Foreign and Domestic Policy

Definitions Foreign Policy: Domestic Policy: Refers to actions or engagements that occur OUTSIDE of The United States (say, Afghanistan). If ANYTHING is labeled “Foreign” it means dealing with something OUTSIDE of the U.S. Domestic Policy: Refers to actions or engagements that occur INSIDE The United States. If ANYTHING is labeled “Domestic” it means dealing with something Inside the U.S.

Foreign Policy Primary Duties are split between Executive and Legislative Branches. Who is the Chief Diplomat in the United States? President. S/he negotiates treaties with foreign countries (military/peace/economic). How does the Legislative Branch get involved? They must APPROVE the Treaty for it to be legal. Which House of Congress approves treaties? Senate.

United States Foreign policy Isolationism is the policy of avoiding conflict with foreign nations by limiting foreign relations. For the first 170 years or so of the history of the United States, the U.S. government tried to stay out of foreign affairs. Instead the nation tried to focus on its own issues and problems. This did not always work out.

United States Foreign policy Neutrality is the idea of the government not getting involved in a foreign conflict. To stay out of a war or not choose sides.

United States Foreign policy A doctrine in foreign policy is a statement of how the government is planning on acting toward foreign governments in certain situations. The U.S. had the Monroe Doctrine for about 100 years. This stated that the U.S. would treat any European involvement in Latin American matters as an act of aggression and war.

United States Foreign policy A corollary is a statement that follows as a natural or logical result. What logically followed the Monroe Doctrine was the Roosevelt Corollary. This statement said that the U.S. would get involved in the matters of any Latin American country if they could not govern themselves.

United States Foreign policy Dollar diplomacy was the name given to the policy of sending American troops to protect private American financial interests in unstable Latin American countries. Because using American troops in neighboring countries did not make those countries happy with the U.S., President Franklin Roosevelt decided in 1933 to adopt a “Good Neighbor Policy” which stopped American military involvement in Latin American countries.

Timeline of American foreign policy TIME PERIOD FOREIGN POLICY APPROACH WAR or PEACE? RESULT 1776-1783 War of Independence WAR US gains Independence from Great Britain 1783-1812 Isolationism (Neutrality) Peace Establishing the Nation 1812-1815 War of 1812 U.S. protects its economic & political rights 1815-1846 Isolationism/ Monroe Doctrine Westward Expansion 1846-1848 Mexican War The U.S. gains more territory to allow westward expansion 1848-1898 Isolationism (Neutrality) / Monroe Doctrine Peace with Neighbors Long period of Monroe Doctrine and Isolationism and distracted by the Civil War, 1861-1865 1898 The Spanish-American War Protected U.S. influence in the Western Hemisphere 1898-1915 Trying to stay out of global conflict (The Roosevelt Corollary) 1915-1919 World War I U.S. pulled into WWI and became a Global Player 1919-1941 Trying to stay out of global conflict (The Good Neighbor Policy) 1941-1945 World War II U.S. pulled into WWII and became a Global Player 1945-1991 The Cold War (sort of) The U.S. was in an international standoff and power struggle with the Soviet Union. Tried to contain Communism and keep the balance of power. The U.S. joins NATO and the UN.

23.1 The three branches of government and foreign policy

The three branches of government and foreign policy The Legislature The Senate ratifies (or confirms) treaties with other countries by a 2/3 vote. The Executive The President is Commander-in-Chief of the military. The President’s advisor, the Secretary of State, helps manage relations with foreign countries. The President appoints ambassadors to foreign countries. The Judiciary The Supreme Court has the power to interpret treaties ratified by the Senate.

23.2 The cold war

The cold war The United Nations (UN) was created after World War II in order to help prevent future wars and conflict. There are 193 member nations and they meet to coordinate peaceful solutions to global issues such as war, starvation, disease, poverty, and natural disasters.

The cold war Communism is an economic and political system in which the means of production of food and other items are owned and controlled by the government. Satellite nations are countries that are controlled by another country.

