Howard Yin

March 3, 2016
AP GOPO
Pattersons Outlines
Chapter 17: Foreign Policy
National interest: what is best for the nation in terms of protecting its physical
security and way of life; the cornerstone of foreign policy
Chief instruments of foreign policy differs from that of domestic policy:
o Diplomacy: negotiation between countries; Department of State,
Secretary of Statecoordinates efforts of US embassies abroad, each
directed by US ambassador, international organizations eg. UN
o Military power; Department of Defense, secretary of defenseoversees
the military services + works through alliances eg. NATO
o Intelligence gathering: monitoring other countries activities; specialized
federal agencies eg. CIA, NSA
o Economic exchange: international trade and foreign aid; promoted by
range of US agencies eg. Agriculture, Labor, Commerce, Treasury
Department and
specialty agencies eg.
Federal Trade
Commission +
International
organizations eg. World
Trade Organization,
World Bank, IMF
Since World War II, the United
States has acted in the role of
world leader, which has
substantially affected its
military, diplomatic, and economic policies
The US maintains a high degree of defense preparedness, which requires a
substantial level of defense spending and a worldwide deployment of US
conventional and strategic forces
Changes in the international marketplace have led to increased economic
interdependence among nations, which has had a marked influence on the US
economy and on Americas security planning
The Roots of US Foreign and Defense Policy
Before WWII, US mostly isolationist country, preoccupied with internal
development and intent on avoiding European entanglements
Became internationalist country during WWII
Adopted the doctrine of containment (the notion that Soviet aggression could be
stopped only by the determined use of American power); rooted in failed efforts to
appease Hitler before WWII
I
The Cold War Era
a cold war: two nations not directly engaged in actual combat, but were
locked in deep-seated hostilities (lasted 45 years); US and Russia
b structure of international power was bipolar
i bipolar: each side was supreme in its sphere and was blocked by
the power of the other form expanding its influence
c US driven by domino theory; stopped at Vietnam

II

III

IV

Lesson of Vietnam: there were limits to the countrys ability to assert its
will in the world; US could no longer act as the free worlds long ranger
and sought to reduce tension with communist countries
i visited China,
ii initiated Strategy Arms Limitation Talks (SALT)
e peace lasted until Soviets invaded Afghanistan and US became hard on
USSR again
f USSR collapsed from heavy defense expenditures, isolation from Western
technology, and inefficient centralized economy
g International structure became unipolar; US became worlds unrivaled
military superpower
A New World OrderBush!
a Advocated for multilateralism: the idea that major nations should act
together in response to problems and crises; eg. NATO
i Defined US response to Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, in
a way helped Gulf war become military triumph but less so in other
ways
ii Carried over to Clinton administrationSerbs ethnic cleansing
iii Multilateralism was not a wholly successful strategy for resolving
international conflicts; no guarantee of long-term success
The War on Terrorism
a Bush jr. rejected multilateral approach; after 9/11, urged other nations to
join war on terrorism
b Resulted in formation of new agency: Department of Homeland Security
(DHS)
i Responsibilities: securing the nations borders, enhancing defense
against biological attacks, preparing emergency personnel for their
roles in responding to terrorist attacks, and coordinating efforts to
stop domestic terrorism
c First military action: attack on Afghanistan right after 9/11; toppled al
Qaeda but didnt capture leaders
The Iraq War
a Preemptive war doctrine: the US would not wait until it was attacked by
hostile nations, but would take preemptive action; first-strike option
before threat
became imminent
i
Preemptive
war v.
preventive
war
b Bush targeted
Iraq regime under
Hussein claiming
that it had WMD
c Congress
authorized use of
military force
against Iraq if it
did not disarm
voluntarily
d UN started
inspection, and
US, against the UN and several other nations, invaded Iraq March 2003
e Unilateralism: one nation takes action against another state or states

