Achievements of United States Foreign Policy, 1898–2000

Abstract

The twentieth century saw the United States rise to become one of many great powers; then one of two superpowers; and finally, the sole superpower—the global hegemon. Americans—leaders and followers, in and out of government, in groups and as individuals—achieved a dozen fundamental successes in the twentieth century world: 1. Force: The United States and its partners prevailed in both world wars and drove aggressors from South Korea and Kuwait. 2. Governance: Americans helped forge institutions and habits of collective security and strengthened world order. 3. Interdependence: They helped rebuild Europe and Japan and formed a trilateral community for trade and security. 4. Containment: They won the Cold War without a U.S. Soviet hot war and handled crises such as the Cuban confrontation without suffering a defeat or a major loss of life. KeywordsForeign PolicyFree TradeSecurity CouncilBallistic MissileClinton AdministrationThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.