Background on Foreign Policy

Arab Spring

The term Arab Spring refers to a series of revolutions in Arab countries, which toppled (or threatened to topple) dictators or kings.
Immolation: The first revolution began in Tunisia on Dec. 17, 2010: a fruit vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, tried to stop a policewoman from stealing his fruit. The woman and some other officers then hit the vendor with a baton. After being told at city hall that he could not register a complaint about the incident, Bouazizi immolated himself in an anguished act of protest.
Tunisia: Bouazizi's suicide sparked widespread protests in Tunisia that toppled the country's dictator, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, and then spread throughout the region.
Egypt: Protests began in Egypt on Jan. 25; Hosni Mubarak resigned on Feb. 10, 2011.
Libya: On Jan. 14, protests began in Libya and degenerated into a civil war. On March 19, UN forces (including the US) began a bombing campaign. On Aug. 13, 2011, Moammar Khadafy fled the capital.
Syria: Protests began in Syria on Jan. 26; as of September 2001, several thousand protestors had been killed.
Major protests have occurred in Yemen, Bahrain, Algeria, and Iraq; numerous other Arab countries have had protests as well.

United Nations

The UN was founded in 1945 with 51 member countries. Its membership has since grown to 189 member countries, with representation from about 90% of the world's countries.
UN Members are sovereign countries. The UN is not a world government, and it does not make laws. It does, however, provide the means to help resolve international conflict and formulate policies on matters affecting every country.
- The General Assembly: All UN Member States are represented in the General Assembly - a kind of parliament of nations which meets to consider the world's most pressing problems. Each Member State has one vote.
- The Security Council: The organ with primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security. There are 15 Council members. Five of these - China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States - are permanent members. The other 10 are elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms. Member States have discussed making changes in Council membership to reflect today's political and economic realities.
- UN peacekeeping operations are established by the Security Council. There's an ongoing UN presence in Kashmir since 1949; in Cyprus since 1964, and in Kosovo since 1999, for a few examples. The US commits troops to some of these peacekeeping efforts.
- The Economic and Social Council: Under the authority of the General Assembly, its organs include the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the UN Children's Fund.
- The International Court of Justice: The "World Court" is the main judicial organ of the UN. Consisting of 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council, the Court decides disputes between countries. Participation by States in a proceeding is voluntary, but if a State agrees to participate, it is obligated to comply with the Court's decision.
- The International Monetary Fund: The IMF, the World Bank, and other specialized agencies are linked to the UN through cooperative international agreements.
- The UN System: In addition to financial organizations, other specialized agencies include: the World Health Organization, the Universal Postal Union, the International Civil Aviation Organization, and other treaty-based organizations for international cooperation and commerce.
The US failed to pay its UN dues, until the total reached almost $1 billion in 2000. In May 2001, the House voted 252-165 to withhold $244 million in back dues the US had agreed to pay, until the UN restored the US seat on the UN Human Rights Commission.
Despite the failure to pay dues, the US contributed a total of more than $1.4 billion dollars to the UN system in other assessments, and spent an additional $8.7 billion from the US military budget to support various UN resolutions and peacekeeping operations around the world.
The UN budget (1999) is about $1.3 billion per year for the UN itself and about $10 billion for the UN system (excluding the separate budgets for the IMF and World Bank).

Russia

Russia continues to suffer from 50% annual inflation and a recession exacerbated by the Asian economic crisis. The IMF is planning to shore up Russia with a $4.5 billion loan.
US-Russian relations were strained by the Kosovo conflict (Russia has historically supported the Serbs); the expansion of NATO (we added 3 former Soviet satellites over Russian objections in 1997); the war in Chechnya (a Russian province suffering from a Muslim uprising and independence movement); and uncertainty over President Yeltsin's political stability.
Vladimir Putin won election as President of Russia in early 2000. President George W. Bush met with Putin shortly after Bush's inauguration in January 2001.
While Chechnya still is a thorn in the side of US-Russian relations, Russia's assistance in the US war in Afghanistan seems likely to foster good relations and additional US economic aid.

