The foreign policy of a country is the set of strategies, goals and tactics that guide the government’s engagement with other nations and people. It is a complex undertaking, influenced by a variety of factors and actors.
The United States has long been viewed as the leader of the free world and a guarantor of global stability. Its role as an arbiter of peace and a promoter of economic growth are key pillars of its foreign policy. The United States also plays a central role in international institutions like the UN and NATO, and it maintains numerous bilateral relationships with other countries around the globe.
As a result of congressionally enacted policies, the United States has a wide array of tools to promote democracy and human rights in foreign contexts. These tools range from assisting the formation of electoral institutions to promoting civil society and media freedom. The effectiveness of these tools depends on a variety of factors, including the nature and context of the country in question, the relative strength of the competing political forces there, the extent to which domestic factors play a role in the behavior of the foreign regime, and the degree to which the United States is willing to balance its strategic interests with democratic ideals.
Across party lines, significant majorities consider limiting climate change, strengthening the United Nations and improving America’s standing in the world to be very important goals for American foreign policy. But partisan differences in views of defending weaker nations from foreign aggression and promoting democracy and human rights abroad have grown, particularly under the Trump administration.