ID-2141251007(B)

Book Review on “A NEW FOREIGN POLICY- BEYOND AMERICAN

The American Century began in 1941 and came to an end on January 20th, 2017, with the turn of the
millennium in the United States. In spite of its military and economic might, the United States is no
longer the world's economic or geopolitical superpower. No amount of "America first" unilateralism and
nationalism in foreign policy will make the United States a world power. Instead, it represents a
dereliction of duty in the face of severe environmental threats, political upheaval, mass migration, and
other global challenges that we face.

Jeffrey D. Sachs sets a blueprint for a new foreign policy that embraces global cooperation, international
law, and aspirations for worldwide prosperity, rather than nationalism and gauzy dreams of past glory in
this powerful book. America's approach to the world must shift from military might and wars of choice to
a shared goal of sustainable development, he says. The pursuit of primacy has entangled us in wars that
are unwise and unwinnable, and now is the time to shift from war to peace and embrace the opportunities
that international cooperation offers. A New Foreign Policy examines the dangers of a "America first"
mentality as well as the possibilities for a more multipolar world that is prosperous, peaceful, and
resilient.

Everybody has a different definition of American exceptionalism. While the most recent version of
American exceptionalism has deep historical roots, its heyday came in the post-Cold War era, during
which America faced no geopolitical adversary capable of matching our power and influence. There are
many assumptions that journalists and scholars make without questioning them. Jeffrey Sachs's analysis
offers a refreshing perspective on these assumptions. However, despite the importance of his candor,
Sachs overstates the role of the United States in the conflict in Syria, which he portrays as a U.S.-initiated
regime change operation. In Syria, it was not the United States or any of the other belligerents involved in
the war that sparked the conflict and perpetrated most of the violence against civilians, but rather the
Syrian government. The escalating events in Syria are well-captured in Wind (2019). It began when the
regime arrested and brutally tortured schoolboys who had anti-regime slogans on a wall. When police
fired live rounds into the crowds of the boys' families, the public's outrage grew significantly. Estimating
the number of civilians killed in Syria is difficult, but all estimates agree that the Syrian regime is to
blame for the majority of civilian deaths. More than 88 percent of the deaths in Syria since March 2011
have been attributed to the regime and its Iranian allies, according to the Syrian Network for Human
Rights. 67 percent of civilians were killed by the Syrian-Russian alliance in 2018, according to the same
organization.

The author examines the consequences of military violence in the Middle East, including in Syria, which
are characterized by massive suffering and destabilization. The study found that militants, rather than the
United States and its allies, were responsible for the majority of the direct deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As a result, the United States is unable to work with other countries to address common challenges and
defuse global tensions, as well as to find its place in a rapidly changing global geopolitical order and
market. However, civil strife, particularly in Muslim-majority countries, has increased in recent years.
There is a strong correlation between "interference" in civil conflicts and domestic terrorism. The
evidence shows that the War on Terror did not reduce terrorism but, on the contrary, increased it. As a
result of the United States' militarism and exceptionalism, there has been a rise in violence and strife.

It is difficult to sum up the author's recommendations because they are drawn from a variety of domestic
and international policy fields. On the topic of Trump's trade and fiscal policies, for example, the book
includes "The Economic Balance Sheet on 'America First'". On top of that, he talks about the "Economic
War with China" and whether or not President-elect Trump will hand China the technological lead.

The Author argues, It is in America's best interest to pursue cooperative diplomacy as a nation among
nations rather than to play the role of the world's policeman, to constantly intervene in other sovereign
countries' affairs and to habitually violate the very rules and norms we often punish others for
transgressing. A NATO expansion after the Cold War is a betrayal of its original strategic purpose and
unnecessary hostility toward Russia, according to Sachs. A staunch critic of the Iraq War and the Obama
administration's justification for intervening in Libya, he is unflinching in his criticism of both. While
acknowledging America's role in the current situation in North Korea isn't entirely blameless, he boldly
states that we should be willing to "accept a nuclear-armed North Korea that is deterred" rather than "risk
a United States-led war of choice," which is still controversial in D.C.