US admitted that it had greatly exaggerated the extent of Iraqs weapons

program
g Opinion of US dropped; bore most burden in financial costs, casualties,
and reconstruction
V
The Afghanistan Escalation
a After shifting focus to Iraq, situation in Afghanistan deteriorate, and
Obama sent in more troops, urging NATO to help
b Threefold purpose of escalation:
i Disrupt Taliban resurgence
ii Speed the training of Afghan army and police
iii Provide a level of security that would strengthen Afghans
confidence in their government
c Obama announced start of troop withdrawal in 2011
d Iraq and Afghanistan shows that unilateralism has limits; US cant bear
burden of both Iraq and Afghanistan
The Military Dimension of National Security Policy
US has highest defense budget in the world
VI
Military Power, Uses, and Capabilities
a Nuclear War
i Deterrence policy: based on the concept of mutually assured
destruction; any nation would be deterred from launching a fullscale nuclear attack by the knowledge that, even if it destroyed the
US, it too would be obliterated
ii Nuclear triad: the three ways that nuclear weapons can be
launched; provides second strike capability
1 Land-based missiles
2 Submarine-based missiles
3 Bombers
iii Bigger fear is nuclear weapons smuggled into US and detonated
iv US and USSR working together to stop spread of WMD
b Conventional War
i Havent fought all-out conventional war since WWII, but can fight
two medium wars simultaneously
ii US relies on all-volunteer military force; and has huge stockpile of
technology and weapons; no other nation has anywhere near the
advanced weapons systems that the US possesses
iii US military effective in fighting a limited conventional war
c Unconventional (Guerrilla) War
i Unconventional war required wining the support of the people
ii Fought with small and highly mobile combat units that can provide
security to local populations and can seek out insurgent forces;
provide indigenous military and police forces with training and
equipment needed in order to gradually assume responsibility for
nations security
iii US military not trained or designed to fight unconventional wars
d Transnational Terrorism
i US not prepared for terrorist attack at time when 9/11 happened
ii Transnational terrorism: terrorism that transcends national borders
and includes attacks on nonmilitary targets
iii US war on terrorism aimed at groups such as al Qaeda
iv Terrorists wage asymmetric wars instead of directly engaging
military forces
v Waged through military force, intelligence gathering, law
enforcement, foreign aid, international cooperation, and
immigration control

VII

The Politics of National Defense

a Policy elites, public opinion, and special interests all play important roles
in national defense policy
b US usually backs judgment of political leaders on use of military force
c If war begins to seem endless, public support decreases
d Public has influence on war policy, but not informed or involved enough to
affect most national security policies; decided mostly by president as well
as Congress, top experts and military officers
e Defense industry also has influence
f Military-industrial complex: the military establishment, the arms industry,
and members of Congress from states and districts that depend heavily
on the arms industry; all three benefit from high level of defense spending;
Eisenhower warned against them!
The Economic Dimension of National Security Policy
3 major economic centers: US (25%), EU (25%), Japan and China (15%)
US weakest because of large trade deficit and more imports than exports, but
strongest because more competitive due to technology, financial institutions, and
higher education system, and also most diversified
Goals of US in world economy:
o Sustaining a stable and open system of trade that will promote prosperity
at home
o Maintaining access to oil and other natural resources vital to the strength
of the US economy
o Preventing the widening gap between rich and poor countries from
destabilizing the world economy
VIII
Promoting Global Trade
a After WWII, US
asserted economic
power over other
nations, US
currency became
leading currency of
international trade,
initiated Marshall
Plangive aid to
Europe for
recovering so that
there would be a
market for American
products
b US economy
depends heavily on
international
commerce
c
Multinational/transnational corporations: have operations in more than one
country
i Sometimes engage in activities that conflict with Americas foreign
policy goals
d Economic globalization: the increased interdependence of nations
economies
i Both opportunity and threat to US interests

Free trade: barriers to international trade should be kept to a minimum;

when international commerce works best
i Proponents: long-term economic interests of all countries are
advance when tariffs and other trade barriers are kept to a
minimum; net gain for firms and consumersNorth Atlantic Free
Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
1 US a leading proponent for free trade
ii Protectionism: domestic producers should be protected form
foreign competitors; tariff on imports
1 Usually stronger in Congress than in White House
f Economists argue that economic distribution is an inevitable result of
market change and that firms should try to adapt to the change rather
than turn to government for protection, but elected officials need shortterm results for votes!
g Trade deficit with China a growing concern, as well as the fact that it hold
more than $1 trillion in US treasury bonds
IX
Maintaining Access to Oil and Other Natural Resources
a For decades, US used economic and military power to protect access to
natural resources, esp. oil; it only provides a third of what the nation
consumes; gets most of its oil form Canada and Latin America
b Since WWII, US acquired foothold in Middle East region when its oil
companies acquired a stake in Middle Easter oil fields
c Influence of oil on US foreign policy is big; 1991 Gulf War driven by
concern with oil as well as 2003 Iraqi invasion
X
Assisting Developing Nations
a Industrialized nations benefit because with growth comes greater political
stability as well as markets for the goods and services that industrialized
nations produce
b Provides foreign aid and indirect assistance through international
organizations (IMF, WB)
c Since WWII, US is leading source of aid to developing countries, but
costly wars have weakened its ability to strengthen position in world
through use of foreign aid; China fill gap
d US public believes US spends tons on foreign aid and is not supportive of
it
A Challenging World
Terrorist threat grown beyond what policymakers expected; international terrorism
larger problem today than it was when US was attacked in 2001
US military intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq mobilized Islamic extremists
around the globe
Challenge of global economy: some predict American economy gaining
momentum, others predict its downfall