The cold war Containment was the U.S. policy of stopping the spread of communism by influencing other countries to be friendly to the democratic U.S. and not the communist Soviet Union. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is a military alliance organization that was originally created to protect against the threat of the Soviet Union and the spread of communism.

The cold war The Cold War represented a balance of power between the US and the Soviet Union. A balance of power is when countries are about equal in strength. The balance of power was tested and became very tense (almost causing an actual war) in 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The cold war A limited war was fought between noncommunist nations and communist nations between 1951 and 1973. A limited war is a war where countries do not use all of their military power (especially not nuclear weapons) in fighting against their enemies. The Korean War (1951-1953) and the Vietnam War (1954-1975) are examples of limited wars.

The cold war In 1985, a détente, or lessening of tensions (between the U.S. and the USSR) was announced by the Soviet Union as their empire began to collapse economically and politically. By 1991, the USSR was no more and became divided into many different nations.

23.3 new trends in united states foreign policy

New Trends in foreign policy Russia and Eastern Europe Russia continues to strive to build up its country economically after the seventy years of communist control. Just like the U.S., Russia has been the target of terrorist attacks within the last 10 years. Russia has begun the process of becoming a member of NATO.

New Trends in foreign policy Iraq Saddam Hussein was an autocrat who ruled Iraq. In 1990, he invaded neighboring Kuwait, but the U.S. drove him out in 1991. In 2003, the U.S. again went into Iraq as a punishment for not following up with promises to allow weapons inspections. In 2003, Saddam was toppled from power and the U.S. continues to help Iraq establish a democratic society.

New Trends in foreign policy Israel and Palestine Israel was created after World War II as a country for the Jewish people. However, conflict has arisen between the Israelis and the Palestinians who also live in the area and are Muslim Arabs. Several wars have occurred since 1948 and each side continues to strike back after each attack. A cycle of violence has continued, and the U.S. has tried to work out peace solutions many times.

New Trends in foreign policy India and Pakistan Since the creation of these nations in 1947, these countries have fought three wars. Now, both countries have nuclear weapons. Therefore the U.S. tries to keep both sides calm so that no nuclear war breaks out. The U.S. has decent relations with both countries.

New Trends in foreign policy Africa Over the past several decades, the continent has been shaken by several wars. Diseases such as AIDS have spread, and human tragedies such as those in the Darfur region of Sudan have captured some attention from the U.S. The UN has taken responsibilities for many peacekeeping jobs in Africa, including in Darfur. Recently a new country, South Sudan was created to help stop the Sudanese Civil War.

New Trends in foreign policy Latin America and Canada The U.S. tries to increase good trade relations with the other countries in North and South America. This is done through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Another important topic in Latin America is the U.S.’s War on Drugs. The War on Drugs is an organized effort to end the trade and use of illegal drugs. Also, the U.S. has continued to enforce an embargo on Cuba. An embargo is a government order forbidding trade with a certain country or group.

New Trends in foreign policy Iran Recently, Iran has begun to create facilities for processing nuclear material. They claim it is for nuclear power plants, but the U.S. and other nations fear it will be used to create a nuclear weapon that could be used against the U.S. or its allies, or given to terrorists to use against innocent people. The negotiations are sometimes intense between Iran and other nations about this issue.

New Trends in foreign policy September 11, 2001 On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked four airplanes in the U.S. and flew them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon (and another crashed into a field in Pennsylvania).

New Trends in foreign policy The World Trade Center is a business complex in New York City containing two tall skyscrapers. The Pentagon is the headquarters of the U.S. military leadership. Terrorists are individuals who use violence to achieve political goals.

New Trends in foreign policy This attack killed several thousand innocent Americans. The terrorist group who did this was Al Qaeda (which was led by Osama bin Laden). Another group, the Taliban, who ruled most of the country of Afghanistan, allowed Al Qaeda to stay in their country.

New Trends in foreign policy The U.S. military and its NATO allies responded by invading the country and, with the help of the Northern Alliance, took the Taliban out of power in Afghanistan. The Northern Alliance is an Afghan group that fought against the Taliban. This battle to stabilize Afghanistan’s new government is still going on today.