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17.6: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    153944
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    balance of power
    a situation in which no one nation or region is much more powerful militarily than any other in the world
    balance of trade
    the relationship between a country’s inflow and outflow of goods
    Cold War
    the period from shortly after World War II until approximately 1989–1990 when advanced industrial democracies divided behind the two superpowers (East: Soviet Union, West: United States) and the fear of nuclear war abounded
    congressional executive agreement
    an international agreement that is not a treaty and that is negotiated by the president and approved by a simple majority of the House and Senate
    containment
    the effort by the United States and Western European allies, begun during the Cold War, to prevent the spread of communism
    diplomacy
    the establishment and maintenance of a formal relationship between countries
    economic sanction
    a situation in which a country or multiple countries suspend trade or other financial relationships with another country in order to signal their displeasure with the behavior of the other country
    foreign policy
    a government’s goals in dealing with other countries or regions and the strategy used to achieve them
    free trade
    a policy in which a country allows the unfettered flow of goods and services between itself and other countries
    hard power
    the use or threat of military power to influence the behavior of another country
    isolationism
    a foreign policy approach that advocates a nation’s staying out of foreign entanglements and keeping to itself
    liberal internationalism
    a foreign policy approach of becoming proactively engaged in world affairs by cooperating in a community of nations
    neo-isolationism
    a policy of distancing the United States from the United Nations and other international organizations, while still participating in the world economy
    neoconservatism
    the belief that, rather than exercising restraint, the United States should aggressively use its might to promote its values and ideals around the world
    North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
    a cross-national military organization with bases in Belgium and Germany formed to maintain stability in Europe
    protectionism
    a policy in which a country does not permit other countries to sell goods and services within its borders or charges them very high tariffs (import taxes) to do so
    selective engagement
    a policy of retaining a strong military presence and remaining engaged across the world
    soft power
    nonmilitary tools used to influence another country, such as economic sanctions
    sole executive agreement
    an international agreement that is not a treaty and that is negotiated and approved by the president acting alone
    treaty
    an international agreement entered by the United States that requires presidential negotiation with other nation(s), consent by two-thirds of the Senate, and final ratification by the president
    two presidencies thesis
    the thesis by Wildavsky that there are two distinct presidencies, one for foreign and one for domestic policy, and that presidents are more successful in foreign than domestic policy
    United Nations (UN)
    an international organization of nation-states that seeks to promote peace, international relations, and economic and environmental programs

    17.6: Key Terms is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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