Structuring the Global System: American Contributions to International Organization

Abstract

There are important connections between the ideals embodied in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution and policies that the United States pursues in the United Nations and other international institutions. The concepts inherent in the American Revolution, the doctrine that government should rest on the consent of the governed, and the doctrine of limited government, could have provided a basis for American involvement in international politics or for American isolation. During the nineteenth century, the latter was followed, except that the United States ex panded its commercial relations with other countries as had been implied in the Constitution. By proposing the League of Nations, Woodrow Wilson attempted to establish an institu tional framework within which American participation in international politics would be consistent with American ideals. A similar effort was made during World War II. The United States was crucial in structuring the world order that emerged. Achievement of American ideals in this world order has proved to be a complex and demanding task: early euphoria yielded to disillusionment. The U.S. now appears to have a more mature understanding of its shortcomings and the importance of other countries' ideals. It has evidenced a willingness to engage in international institutions to attain American ideals in the same way as within domestic institutions.