Foreign Policy: Processes, Powers, and Theories in International Relations

Foreign policy

Goals and actions a government takes in the international system

Foreign policy process

Inputs → decisions → outputs → outcomes → feedback

Inputs in foreign policy

Events pressures or problems that require action

Outputs in foreign policy

Actual decisions or actions taken by government

Outcomes in foreign policy

Results or effects of policy decisions

Feedback in foreign policy

Outcomes that create new inputs and future decisions

President foreign policy powers

Commander in chief controls military conducts diplomacy uses executive agreements

Congress foreign policy powers

Declare war control funding regulate military confirm appointments

President vs Congress relationship

President acts quickly Congress controls money and long term authority

Executive agreements

International agreements made by president without Senate approval

How presidents circumvent Congress

Use executive agreements covert actions limited military actions and alternative funding

War Powers Act

1973 law requiring president to notify Congress within 48 hours and limit troop deployment to 60 days

War Powers Act reality

Presidents often bypass or stretch rules Congress rarely enforces

War powers tension

Ongoing conflict between executive and legislative authority in military decisions

Iran Contra scandal

Reagan administration secretly sold weapons to Iran and used profits to fund Contras despite congressional ban

Boland Amendment

Law prohibiting U.S. funding of Contras in Nicaragua

Iran Contra significance

Example of president bypassing Congress using off the books funding

Bureaucracy in foreign policy

Government agencies that provide information implement policy and influence decisions

CIA role

Collects and analyzes intelligence for national security decisions

Department of Defense role

Manages military forces and defense strategy

State Department role

Handles diplomacy and relations with other countries

Bureaucratic influence

Agencies compete shape decisions and control information

Parochialism

Agencies focus on their own interests rather than national goals

Careerism

Officials act to protect careers and avoid risk

Siloing

Breakdown in communication where agencies do not share information

Siloing example

Failure of CIA and FBI to share intelligence before 9/11

Rational actor model

State acts as a single logical actor choosing best option to maximize national interest

Limit of rational actor model

Ignores internal conflict bureaucracy and imperfect information

Incrementalism

Policy changes made gradually in small steps

Mission creep

Initial goal of policy expands over time

Mission creep example

Afghanistan shifting from counterterrorism to nation building

Unintended consequences

Policies create unexpected or negative outcomes

Types of war conventional

State vs state organized military conflict example Gulf War

Types of war irregular

Asymmetric conflict using guerrilla tactics example Vietnam War

Types of war civil war

Conflict within a country example Syrian Civil War

Types of war proxy war

Major powers support sides indirectly example Cold War conflicts

Types of war war on terror

State vs non state networks example Afghanistan after 9/11

Unilateralism

Country acts alone without allies

Multilateralism

Country works with allies or international institutions

Isolationism

Avoiding involvement in global affairs

Internationalism

Active engagement in global affairs

Neutrality

Remaining out of conflicts

Realism theory

States prioritize power security and survival in an anarchic system

Liberalism theory

Cooperation institutions and trade reduce conflict

Idealism theory

Foreign policy guided by values democracy and human rights

Constructivism theory

Ideas identity and perceptions shape international behavior

Anarchy international system

No central authority above states

National interest

Primary goals of a state focused on security and prosperity

International institutions

Organizations that facilitate cooperation between states

External context foreign policy

International system power relations and global norms influence decisions

Internal context foreign policy

Domestic politics public opinion and economy shape decisions

Ideational context foreign policy

Beliefs ideology and identity influence choices

American exceptionalism

Belief that the U.S. is unique and has a special role in the world

Public opinion foreign policy

Can constrain or enable government actions depending on strength

Cold War foreign policy

Conflict between U.S. and USSR defined by containment strategy

Containment

Policy of preventing spread of communism

George H W Bush foreign policy

Coalition based Gulf War response

Clinton foreign policy

Limited intervention and multilateral actions

George W Bush foreign policy

War on terror preemptive strategy Afghanistan and Iraq

Obama foreign policy

Multilateralism diplomacy reduced troop presence

Trump foreign policy

America First reduced alliances trade conflicts

Sanctions apartheid

Economic pressure used against South Africa to end racial segregation system

Purpose of sanctions

Force policy change without direct military action

Foreign policy actors model

Power is shared among president Congress bureaucracy and others

Shifting constellations model

Influence changes depending on issue and situation