Warm-up:

• What is foreign policy?

• a policy pursued by a nation in its dealings with other nations, designed to achieve national objectives

21st-Century United States

Foreign Policy & America’s Role in the World

Factors that shaped Foreign Policy• Economics

– Multi-national corporations– Economic power elite– Military industrial complex

• Ideology– Vision of national greatness—America’s mission– Racial hierarchy– Extremely anti-revolutionary– Unilateralism—acting alone and independent

• Domestic politics– Most Americans are ill-informed– Nation of immigrants– Can’t appear weak

• Rise of Imperial President– Bypass checks & balances– Violates foundation of American government

• Resource wars– oil

Policy up to 2000

• Isolationism to War with Spain 1898• Isolationism & Imperialism to WWI—Lusitania• Isolationist to WWII—Pearl Harbor 1941• Containment to End of Cold War• Nation-building to September 11, 2001– Upholding international order– Nipping aggression in the bud—respond to

aggression– America’s “credibility” as a superpower

It took a primary role in financing and managing the World Bank, which helps developing nations with issues such as health care, human rights, and poverty.

The U.S. believes that developing countries with stable economies are vital to its own security.

With the Cold War over, the U.S. had to redefine its role in the world.

U.S. Military Intervention in the 1990s

Many Americans favored economic support for foreign countries. Just as many feared lending military support to embattled nations.

But Clinton felt several conflicts demanded U.S intervention.

1992 – Somalia

1994 – Haiti

In the Balkans, the fall of communism brought about the destabilization of Yugoslavia.

Long-simmering ethnic and religious tensions came to a boil in the region. A brutal civil war erupted between Serbs, Bosnians, and Croats.

In 1995, NATO bombed Serbian strongholds in order to end their brutal practice of ethnic cleansing in Bosnia.

Fighting between the Israelis and Palestinians became more violent, threatening to destabilize the entire region.

In 2000, Clinton brought Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat and Israeli leader Ehud Barak to Camp David to broker a peace agreement between them. It was not successful.

Conflict in the Middle East increased in the 1990s.

The U.S. itself became a target of Middle Eastern extremists.

A terrorist group called al Qaeda exploded a bomb in the World Trade Center in New York City in 1993.

The group also set off bombs killing more 225 people at American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

In 2000, they attacked the USS Cole, a warship anchored off Yemen, killing 17 American sailors.

American leaders learned that fighting terrorism would be extremely difficult.

America’s Foreign Policy 2001• 2001—George Bush Administration

– September 11, 2001– Preventative war– “Changing” international order– More intimidation than of credibility

• War on terrorism– WMDs---there were none– alQaeda & Hussein—truthfully they were enemies– Manipulation of evidence & misleading public– Invasion of Iraq—undermined economy & social welfare system– Iraq has 10% of world oil reserves

• Bush--- “our troops ought to be used to fight and win war. I think our troops ought to be used to help overthrow the dictator when it’s in our best interests”

America’s Foreign Policy

• In the United States “national interests”– Democracy– Economics/Trade– Big business profit---outsourcing

• 2010-advancing American interests– Security of American people– Growing U.S. economy– Support for our values– An international order that can address 21st-Century

challenges

Activity:• Defining Moment• Superpower