1. Foreign & Defense Policy
Chapter 14
Foreign & Defense Policy

2. What is Foreign Policy?
Nation’s external goals and techniques/strategies used to achieve them
American foreign policy includes national security policy, which is policy designed to protect the independence and the political and economic integrity of the United States

3. Tools of Foreign Policy
Diplomacy = process by which states carry on relations with each other (can also mean settling conflicts among nations through peaceful means)
Economic aid = assistance to other nations through grants, loans or credits to buy the assisting nation’s products
Technical assistance = sending individuals with expertise in agriculture, engineering or business to aid other nations

4. Competing Views of Foreign Policy
Moral idealism = views nations as willing to cooperate and agree on moral standards for conduct; tied to liberal institutionalism, international organizations (e.g., UN, WTO)
Political realism = sees each nation acting principally in its own interest; tied to realpolitik; emphasis on anarchy at the international system level; maximizing power, influence; use of alliances; arms control
US foreign policy consists of both strains

5. Challenges in World Politics
Terrorism
Nuclear proliferation (along with proliferation of other WMD’s)
China – increasing power and influence; 21st Century will be China’s
Global economy – dependence on oil, attempts to rationalize world economy
Regional conflicts – ongoing; persistent

6. Powers of the President in Foreign Policy
Constitutional Powers (expressed and inherent/implied)
Solemnly swears to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States”
Commander in chief of the military
Make treaties (which are later ratified by the Senate)
Executive agreements
Appoints ambassadors

7. Powers of the President in Foreign Policy, (cont.)
Informal powers
Access to information
Legislative leader who can influence Congress’s foreign policy
Influence public opinion
Commit nation morally to a course of action

8. Other Sources of Foreign Policy
Department of State
Supervises relations with other independent nations and with multinational organizations like the United Nations
Staffs embassies
Power has declined since World War II
Has “negative constituents,” Americans who oppose aspects of U.S. foreign policy

9. Other Sources of Foreign Policy (cont.)
National Security Council
Advises the president on policies relating to national security
Provides continuity from one presidential administration to the next

10. Other Sources of Foreign Policy (cont.)
Intelligence community = includes government organizations involved in information gathering about the capabilities and intentions of other countries
Some agencies in the intelligence community include
the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
National Security Agency (NSA)
Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

11. Other Sources of Foreign Policy (cont.)
Department of Defense
Largest federal department, created in 1947
Designed to bring all military activities under the jurisdiction of a single agency headed by a civil secretary of defense
Size of military significantly reduced
Seen reductions in civilian employees

12. Other Sources of Foreign Policy (cont.)
Congress
Elite opinion
Mass opinion
attentive public = 10-20% of the population that pays attention to foreign policy issues
Military-industrial complex = mutually beneficial relationship between armed forces and defense contractors; concern of Eisenhower

13. Major Foreign Policy Themes
“Negative” foreign policy during 1700 and 1800’s (Isolationism)
Mistrust of Europe
Militarily weak
Shaped by the Monroe Doctrine (no new European colonies in the Western Hemisphere; no European intervention; no US intervention in European affairs)
Spanish–American War and World War I
Seen as temporary entanglements
Lasted from
Followed by a resurgence of isolationism

14. Major Foreign Policy Themes, (cont.)
Era of Internationalism
Began with bombing of Pearl Harbor and U.S. entry into World War II
Resulted in significant increases in defense spending
America emerged from World War II with a strengthened economy
America was first nuclear superpower

15. The Cold War
= Ideological, political, and economic impasse that existed between the U.S. and the USSR following the end of their WWII alliance
U.S. foreign policy dominated by containment, the idea of limiting Communist power to its (then) existing countries (Truman doctrine)
Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) was the closest the superpowers came to direct confrontation
Détente between the U.S. and the Soviet Union occurred in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s

16. The Cold War (cont.)
During the 1980’s, the Reagan administration lobbied for the development of the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI or “Star Wars”), and also negotiated significant arms control treaties
End of Communist rule in eastern Europe in 1989
Dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991

17. Discussion questions Was the invasion of Iraq justified?
What are the most significant foreign policy challenges facing the world today?
What is the best way to combat terrorism?
Does the executive branch have too much power in determining foreign and military policy?
Why is the “attentive public” so small in the United States?

18. Hot Links to Selected Internet Resources:
Book’s Companion Site:
Wadsworth’s Political Science Site:
U.S. Department of State:
The Brookings Institution:
Central Intelligence Agency: