When people hear the term “foreign policy,” they may assume it refers to foreign aid, trade agreements, or diplomacy. These are indeed important, but there is more to the field of foreign policy than these activities. Foreign policy also involves national security, which encompasses defense against terrorism and other threats to the safety of Americans living abroad, as well as efforts to ensure the integrity of America’s borders.
In the broadest sense, foreign policy is a means to promote American values and interests on the global stage. It entails coordinating and cooperating with other nations, groups, and organizations to achieve goals like maintaining stability in the world through diplomatic cooperation and military action, as needed. It is not easy to accomplish these goals, and it takes a dedicated group of professionals to make them happen. These include diplomats and other government officials at home and abroad.
Another goal of foreign policy is the preservation of a balance of power among the nation-states of the world, so that no one power is more militarily powerful than the others. This can be achieved through various diplomatic and economic methods, but may need to involve military force in the event of a clear threat to a national interest, such as the removal of dictator Manuel Noriega in 1989 or the Iraq War in 2003.
Other challenges are related to the fact that many of today’s most dangerous and pernicious problems—from terrorism and the international slave trade to climate change—don’t fit neatly within the borders of any one country. As a result, the international coordination required for foreign policy must address these issues and take into account the fact that there is no world-level authority to sanction nations that do not cooperate.