Is Promoting Democracy abroad in the National Interest of the U.S - Coursework Example

5 September Outline Thesis ment Promoting democracy abroad, while ensuring the country’s sovereignty, is not entirely in the national interest of the United States First supporting idea Economic prosperity and security a) Negotiating trade arrangements b) Helping other countries develop trade platforms Second supporting idea Democracy and human rights a) Bilateral democracy b) Multilateral democracy c) Economic sanction Security a) Immigration, refugees, and population, health b) International crimes, illegal drugs, and crime and criminal justice institutions Theory of international relations used: The paper will adopt the realism theory of international relations Is promoting democracy abroad in the national interest of the U.S.? International relations theory is a theory studying international affairs from a hypothetical point of view. A basic definition and angle at international relations would stem from the day to day transactions and interactions between one country, and another. The study of international relations, therefore, seeks to provide conceptual frameworks under which spheres such as trade, diplomatic relations, immigration, security among other areas can be developed and implemented. Three fundamental international relations theories namely liberalism, realism, and constructivism are evident in the discussion of international relations. The paper is, however, going to look at international relations between other countries and the U.S.A from the realism theory point of view. Specifically, promoting democracy abroad, while ensuring the country’s sovereignty, is not entirely in the national interest of the United States. Realism The realism theory is arguably the most dominant theory of international relations since the inception of the studies. The theory heavily relies on an ancient tradition of thought that is inclusive of writers such as Thucydides, Hobbes, and Machiavelli. As shown above, the theory has survival, statism and self-help as its major components. According to statism, the proponents of the realist theory believe that the nation states are the major proponents in the international politics arena. As such, this passes as a state-centric theory to view international relations. International politics is viewed as a power struggle between states whereby each state puts its individual interests at first (Koremenos, Lispon and Snidal 768). Therefore, in such an anarchic sense, state power is taken to be the key pillar of interest because it is only through power that the state can defend itself and seek to survive. It’s also through power that a country can establish itself on the economic, military, and diplomatic front. On the self-help front, realists put it that no other countries can be relied upon to help assure another state’s survival. According to Mearsheimer (43), the vision of the world entirely rests on four main assumptions. According to him, survival is the principal aim of any state and thus when threatened by factors such as invasion and foreign invasion, every nation will move to defend its domestic interests, commitment to its sovereignty and its strategic culture. It is, therefore, natural that states will act, whether autonomously or otherwise, in ways that will ensure their continued existence. For example, the United States will be very concerned about the military powers of nations such as Russia or Syria as it is a super power. It is on such grounds that the U.S Department of state is founded to manage the relationships between the American people and other foreign governments (Trimble 23). The diplomats, who are situated in various countries in the world, are tasked with executing the president’s foreign mission that helps in the growing of a free and more prosperous nation, secure world for all to live. Diplomacy is the best means to promote the protection of the American people in both the American soils and abroad. Threats to their security include terrorism, the threats of humanitarian needs of migrants and the refugees, the well-known risk of weapons of mass destruction, illegal drug trafficking and other crimes. While virtual of being a superpower, the U.S is also tasked with ensuring peace and security in other countries. Thus, the interest of the U. S in the war-torn countries like Sudan and others in the world is not based purely on looking after the interests of its citizens but also the residents. As long as the autonomy of the country in question is not jeopardized, it is within the national and international interests of the United States to ensure that terrorists and other perpetrators of crimes against humanity be weeded out (Trimble 43). Therefore, the U.S will work hard to finish groups such as Al Qaeda in order to avoid attacks internationally and in the U.S. As the thesis statement suggests, the United States is keen on promoting democracy and human rights of people all over the world. The U.S is, thus, very particular on protecting the values under which the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was founded. Hence, it uses tools such as bilateral diplomacy, foreign assistance, multilateral diplomacy, and sometimes economic sanctions to implement its national goals. Only recently, the U.S had imposed sanctions on Russia in a bid to end its annexation to Syria. As per the pillars of the realism theory, the U.S can and does promote democracy as a way of achieving security, stability, and general prosperity of the entire world. Koremenos, et al., (761-799), proposes that it is also instrumental in ensuring that, the tyranny regimes that seek to deny their citizenry of their rights to freely and fairly elect leaders are denounced. Another thing is economic prosperity and security. While it can be looked at from two perspectives, the U.S identifies opportunities for American firms and help in supporting them in their exporting and working within their countries. The national interests are promoted in ensuring that trade agreements are negotiated, fixing potential problems, promoting the American intellectual rights and providing the investment and export platforms. It has a spillover effect to the respective countries that the businesses are situated. The countries will gain in employment, have a wide array of goods to select from, and achieve economic milestones (Koremenos, Lispon and Snidal 761-790). Thus, it goes further in ensuring democracy and economic stability. In conclusion, it is clear that for realism to work effectively there has to be a balance of power. The reason being when realists lay too much emphasize on anarchy and power, the institution that is international relations is most likely to collapse. Thus, the paper agrees with Mearsheimer (7-13) that realism, in light of the international relations and their drivers are a reflection of the balance of power which can influence the state behavior. It also shows that despite its duty to the world and its citizenry, the state is most likely to extend its power its enforcement powers where there is direct material gain in the outcome. Works Cited Koremenos, Barbara, Charles Lispon and Duncan Snidal. "The Rational Design of International Institutions." International Organization (2001): 761-799. Web. Mearsheimer, John, J. "The False Promise of International Institutions." International Security (1995): 5-49. Web. Trimble, Phillip R. International Law: United States Foreign Relations Law. California: Trimble Press, 2002. Print. Read More