For decades, American leaders have worked to build a peaceful global order where cooperation is valued more than confrontation. As the world’s largest economy and military power, the United States has outsized influence that makes its foreign policy decisions important for people thousands of miles away. This order is based on the values of freedom, trade, security partnerships and democracy. The rise of China and other global authoritarian powers has changed the balance of power, making it more difficult for Washington to unilaterally set the terms of world affairs.
Foreign policy is the collection of strategies a country uses to guide its relations with other nations and international organizations. It encompasses everything from diplomacy, to defense and national security, economic benefits and humanitarian assistance. Historically, foreign policy has shaped and transformed as the international system developed and evolved, with new countries and empires entering, leaving and emerging over time.
Today, the United States faces a world that is more complex and fragmented than ever before. The Trump administration’s transactional stance and skepticism of European allies has shaken transatlantic ties that link trade, security and common challenges like terrorism and climate change. In general, allies and partners have responded to the paradigm shift in U.S. foreign policy by seeking to preserve and prevent damage to long-term alliance equities with Washington. Unlike the past, they do not band together to compare notes and exercise leverage over Washington; instead they seek out expedient deals that address specific concerns and avoid confrontation.
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