The author also took aim at the fact that National Defense Strategy and National Security Strategy are
also attacked by the Trump administration's major foreign policy documents for exaggerating threats to
U.S. interests and reaffirming military dominance as a first-order objective. Those who argue that the
world is becoming increasingly dangerous in these official documents are being "too deterministic,
pessimistic, and unsupported by the facts." In their view, Russia and China's competition with the United
States is a major threat to global order and American national security, which Sachs deems to be an
example of the exceptionalist approach.
At First, He mainly shows a comparison among Exceptionalism, Realism and Internationalism. He argues
that the difficulty is to maintain the United States safe without getting stuck into unnecessary wars. It is a
form of American exceptionalism. According to exceptionalism war is unavoidable and military
superiority should be increased. Realism says war and diplomacy both are equally important. He claims
that the realists believe that the United States must maintain a realistic balance of power in order to
prevent a nuclear weapons race. On the other side Internationalism says that, diplomacy and
institutionalism should be increased through cooperation to make USA foreign policy better.
The Internationalists think that international cooperation is important to prevent war. In the twenty-first
century. The idea of American exceptionalism is a dangerous for the country. In the case of cooperative
diplomacy, balance-of-power realism is overly pessimistic about its prospects. New grand strategies
toward China are required with the emphasis on countering the growth of Chinese power rather than
continuing to support it in its ascendancy. Realists claim that a military buildup is the Dominant approach
of the United States and China.

Keeping the United States out of a new war is author's number one foreign policy goal, and he expresses
this with admirable clarity. Author offers several reforms to help the United States achieve this goal. As a
first step, the United States must cease combat operations in the elective wars it has been involved in,
such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, and Niger. Instead of serving as "an unaccountable
secret army of the president," He recommends reorganizing the CIA to focus on intelligence. Reestablish
its decision-making authority over war and peace." It is also necessary to rein in the executive branch's
use of excessive secrecy to secretly involve the United States in foreign wars. And lastly, the United
States' foreign policy needs to be reoriented in favor of diplomatic solutions and economic cooperation
rather than military ones.

In chapter “Exceptionalism As The Civic Religion” author shows US dominance in military and how this
shaped their foreign policy and the consequences of late participation into WWI . The USA involved
itself with 41 countries with their policy of exceptionalism. Finally the exceptionalism policies that have
been taken during the era of Trump are discussed here.

When massive industrial scale tragedy started in Europe in August 1914, the people and officials of the
United States encouraged the country to stay out of it. During his election campaign in 1916, Wilson
pledged to keep the United States out of World War I. By 1917, Wilson had come to the conclusion that
the enormous economic and military might of the United States might be used to put an end to all
hostilities.
Before the American involvement, the European combatants were stuck in a deadlock that may have led
to a truce. However, the United States favored Great Britain and France over Germany and Austria as a
result of this policy. As a result of the defeat of the German and Austro-Hungarian empires by France,
Britain, and the United States, a broken peace, economic instability, Hitler's rise, and a second world war
ensued. While the general public sees the United States' participation in WWI as a success, historians are
more skeptical. Europe was devastated by two world wars and a depression between 1914 and 1945, and
the United States took over North Atlantic leadership in 1950. It was easy to see the United States'
hegemony in politics, military, and the economy. The US government backed the war because it wanted
to ensure US economic supremacy once the conflict was over.

In 1941, Time magazine editor Henry Luce invented the phrase "American Century" to characterize the
time period in which the United States will exercise global leadership. According to US exceptionalists,
the Soviet Union was an incorrigible superpower bent on world supremacy and the US was its ultimate
bastion against totalitarianism. The public face of the security state remained internationalist, with the
United States linked with the UN and its new institutions to help in the promotion of collaboration
wherever it was feasible. In order to keep countries in the US camp, the US used open warfare, secret
CIA operations including regime changes and assassinations of foreign leaders, as well as bribes and
other inducements. The CIA was created in 1947 as the president's secret army to carry out coups,
assassinations, and destabilization operations against governments regarded as being hostile to US
security interests. By 1950, the United States had consolidated its global dominance. It had the title of
most powerful country in the world at the time. After 1949, the United States no longer possessed nuclear
weapons, but its economic and technological supremacy in the civilian sector remained unquestioned.

In this review, I will concentrate on a few key points from the book. The sections that follow summarize
two issues regional integration and international assistance.

A Global Economy of Regions:

There are many opportunities for international economic cooperation that the United States is missing out
on because of the "America First" mantra of current administrations. China, for example, has a long
history in Eurasia and is attempting to resurrect the ancient Silk Road through massive efforts. Through
the use of modern infrastructure, the ancient trade routes that connected China to the Middle East,
Europe, and Central and South Asia for more than 2,000 years – until the 1600s – are reestablished. While
China's "One Belt, One Road" or "Belt and Road Initiative" may be the most epic and novel of current
regional integration projects, there are others with a long history. Europe (EU), North American Trade
Area (NAFTA), African Union AU, and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are some of
these organizations (ASEAN). Nations should be freed from "balance-of-power" politics and the major
rivaling countries of the Middle East – namely, Turkey, Iran, and Saudi Arabia – "finally decide that there
is far more that unite the Turks, the Arabs, and their Persian neighbors than truly divide them" (p. 166).
But not all regional integration efforts are good ones, even if Sachs's overall enthusiasm for regional
integration and his observations about its importance to U.S. foreign policy are correct. When it comes to
deforestation and human rights violations in Brazil, a recent and dramatic example would be the
agreement between the EU and Mercosur, a group of South American countries that includes Brazil as
well as Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay (Watts 2019). The "democratic deficit" of the European Union,
which is perhaps the standard-bearer of successful regional integration projects, has also been the subject
of scholarly debate. As a geostrategic advantage, the U.S.'s geographical isolation turned into a
disadvantage. The Atlantic and Pacific Oceans may have contributed to American exceptionalism by
shielding the United States from other countries' political turmoil and the repercussions of U.S. foreign
policy. The United States' distance from geopolitical hotspots may become a liability in an era marked by
processes of regional integration. Jeffrey Sachs' ability to explain global developments to audiences in the
United States and around the world is reassuring in the interest of American prosperity and global
stability.

Foreign Aid

The Author paid special attention chapter to foreign aid, which is where he got his start in the first place.
The United States' priorities are clearly skewed toward militarism rather than the uplifting of vulnerable
people around the world, according to Sachs. He points out that the total US aid budget (p. 204) is
equivalent to about two weeks' worth of Pentagon spending, and that the total UN budget is equivalent to
about one day and nine hours' worth of US military spending (p. 182).

Foreign aid is often criticized for its ineffectiveness, which Sachs could have addressed and argued
against, if he had done so. In a Lancet review, Sachs responded to some of William Easterly's criticisms
of foreign aid. Most importantly, recent evidence suggests that aid may be beneficial to economic growth,
contrary to critics like Moyo (2009). Nine studies cited by Radelet (2017), writing for the Brookings
Institute, show an association between economic growth and infusions of foreign aid. According to him,
other studies have found the same link. It's also worth noting that there isn't always evidence to suggest
that growth has an effect on human well-being. As Kenny argues that "quality-of-life improvements can
be sustained absent GDP growth" by compiling a review of studies.
More specifically, Author could have referred to this evidence and emphasized some of the aid's non-
economic advantages. Even the most dire predictions about how HIV/AIDS would decimate the young
adult populations of South Africa, Botswana, and Zimbabwe were largely wrong, thanks to a global
response that was relatively large in scope. Malaria, polio, and Onchozerkose have all seen notable
victories, as have other diseases (river blindness).

In the chapter "global convergence," author could have been expanded to include quality of life
indicators, as Kenny has done so brilliantly. It appears that foreign aid is helping to speed up this
convergence. By accelerating efforts to reduce poverty, the Millennium Development Goals have saved
at least 20.9 million and as many as 30.3 million additional lives estimate. Nearly two-thirds of the lives
were saved in sub-Saharan Africa. There are a slew of similar inspiring tales of success. Over the last two
decades, the number of infant deaths has been cut in half, saving 122 million lives.

Development aid has few knowledgeable defenders, and the people it helps to keep alive don't vote in US
elections, as Sachs rightly points out (p. 188). Because we live in a world where both prosperity and
extreme poverty coexist, and policies to reduce poverty could yield more dramatic success if more
funding were available, the existence of deadly poverty is a moral failure.

To combat the remaining pockets of extreme poverty in the world, Sachs's chapter on foreign aid lacks
urgency. Although he could have done more to defend aid, Sachs's chapter on aid shows that foreign aid
must be a part of Author's "new foreign policy".

As a whole, the book provides a very detailed blueprint for creating a foreign policy that would make the
United States a responsible and reliable partner, perhaps even a champion, in the creation of global
prosperity and peace. Political leaders such as Ilhan Omar and Bernie Sanders are becoming more explicit
in their efforts to implement more constructive pro-peace policies in America. In the past, implementing
such policies has been extremely difficult due to entrenched domestic and international interests. It would
be interesting to learn more about how Sachs would address these issues.

Military operations around the world have been stepped up by President Trump since taking office. The
Cornell University political scientist Matthew Evangelista told this reviewer that we have seen its vast
increase during the Obama years and again in the early Trump administration" when it comes to US long-
range bombings. They continue to drum up support for a military conflict with Iran. U.S. needs a scholar
who can speak to a wide audience about the many harms caused by exceptionalism and militarism, as
well as tangible strategies for engaging the world in less belligerent ways, in these difficult times." Noam
Chomsky and Bernie Sanders are two of the "great truthtellers in our midst," as Sachs puts it (p. 222).
Sachs follows in the footsteps of a long and illustrious lineage.