US Foreign Policy

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# US Foreign Policy
## Multilateralism in US Foreign Policy
### Michael E. Flynn
### Kansas State University
### Updated: 2021-12-01

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# Lecture Overview

1. Defining multilateralism

2. Historical review of multilateralism in US foreign policy

3. Costs and benefits

4. Why Multilateralism?

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# Defining Multilateralism

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# Defining Multilateralism

> **Multilateralism** refers to efforts to coordinate behavior between three or more actors.

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# Historical Overview

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# Historical Overview

Multilateralism in US foreign policy

- For the most part, US foreign policy is mostly characterized by unilateralism through World War I

- World War I marks a slight turn towards multilateralism, but there's a lot of resistance

- After World War II multilateralism becomes a central component of US foreign policy

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# Historical Overview

Multilateralism in security, diplomatic, and economic affairs

- North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

- United Nations (UN)

- General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

- International Monetary Fund (IMF)

- World Bank

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# Costs and Benefits

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# Costs and Benefits

Multilateralism has a range of shorter-term benefits

- Pooling resources

- Distribute costs

- Enhanced legitimacy

But there are also costs

- Decreased autonomy/constraints on behavior

- Possible costs via side payments

- More diffuse policy benefits

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# Notes

- Example of burden sharing in AFghanistan and comparison case of Iraq
- In Afghanistan US endured majority of casualties, but coalition partners also took on a sizeable share of casualties
- In Iraq the US went in with relatively few partner states dedicated to combat operations
- Note this doesn't include other areas of burden sharing like financial support

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# Notes

- Another example from Iraq and Afghanistan
- US fatalities consistently high as a percentage of total fatalities in Iraq
- In Afghanistan allied states suffered a much higher proportion of the total casualties over time, particularly during the "surge" years around 2009 and 2010.

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# Costs and Benefits

But even short-term tradeoffs can have long-term benefits

The US was the dominant military and economic power following the War, but how best to wield that power?

- A retreat from engagement to unilateralism like after World War I?
  
- Assert dominant power to control other countries?
  
- Something else?

>**Liberal Hegemony**: A term coined by John Ikenberry to describe the nature of the international order that obtained following World War II where the US acted as the dominant power presiding over a rules-based international system to which it subordinated itself (at least in part).

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# Costs and Benefits

Multilateralism was part of a strategy to balance and advance multiple objectives

- Secure Western allies

- Deter Soviet aggression

- Perpetuate the United States' dominant position for the long-term

Liberal Hegemony entailed a few key components

- US sacrificed some autonomy, binding itself to a set of rules-based arrangements in different policy areas

- By binding itself the US obtained the buy-in from other countries, increasing the legitimacy and long-term viability of US-led projects

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# Why Multilateralism?

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# Why Multilateralism?

Lots of different and important issues, but what do they have in common?

Well, there's a shared, fundamental problem underlying these issues

Collective action and coordination problems

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# Basic problems

>**Collective Action Problems:** Interactions where individuals/groups would all benefit from cooperating to produce some good, but where individual players have an incentive to defect.

>**Coordination Problems**: Coordination therefore, is the orderly arrangement of group effort, to provide unity of action in the pursuit of a common purpose. (Mooney 1947)

> ALSO

> [A] coordination problem exists if achievement of a particular organizational goal requires that each actor select the appropriate action, and the goal is not fully achieved if all members of the group do not select goal-fulfilling actions. (Camerer and Knez 1997)

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<table class="table" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<caption>Prisoner's Dilemma Example</caption>
 <thead>
  <tr>
   <th style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;">   </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </th>
  </tr>
 </thead>
<tbody>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 4,4 </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 1,5 </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 5,1 </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 2,2 </td>
  </tr>
</tbody>
</table>

---
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<table class="table" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<caption>Prisoner's Dilemma Example</caption>
 <thead>
  <tr>
   <th style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;">   </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </th>
  </tr>
 </thead>
<tbody>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> <span style="     color: black !important;">4,4</span> </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 1,5 </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> <span style="     color: red !important;">5,1</span> </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 2,2 </td>
  </tr>
</tbody>
</table>

---
class: center, middle

<table class="table" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<caption>Prisoner's Dilemma Example</caption>
 <thead>
  <tr>
   <th style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;">   </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </th>
  </tr>
 </thead>
<tbody>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 4,4 </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> <span style="     color: red !important;">1,5</span> </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 5,1 </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> <span style="     color: black !important;">2,2</span> </td>
  </tr>
</tbody>
</table>

---
class: center, middle

<table class="table" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<caption>Prisoner's Dilemma Example</caption>
 <thead>
  <tr>
   <th style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;">   </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </th>
   <th style="text-align:center;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </th>
  </tr>
 </thead>
<tbody>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Cooperate </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 4,4 </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> <span style="     color: black !important;">1,5</span> </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;font-weight: bold;color: white !important;background-color: #512888 !important;"> Defect </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> 5,1 </td>
   <td style="text-align:center;width: 3cm; "> <span style="     color: red !important;">2,2</span> </td>
  </tr>
</tbody>
</table>

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# Why Multilateralism?

1. Responding to adversaries

2. Trade and investment policy

3. Peacekeeping

4. Human rights and trafficking

5. Global climate change

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