CHAPTER 19 FOREIGN AND DEFENSE POLICY Ideally, we have quality statesmen implementing our

foreign policy. With effective foreign policy, there is no need for defense policy. From this perspective, military actions are the result of failed foreign policy.

Unfortunately, this is a naïve and idealized vision of international relations. There will always be disagreements between nations with both sides seeing themselves as holding the moral highground.

For decades, imperial powers dominated colonies with the rationalization of their bringing them civilization and Christianity. Later, this justification was replaced with industrialization and democracy.

US AS ISOLATIONIST Protectionism – “A trade policy wherein a

country closes off its markets to foreign goods.”

Usually these policies are used to protect infant industries as countries attempt to develop new industries through Import Substituting Industrialization. The goal is to reduce the developing country’s trade imbalance with Western countries. Usually they take the form of tariffs, duties, quotas and other barriers to entry.

US AS ISOLATIONIST Non-interventionism – A policy position that avoids

alliances with other countries and avoids war except in self-defense. Diplomacy is still pursued, but there are no agreements that might drag the country into war in defense of an ally.

The US followed a non-interventionist policy in both WWI (1914-1918) and WWII (1939-1945), although we did supply arms to the Triple Entente and the Allied armies. US enters WWI following sinking of US merchant ships

and release of the Zimmermann telegram (1917) US enters WWII following the attack on Pearl Harbor

(1941)

US AS ISOLATIONIST Isolationism – “A national policy of

avoiding participation in foreign affairs.”

It would be reasonable to look at the relationship in this manner:

Protectionism (economic policy)+ Non-interventionism (military policy)

Isolationism (foreign policy)

US AS ISOLATIONIST Monroe Doctrine: “1823 pledge that the United

States would oppose attempts by European states to extend their political control into the Western Hemisphere.”

It is generally believed that the policy was relatively meaningless as the US likely did not have the firepower to enforce the Doctrine. France and England were busy fighting between themselves, the Spanish had squandered their wealth, and other nations had little interest in imperial conquest in the Western World.

PROTECTIONIST POLICIES Alexander Hamilton, the 1st Secretary of

State outlined a plan for the industrialization of the Northeast with protectionist tariffs to help infant industries.

Tariffs: “Taxes on imported goods.”

FREE TRADE TERMINOLOGY Reciprocity: to treat foreign traders in the

same way that foreign countries treat American traders. This is what people are usually talking about when they talk about “fair trade”.

Most favored nation status: Guarantees “that a country’s imports into the United States would be given the lowest possible tariffs, or taxes on imported goods.”

Granting most favored nation status without reciprocity is unilateral disarmament.

ROOSEVELT COROLLARY “Concept developed by President Theodore

Roosevelt early in the twentieth century declaring that it was the responsibility of the United States to assure stability in Latin America and the Caribbean.”

This was the beginning of US interventionist policies in Latin America and East Asia. It was the beginning of American imperialism as US military force was used to back up the economic power of US corporations.

ROOSEVELT COROLLARY

DOLLAR DIPLOMACY “To President Taft, this was not economic imperialism

because the United States was not trying to exploit others, but rather aiming to bring prosperity to both the local population and American investors.”

It was the president of United Fruit, Sam Zemurray, who infamously said of Honduran officials; “A mule costs more than a deputy.”

LEAGUE OF NATIONS Collective security: “The idea that an attack on one

country is an attack on all countries.” Wilson’s 14 points and the Treaty of Versailles. Wilson

was a major player in the writing of the peace agreement. Many of the 14 points were unworkable, only three remained.

Ratification was delayed by concerns regarding Article 10 which involved collective security.

The Treaty was held up in the Foreign Relations Committee by Republican Senator Henry Cabot Lodge who openly admitted he hated Wilson.

Wilson went on a nationwide tour to promote the Treaty with the public (bully pulpit) when he suffered a stroke.

Without Wilson and the bully pulpit, Lodge was able to defeat the Treaty.

WORLD WAR II Hiroshima and Nagasaki – Not the most civilian

deaths in Japan. The US bombed the wooden cities of Japan with incendiary bombs for 7 months with an estimated 500,000 Japanese deaths. Truman’s decision to drop the bomb is believed to have been timed for two purposes. Achieve surrender quickly in order to halt the forward progress of the Soviet Union, and to demonstrate to the Soviets that the United States now had an atomic weapon.

