We will not learn to live together in
  peace by killing each others children
• Global challenges must be met by an emphasis on
  peace in harmony with others with strong
  alliances and international consensus

5
Realism v. Idealism

• Realist school says we must use our power to
  benefit ourselves in an anarchic world
• Global Primacy Economic and Military
• Must not be sidetracked by issues of democracy
  and human rights
• Act on behalf of U.S. companies abroad
• Garrison the World

6
U.S. Foreign PolicyPhase I 1800s

• Manifest Destiny to spread over North America
  while isolationist abroad
• 1823 Monroe Doctrine U.S. will stay out of
  Europe and Europe stays out of the Americas
• 1846 Pres. Polk and Gen Taylor precipitated
  Mexican-American War and gained TX CA NV UT
  and parts of CO AZ NM WY

7
U.S. Foreign PolicyPhase II early 1900s

• U.S. becomes a global power
• 1898 Spanish-American War gives us the
  Philippines Guam Puerto Rico and Cuba
• 1904 Roosevelt Corollary to Monroe Doctrine
• We have the right to interfere in Latin America
• World War I and II

8
U.S. Foreign PolicyPhase III the Cold War

• 1946 Truman Doctrine Containment of Communism
• Nuclear MAD
• The Marshall Plan
• NATO
• Korean War
• Vietnam War

9
Costs of the Cold War

• Misguided war in Vietnam
• Backing repressive anti-communist regimes
• Overthrew Democracies that appeared to threaten
  our political or economic interests
• Damage to Democracy at home increased secrecy
  and stifling of debate
• But we did defeat Communism

10
U.S. Foreign PolicyPhase IV 21st Century

• Following the collapse of the USSR
• We become the global superpower or hegemon
• Terrorism becomes the main concern
• Two wars in Iraq
• War in Afghanistan

11
The War on Terrorism

• Unprecedented characteristics
• It is not a war between states.
• The transnational nature of the adversary makes
  the scope of the war less than clear.
• Because the September 11 attacks were on American
  soil and a domestic catastrophe waging the war
  involves a major new domestic security component.

12
Bush Doctrine Manifest Destiny Redux

• Abandoned doctrine of containment
• In favor of a doctrine of pre-emptive strikes to
  combat the chaos of terrorism
• Can use our superior military power to change
  rather than manage the world
• Can remove all who do not follow the model of
  Democracy or U.S.-type capitalist globalization
• If necessary will act unilaterally without
  concern for rules or norms of legitimacy

13
Bush Doctrine

• U.S. has no competitors and doesnt need friends
  or international law
• Can Violate or scrap key treaties
• anti-ballistic missile war-crimes land mines
  environmental etc.
• Our military is 36x as large as any likely
  opponent
• Its larger than the next 14 states combined
• Realism or Idealism

14
Proliferation Model

• Would the U.S. use its military might against
  nuclear powers
• Nuclear weapons still confer prestige and
  security
• Which paradoxically makes us all less secure
• India and Pakistan have developed nukes to gain
  respect from each other
• North Korea has developed nukes out of fear of
  the U.S. after being included in Bushs axis of
  evil along with Iraq and Iran
• Iran is now pursuing a nuclear program

15
More Carter excerpts

• To suggest that war can prevent war is a base
  play on words and a despicable form of
  warmongering. The objective of any who sincerely
  believe in peace clearly must be to exhaust every
  honorable recourse in the effort to save the
  peace.
• For powerful countries to adopt a principle of
  preventive war may well set an example that can
  have catastrophic consequences.

16
Foreign Aid

• The EU asks its member countries to contribute
  .7 of GNP to aid poorer countries
• For the US that would be 130 billion
• How much do we give
• 350 million
• Denmark gives 1.01 Norway 0.91 the
  Netherlands 0.79 Sweden 0.7