February 05, 2024

Americans Need Domestic Unity for Effective Foreign Policy

By: Richard Fontaine and Stephen J. Hadley

The United States thrives in a stable international environment and amid substantial domestic unity. In 2024, it seems folly to wish for either. Multiple foreign crises persist, ranging from wars in Europe and the Middle East to the China challenge. A looming presidential election promises to further divide Americans.

Yet dealing with difficult international challenges requires broad unity. When it comes to that, it’s performance, not pleas or promises, that will make the difference.

Today’s international challenges threaten the security, prosperity, and freedom of the American people. But Americans will naturally shy from a focus on overseas problems until their leaders address real needs at home.

The global threats are daunting. Russia is ready to exploit Western exhaustion toward supporting Ukraine. Hamas’s assault on Israel, the brutal war in the Gaza Strip, and terrorist attacks by Iranian proxies threaten to spark widespread violence across the Middle East. China seeks to absorb Taiwan and contest U.S. influence everywhere. Kim Jong Un’s whim could throw the Korean Peninsula into crisis, Iran is closing in on a nuclear weapon, and Venezuela’s leaders talk openly about annexing neighboring territory.

Yet as difficult as they are, the United States, with its power, wealth, geography, and values—and with its friends and allies—can manage these challenges. Washington possesses everything necessary to succeed, even in a tumultuous world, so long as it remains politically united enough to marshal these advantages in common purpose.

Read the full article from Foreign Policy.

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