Israel & Palestine

The hard-line Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu lost the election to Ehud Barak in May 1999. Barak had re-opened peace talks with Syria and Lebanon as of July 1999, promising a negotiated peace with both by next year.
A land-for-peace deal was negotiated with Palestine in the Wye River Accords of 1998, but the process was stalled under Netanyahu. The Palestinian Authority under Yassir Arafat currently controls 27% of the land area of West Bank and Gaza; the Wye River Accords would add 13%. The current land area includes 98% of the Palestinian population.
Ariel Sharon, a conservative hard-liner and former military leader, won election as Prime Minister in 2001, in large part because of Israeli frustration at the continuing Intifadeh, or Palestinian uprising.
Israel has occupied Syria's Golan Heights since 1967. Israel has controlled much of South Lebanon since the early 1980s, with Syria controlling much of the rest of Lebanon. Negotiations with Syria will focus on returning Golan to Syria and returning Lebanon to independence.

Iraq

Since the Gulf War in 1991, the US has launched 4 major military strikes against Iraq, most recently Operation Desert Fox in December 1998.
The US and UN continue to actively enforce a containment policy against Saddam Hussein; our primary tools are the 'no-fly zones' and an economic embargo.
During the US War on Terror, Saddam has been regularly accused of state-sponsored terrorism and of building bioterrorism weapons, but has laid low during the prosecution of the war.

North Korea

As many as 2 million have died from starvation since 1995. Drought and famine continue today, and South Korea is concerned that the North will attack if facing imminent political collapse.
Naval clashes threatened open warfare in spring and summer 1999.
In 2000, the regime placed emphasis on expanding foreign trade links, embracing modern technology, and attracting foreign investment, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing market-oriented reforms.
North Korean President Kim made a trip to Moscow in 2000, his first trip ever out of the country, but spent 10 days traveling in each direction by train because he refused to fly.

Asian Economic Crisis The economies of the Asia-Pacific region until 1997 seemed to be rushing towards prosperity on par with the US and Europe. But in July 1997, the currencies of Thailand and Indonesia collapsed, followed by recessions throughout East Asia. The 'Asian Miracle' countries were characterized by limited democracy (usually one-party) in open economies (albeit via political insiders). The current situation is:

Japan: In slump since 1990 and in recession since June 1998; Japan outlined an Emergency Economic Package in Nov. 1998.

Indonesia: President Suharto resigned after 1998 riots in which 1,200 were killed; elections promised for 1999.

East Timor: Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 shortly after Portugal granted it independence. This island of 800,000 people (to Indonesia's 200 million) voted 80% for independence in August 1999. In September, Pres. Habibie invited in an Australian-led, UN-sponsored force of 7,000, including US support groups but no troops, to stop a massacre by the Indonesian army.

China: Holding the line on devaluing its currency is credited with stopping total Asian economic collapse. China's economy has been growing by 8-10% annually in recent years, by far the world's fastest growth. They maintain a partially open economy with a Communist government.

Asian Tigers: Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan all suffered minor recessions and are currently recovering.

ASEAN: Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, and Thailand were economically weaker than the more developed 'Tigers,' and suffered accordingly. Nevertheless, ASEAN admitted 4 new members (Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos), which may open and democratize those countries.

Click here for Amazon books on Foreign Policy


*Other candidates on Foreign Policy:*	*Background on other issues:*
*Democratic Incumbents:* Pres.Barack Obama V.P.Joe Biden Secy.Hillary Clinton *Republican Challengers:* Rep.Michele Bachmann(MN) Herman Cain(GA) Rep.Newt Gingrich(GA) Gov.Jon Huntsman(UT) Gov.Gary Johnson(NM) Rep.Thaddeus McCotter(MI) Rep.Ron Paul(TX) Gov.Rick Perry(TX) Gov.Buddy Roemer(LA) Gov.Mitt Romney(MA) Sen.Rick Santorum(PA) *GOP Withdrawals:* Gov.Haley Barbour(MS) Gov.Chris Cristie(NJ) Mayor Rudy Giuliani(NYC) Gov.Mike Huckabee(AR) Gov.Sarah Palin(AK) Gov.Tim Pawlenty(MN) Donald Trump(NY)	Abortion Budget/Economy Civil Rights Corporations Crime Drugs Education Energy/Oil Environment Families Foreign Policy Free Trade Govt. Reform Gun Control Health Care Homeland_Security Immigration Jobs Principles Social Security Tax Reform Technology War & Peace Welfare