INTERNATIONALISM REPLACES ISOLATIONISM

Bretton Woods System – International financial system developed after WWII to stabilize economic relationships and hopefully avoid future wars. Economic stability = political stability.

United Nations: Remained largely ineffective due to US and Soviet veto power in the UN security council

INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND (IMF) “to stabilize international currency

transactions.” Focus on exchange-rates, international

trade, and economic co-operation. Headquartered in Washington DC,

Director is from Europe.

WORLD BANK “to provide loans for large economic

development projects.” HQ in Washington DC President nominated by US President. Former Chief Economists include Larry

Summers and Joseph Stiglitz

GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE (GATT) “facilitate international trade negotiations

and promote free trade.” World Trade Organization (WTO) was added

as new obligations to members. GATT was a set of rules, WTO was an

institutional organization. GATT was about the trade of goods, the WTO expanded into agreements on trading services and enforcing intellectual property rights.

Brazil and India had had property rights and state owned drug companies. These countries saw access to medication as being a basic human right and drug patents as inappropriate. They were forced to change their laws regarding generic drug manufacturing. Once India changed its laws, American companies were quick to buy Indian companies and outsource manufacturing.

THE COLD WAR AND THE TRUMAN DOCTRINE “US policy initiated in 1947 to provide economic

assistance and military aid to countries fighting against communist revolutions or political pressure.”

Truman Doctrine was a policy of containment (stopping the spread of communism) through a system of sticks and carrots.

The common concern of the time was the domino theory – a belief that if one country falls to communism that its neighbors will be soon to follow.

THE CARROT The United States used its economic power

to extend loans to those countries that remained Pro-American through the Cold War. Loans could be used for reconstruction or repressing opposition. We often found ourselves supporting authoritarian regimes in this period out of fear that they would become communist otherwise. Western Europe rebuilt following WWII while those countries under Soviet influence did not.

THE STICK Two forms:

Support for revolution, civil war, or coups. Often covert and usually operating through the CIA. CIA covert operations for regime change were usually the response to socialist regimes, the nationalization of the oil industry, or both. Too many to name here, but the list includes Cuba, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

Proxy wars: The US and the Soviet Union are patrons for third parties who act as substitutes for a conflict. Direct engagement between the nuclear powers is avoided. The Arab-Israeli Conflict is an example of a proxy war with the Israelis being our proxy and the Arab states being the proxy for the Soviet Union. This involvement led to the 1973 oil embargo of the US.

NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER As we discussed earlier, the use of

military means is often seen as a failure of diplomacy.

The job of the State Department is peace, the job of the Department of Defense is war. These separate departments have different perspectives, interests, and agendas. The purpose of a National Security Adviser is to provide an objective opinion of an appropriate course of action.

BUSINESS INTEREST GROUPS Lobbying for better arrangements

through foreign policy. For example, PhRMA heavily lobbied the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to stand fast on WTO negotiations regarding intellectual property rights. This proved to be embarrassing for the US when we stood alone in opposition to an amendment that would allow country’s with a serious AIDS crisis to get cheaper generic medications.

MEXICAN CONTRACT LABOR PROGRAM 1942-1964 Workers would migrate north for work,

work the agricultural season, then go home. This was the only way that cotton farmers of the time could get their crops harvested. This is the kind of policy that they are talking about when we here about worker programs. However, it could also apply to engineering jobs that foreign workers would be willing to take at a much lower wage. While most other nations have socialized or subsidized higher education, American students typically leave school tens of thousands of dollars in debt.

OBAMA AND THE SALT TREATY Strategic Arms Limitation Talks – President

Obama had negotiated a treaty for arms reduction with Russia but the Republicans in Congress were blocking its passage. These republicans were chastised by former Republican secretaries of State Henry Kissinger (Nixon) and George Schultz (Reagan)

POWER Hard power – coercion through military

might or economic power. (sticks) Soft power – Persuasion through

diplomacy and assistance. (carrots)