The most important foreign policy facing America is the political upheavals in Syria. The Syrian President, Bashar Al-Assad, supports Hezbollah in its activities against humanity in Lebanon. Al-Assad supports Hezbollah to strengthen the friendship of his country with Iran. Further, America is increasingly getting worried about Syria’s nuclear intentions. The Republicans seem unhappy with President Obama’s stand on Syria.
The Republicans argue that Syria is not being held accountable for the actions it has taken. In addition to this, one Republican was quoted, saying, “people are worried that Syria is not being held up to account” (Pershad 8). The International Atomic Energy Agency personnel want more inspection in Damascus to investigate the nuclear rumors, but their activities are unwelcomed in any part of Syria. This further escalates the poor relationship between America and Syria.
According to the scoreboard, the results were 101/197. For every country listed, a mark was awarded. Therefore, looking at the results, I listed 101 countries in 15 minutes. The results of the quiz give an inadequate representation of my knowledge of international geography and policy. However, the map used in the quiz acts as a reminder of the activities that take place in a particular geographic location. For example, the map of Asia reminds of the political events taking place in South Korea and North Korea.
The quiz on listing names of world countries cannot help to increase political awareness and involvement. However, participation in research studies and keeping track of current affairs can significantly increase political knowledge.
In my opinion, China is the most important foreign policy facing America. Since 2011, China has been the second-largest economy in the world. However, many reports suggest that China will surpass America by 2015 to become the largest economy in the world. Many Americans hold the status of economic superiority with prestige. The American government is, therefore, caught between a hard place and a rock in determining the way forward to protect its position as the world’s economic superpower.
In 2013, Obama’s administration declared that it would deploy half of its naval forces to Asia by 2020. Many analysts argue that although China does not have a superior military, the country will be obliged to advance its military when it becomes the economic superpower. Therefore, America’s decision to send troops to Asia is an attempt to neutralize China’s military effect in Asia (Bowler 23).
Foreign policies like China, terrorism, and cyber-attacks are significant to Americans. The shift of economic power to China means that business people are likely to invest more in China than in America. Further, understanding the extent of cyber-attacks in other countries is essential for investors. In addition, understanding the friends of America is important when carrying business transactions.
International issues enable someone to keep track of the events happening around the globe. Further, it helps in planning travel and investments in foreign countries. For example, it is hard for business people to invest in Syria and Ukraine, where it is hard to predict the future.
Further, it is unsafe to travel to countries where acts of inhumanity are committed. In addition, governments issue travel advisories to countries they feel are not safe. Further, it is important for business people to understand countries that actively fight cyber-crime in order to predict the success of their investment (Pershad 17).
Fighting terrorism is a difficult task. Holding the position as the president, I would cooperate with international bodies like the European Union to combat terrorism. Further, I would help the most affected countries to fight terrorism as these countries act as a breeding ground for terrorists. Fighting terrorism is an international obligation. My government would fund the International Police and ensure their number is increased to serve in almost all countries. Further, cyber-crime is a form of terrorist activity.
As the president of the United States of America, I would sensitize other countries on the need to fight cyber-crime. However, economic prosperity would be my main agenda. I would ensure that America has the highest economic growth rate. On global health, I would ensure that my government donates a significant amount of money and adequate personnel to the less developed countries to fight diseases. I would also focus more on research to invent the cure for diseases with no cure.
President Obama has made efforts to maintain good diplomatic relations with other countries. Comparing Obama to his predecessor, Obama’s regime is more peaceful. I would grade Obama’s performance as a B or a rating of 7/10.
The situation at hand should determine America’s decision to do things unilaterally or in a multinational coalition way. Unilateral actions should be taken when not more than two countries are involved. The issues on contention can be economic ties, military agreements, or trade treaties. However, sensitive matters like terrorism and crimes against humanity should involve a multinational coalition.
For example, the situations in Ukraine and Syria demand multinational coalition decisions. Since fighting terrorism has been Americas’ priority, it should opt for a multinational coalition action rather than unilateral. Multinational coalitions help in simplifying the matter at hand as each nation actively participates in fighting the menace.
The most helpful article was The New York Times article on E.U. Urges Cooperation to Combat Terrorism by Andrew Higgins and James Kanterjan on 19 January 2015. The central theme of the article was on counterterrorism, discussed by E.U. countries in Brussels (Higgins and Kanterjan 8).
Works Cited
Bowler, Thomas. “Falling oil prices: Who are the winners and losers?” The New York Times 18th March 2015: LZ02. Print.
Higgins, Andrew, and Kanterjan John. “E.U. Urges Cooperation to Combat Terrorism.” The New York Times 18 March 2015: LZ03. Print.
Pershad, Sushil. “China asks US to respect its domestic concerns.” The Economics Times 8 August 2014: LZ01. Print.