Where should American foreign policy be heading?

The foreign policy of the United States is very influential on the world stage as it is the only remaining superpower. Due to the fact that the country has the largest economy in the world, they have been able to spend more money overseas than any other country. However, the foreign police of the United States has also been a subject of much debate. Over the past years, especially after their invasion of Iraq in 2004, their policy has had to deal with heavy criticism both domestically and abroad. The policy of the Bush administration, which is also referred to as the “Bush doctrine” legitimated an invasion of the country, claiming that they were in possession of evidence proving that Iraq was hiding weapons of mass destruction. The military strategies they were planning against Iraq, were reinforced even though the UN security council found no such evidence during their inspection. Here in Europe, the negativity towards the US and its foreign affairs, has been very visible among the public. President George W. Bush cooperated with British prime minister Tony Blair on the invasion of Iraq, but other European governments have shown great concern. The election of a new president, brings up the question on whether or not this development will take another direction. The mantra for Obama through his presidential campaign has been “change”. He has given several promises to the American people on how he wants the foreign policy to improve. One of his main goals is a withdrawal of all American troops in Iraq next year. At the same time, he wants to increase the effort in Afghanistan by sending more soldiers. The Iran issue is also something president Obama has to deal with when he takes over in January.

The official goals of the foreign of the United States, are to be found in the Foreign Policy Agenda of the U.S department of State, and they go as following; “ to create a more secure, democratic, prosperous world for the benefit of the American people and the international community” In my opinion, the main problem with the current policy is that it seems as though military action is the only solution. I think United States should end the sanctions and bombings of Iraq, and listen and cooperate with the UN in the future. That the horrible dictator Saddam Hussein is gone is good I guess, but something is clearly wrong when the number of deaths is a six figured number at this point. In order to avoid even bigger conflicts with the eastern world, it is important that the US doesn't interfere in other countries unless they have support from the international community. Equally important, is that the US should support resolutions that are consistent with international law. Given Obama's background, it would be surprising if he is not more concious of cultural differences and the importance of communication. When it comes to Iran and their nuclear program though, I hope that the United States will present the Iranian regime with a clear choice. If they continue their troubling behaviour, the US will step up their economic pressure and start to isolate them politically. The terror group Al-quida and other radical Islamic groups are causing a big threat to the American society. They feel a strong hatred against the western world, and the result is a surge of violent and harmful attacks. It is impossible to find one solution that would end all the problems at one time, but there are some pre-emptive measures that should be done as well. First of all, I think American government should reduce its ties with the present governments in Muslim states, and try to improve their relations with opposing groups. Many Muslims are angry with their often corrupted government, and this would maybe reduce the support of Bin Laden. Some may call me naïve, but I also think the US start focusing more on how they can reduce the income gap between rich and poor instead of spending billions of dollars on war. In the third world, many people only see a version of US' globalisation that appears selfish and beneficial only to big corporations and the rich. If the world was to see a more generous side of America, maybe one could reduce some of the hostility against Americans. If the US was to cooperate more with the UN and EU, they could develop more successful aid programs and...