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We live in a world where crisis and controversy are constant forces challenging peace, security and stability. In this international arena that is fraught with ill will and danger, the United States has often been called upon to employ its military strength, its diplomatic reputation and its economic clout to respond to these crises and controversies. United States foreign policy and the governing institutions that implement policy have become critical ingredients in our approach to international affairs. While this country’s domestic policy agenda has in the main been the centerpiece of public opinion and government decisions, disputes between countries and regions are now so contentious that our foreign policy is an important part of our national identity; we have become to coin a most used phrase, the “leader of the free world.”

In today’s international arena, the United States has been called upon to respond to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the war in Gaza, terrorist activity in the Middle East, the nuclear threats from Iran and North Korea, the impact of climate change, food insecurity and population migration on individual nations and regions, and China’s economic and military challenges to Taiwan and the countries in the South China Sea. Each one of these challenges and threats has the potential to create a localized if not global war situation that would most likely require United States involvement. As the “leader of the free world,” the United States has become the “go-to” nation as an arbiter of peace, a guarantor of security, and a force for stability.

The role of the United States in foreign policy is based on a series of fundamental goals that serve as the sources of its position as “leader of the free world.” At the core of its foreign policy goal is national self-interest. The United States is first and foremost concerned that its involvement in the world arena advances and protects our national interests. In many cases, the foreign policy establishment— the President, the National Security Council, the State Department, the Central Intelligence Agency and other intelligence and policy organizations — will carefully and cautiously analyze how our involvement in a particular international crisis or controversy impacts our country and whether the United States should use its power and prestige to become involved in a response. For example, the Biden administration was convinced that the Russian invasion of Ukraine was a direct threat to national sovereignty, democracy, and regional stability and that our involvement as a key member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) required us to take a central role in supporting Ukraine through military assistance, diplomatic negotiations, and intelligence gathering.

Also, of great importance as a foreign policy goal is the advancement of democratic values and human rights. The United States has presented itself as a nation committed to supporting the key elements of democratic government such as the rule of law, representative government, peaceful transfer of power, free and fair elections, equal rights and personal freedom. The transfer of these fundamental democratic goals is not always achievable in a particular nation or region or are poorly executed by the United States. Nevertheless, the United States remains a staunch voice for democratic governance in the world and joins with its allies in providing advice and assistance to those nations anxious to establish and sustain the basic elements of democracy. As former President Jimmy Carter, the champion of making human rights and democratic governance as the standards of U.S. foreign policy stated, “Human rights is the soul of our foreign policy because human rights is the very soul of our sense of nationhood.”

An increasingly important foundational pillar of United States foreign policy is expanding economic cooperation with allies and those countries who view this country as a vital partner in development. Whether it be regional agreements such as the economic relationship with Canada and Mexico, the ties to countries in the Asian Rim such as Japan, the Philippines and South Korea, and the trading links with the countries in Europe such as Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain, the United States foreign policy decision makers view economic cooperation as central to our national interests and a critical means of domestic development. This cooperative spirit also can be found in our desire to strengthen the role of the United Nations and other international organizations in areas such as peacekeeping, responding to natural calamities and humanitarian assistance. The United States is the largest contributor to international agencies such as the United Nations along with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund which provide financial assistance to those nations facing severe economic challenges.

The war in Gaza brings us to the final and perhaps most important foundation of United States foreign policy. As the Israelis used their superior air and land forces to root out the Hamas organization in Gaza and extricate hundreds of hostages held in underground fortresses, the Biden administration and particularly Secretary of State Antony Blinken have been working for months with representatives from the Egyptian and Qatar governments to reach a ceasefire deal with the Israelis and the Hamas regime. Diplomatic negotiations to bring about peace and stability in troubled areas has been the hallmark of United States foreign policy. Talking to adversaries and seeking to bring together waring nations or groups for the purpose of ending hostilities has always been at the center of how the United States operates in the international community. Even though the United States has the most advanced military in the world, it has shied away from using force to bring about a solution to a dangerous crisis. Talking through a problem, finding a compromise and creating the parameters for an end to hostilities have always been the way forward for the United States. Sadly, in the case of the Gaza war, diplomatic negotiations have so far failed as both the Israelis and Hamas have refused to find a middle way and the creation of a long-term solution, but Secretary Blinken and others in our foreign policy establishment continue to view diplomacy as the answer not war.

In many ways United States foreign policy is the most difficult and frustrating aspect of government decision making. Finding effective policy initiatives to respond to a crisis or a controversy often requires joining forces with reluctant allies, dealing with intransigent adversaries, concluding complicated economic agreements, and gaining the trust and cooperation of those countries that do not have the same national interests or concerns. But if the United States is to remain as the “leader of the free world” and work to foster a climate of cooperation and stability, it is vital to fashion and foster a foreign policy that achieves peace and avoids war.