Cox & Stokes: US Foreign Policy 
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Essay questionsCox & Stokes: US Foreign Policy
Obama's victory: challenges, opportunities (and change?) in foreign policy
Barack Obama's election victory has been almost universally regarded as an event of historic proportions, both within the US and internationally. Indeed the international response to Obama's victory clearly indicates that world leaders regard the election outcome as holding significance beyond Obama's status as the first black president of the United States.
Against the context of a deepening global economic crisis, representatives of the world's leading states and international organizations quickly declared their hopes for a new, more multilateralist direction in US foreign policy under Obama's leadership. Jose Manuel Barroso, head of the European Commission, welcomed the victory in the context of 'a time for a renewed commitment between Europe and the United States of America. We need to change the current crisis into a new opportunity. We need a new deal for a new world […] I sincerely hope that with the leadership of President Obama, the United States of America will join forces with Europe to drive this new deal - for the benefit of our societies, for the benefit of the world.' Similarly, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon stated 'I am confident that we can look forward to an era of renewed partnership and a new multilateralism. If ever there was a time for the world to join together, it is now.' Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin expressed 'hope for a freshening of US approaches to all the most complex issues, including foreign policy and therefore relations with the Russian Federation as well', and even representatives of Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei cautiously predicted 'a capacity for the improvement of ties between America and Iran if Obama pursues his campaign promises, including not confronting other countries as Bush did in Iraq and Afghanistan.'
Clearly the world's political elite have pinned as much hope on the President-elect's message of 'change' as those voters energized by Obama's message in the US itself. The extent to which Obama's administration will have the capacity - and the political will - to implement radical changes in foreign policy remains to be seen, however. The exact make up of Obama's foreign policy personnel is still taking shape at time of writing. Irrespective of its composition the Obama administration will face a number of existing foreign policy challenges. Prime among these are the global financial crisis, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the ongoing War on Terror more broadly, and, increasingly, relations with Russia over the proposed expansion of US missile defence in Eastern Europe.
Over the course of the election campaign, broad goals of Obama's foreign policy did emerge. Obama has signalled his intention withdraw US troops from Iraq over the next 16 months and, conversely, to supplement the number of US troops in Afghanistan. In relation to the broader Middle East, Obama has also given some indication of greater willingness to engage diplomatically with Iran and Syria, and to push forward on the Israel-Palestine question. International hopes for a more multilateralist approach to foreign policy have also been buoyed by Obama's frequent references to the importance of global cooperation on issues such as climate change and the global economy.
What remains to be seen is the extent to which these goals will actually translate into concrete policy changes or become casualties of the realities of office once Obama formally takes up the reins of power. Realist analysts of US foreign policy tirelessly assert that the ideals of foreign policy quickly fall victim to the 'realities' of power politics, and whether and how this will apply to the Obama administration will be one of the key areas of interest for students of US foreign policy. It remains unclear, for example, as to the extent to which Obama's primary goal of regenerating the US economy is compatible with international economic cooperation and environmental regulation. Any prospective negotiations with Syria or Iran will face virulent opposition from hawks both in the US and Israel, which remains America's key ally in the Middle East. Likewise, on the issue of missile defence the Obama administration will face a belligerent and emboldened opponent in Russia, but also trenchant proponents of the programme at the domestic level.
The Obama era will undoubtedly witness alterations in the direction of US foreign policy and many, Obama included, regard the current period as an opportunity for renewed international leadership on the part of the US. What is less clear, for the time being at least, is what the extent and significance of these changes will be.
Think Points:
Is the direction of US foreign policy likely to change radically under Obama's leadership?
What are the key foreign policy challenges that will immediately face the Obama administration?
How similar/different will Obama's foreign policy be to that of George W. Bush?
How similar/different will Obama's foreign policy be to that of Bill Clinton?
What are the arguments for and against a 'renewed multilateralism' for the Obama administration?
How would Realist and Liberal recommendations for the future direction of Obama's foreign policy differ?
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