Chapter 18: Foreign Policy Flashcards
What does foreign policy involve?
making choices about relations with the rest of the world
What are three factors of foreign policies?
- military
- economic
- diplomatic
What is an example of an international organization?
- The United Nations
- best known international organization
- created after end of WWII to create global unity, USA wanted to be front and center
- almost every country sends a representative to discuss global issues
Who is on the UN’s security council? What do they do?
- 15 members
- 5 permanent seats - the Allies in WWII (USA, UK, Russia, China, France)
- 10 seats rotate every two years
- decide how to intervene with country’s actions (e.g. authorize military force, sanction country)
- orders only work if other countries want to obey
Regional Organizations
consists of several nations bound by a treaty
What are examples of regional organizations?
- the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
- military alliance between its member nations
- the European Union
- transnational government composed of European Nations
What are other actors on the world stage?
Those who influence global relations.
- multinational corporations
- terrorists
- individuals
- nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)
- e.g. churches, labor unions, environmental and wildlife groups
Who is primarily in charge of America’s foreign policy? How do they establish these policies?
- the president
- chief diplomat (diplomatic relations) and commander in chief (military relations)
- through treaties or executive agreements
What cabinet departments influence foreign policy?
- the State Department
- foreign policy arm - handles America’s relationships with foreign countries
- Department of Defense
- foreign policy and military policy are linked
How can Congress shape foreign policy?
- authority over foreign and military policy
- declare war
- raise and organize armed forces
- fund national security
What do trade and economic policies accomplish?
- sustain economic growth in the USA and abroad
- export goods produced by the USA
What are examples of trade and economic policies?
- tariffs - taxes on imported goods
- trade agreements
- economic sanctions on America’s enemies
- total trade embargo - government does absolutely no trade with a country, established by Congress
Isolationism
distance themselves from foreign events and allies
What caused the USA to move away from isolationism?
- Monroe Doctrine
- declaration to Europe - USA is willing to back up the Latin American countries
- isolationism officially ended with the beginning of WWII
After WWII, what happened to the status of the USA and their alliances?
- USA emerged as a world power
- alliances with most of Western Europe
Containment
- policy that emerged to isolate the Soviet Union
- prevent the spread of communism and Soviet influence
What are the two rival alliances in the Cold War?
-
NATO - alliance by USA Canada, and western European nations
- a collective defense against communist advances
-
Warsaw Pact - alliance by Soviet Union
- dissolved in 1991
After the communists won the Chinese Civil War, how did USA react?
- took a more aggressive stance against the spread of communism
- enforce containment
In the Korean War, USA defended South Korea. How did it end?
- a ceasefire agreement after a stalemate
- considered a victory
- South Korea remains independent, communism does not spread
In the Vietnam War, the USA defended South Vietnam. How did this war impact the USA and its foreign policies?
- first televised war, had minimal censorship
- Americans were horrified, turned against war
- foreign policy focused on diplomacy
Détente
ease tensions between countries (USA & USSR)
adopted by Nixon during the Cold War
After the Vietnam War, what happened to the USA’s defense budget?
decreased
What caused the USA’s defense budget to increase? How much of its budget goes to defense?
- 9/11
- 1/5 of budget
What caused the end of the Cold War?
collapse of communist governments across Eastern Europe
What are military interventions that align with the USA’s humanitarian goals?
- ethnic conflicts
- natural disasters
What are examples of foreign aid?
money, products, services, weapons
What goals does foreign aid aim to achieve?
- meet fundamental human needs
- stimulate economic growth in other countries
- facilitate international agreements
