Term Paper on "U.S. Relations"

Term Paper 6 pages (1789 words) Sources: 3 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

U.S. Relations

President Roosevelt gave a speech while in Chicago last week talking about the need for a quarantine of the aggressors. His speech could represent a turning point in our country's external affairs, as the president clearly expressed his point-of-view about the international situation.

Our country's external policy has been one of isolationism after the end of the World War I, but President Roosevelt has made it clear in his speech that he believes that U.S. can no longer stay away from what appears to be another world danger. The question after listening to President Roosevelt's speech is whether he will be able to apply his beliefs and be actively involved considering that many Americans as well as Congress are very protective about America's isolationist spirit.

Another aspect that must be taken into consideration before taking a position against the aggressors of the international arena is that of our military capability to conduct large scale war operations. Considering the low economic level that our country is facing, engaging in a war that is not directly aimed at us could be extremely damaging for America. Supporting other nations is extremely expensive and it could lead to a complete economic collapse just as our nation seemed to regain its strength.

The Chicago speech engages our nation in taking a position against countries that have a violent behaviour against other nations. Although President Roosevelt's speech is not a declaration of war, it is a strong stand in international affairs in a period marked by deep rooted and supported isolationism. President Roosevelt's speech not only condemned the situation on the international arena and draw attention over the danger of another world war, but also made it clear which is the position that U.S. will support.

However, the President's speech was not tough enough, it did not specifically argued that U.S. should go to war. The President managed to maintain sort of a neutral tone, not arguing in favour of war so that his opponents could not attack him. Considering the current situation in the U.S., it is understandable why the President avoided taking a stronger position, but this speech is most likely to be the first step taken by America in its involvement in the violent international situation.

President Roosevelt's speech was not only directed at the American public opinion but also to the international community, calling for international involvement to quarantine the dangerous aggressors. By appealing to the international community to stop the aggression exercised by several nations, the President showed that America is ready to renounce its neutrality and eventually get involved in a war against the aggressors. This is a very important step for U.S. And the Chicago speech represents the beginning of the end of America's neutrality policy.

President Roosevelt began his speech by underlining that America has made significant progress in the past years and that it has managed to overcome the economic crisis it faced. Clearly, the President had in mind an eventual involvement of America in the war and so he presented that the situation in our country is no longer as dramatic as it was. Since the economy has made significant progress, the U.S. could be capable of renouncing its isolation policy and come in the support of the aggressed nations. He made the parallel between our prosperous and peaceful country and other close nations that were aggressed by others, intending to show that America is capable to play its role of protector and that it is the duty of U.S. And the international community to intervene in the conflict.

President Roosevelt indirectly appeals for the involvement of U.S., arguing that the international situation is threatening for every peace loving nation. Considering the worsening of the international situation, it is only natural for U.S. To get involved as it is more than certain that our country could become a target of these aggressors if things get out of hand. The President pleads for U.S. To give up its isolation policy and this seems to be the most logic step considering that the international situation is most likely to worsen. However, the speech that the President gave in Chicago is not as direct and clear as needed to make a decisive step towards U.S. involvement. It is best that it is not. There are many Americans that do not wish for U.S. To be involved in another war and the President must represent those as well. His speech states his position and it should be regarded as a first step towards a future policy of intervention.

President Roosevelt mentioned the Briand-Kellogg Peace Pact arguing that the pact has been broken by the "present reign of terror and international lawlessness" which makes it impossible for the pact to be respected. The President also denounced the atrocities committed by some nations in their struggle for supremacy, rightfully arguing that these nations do not respect any peace agreement. The major question that comes is whether such nations would respect any peace agreement with U.S. I would argue that definitely not and this is what President Roosevelt wished to draw attention upon. These nations will not be stopped by the geographical boundaries with our country and they will not hesitate to attack us if the current situation continues to evolve. It is clear that U.S. is not safe despite its geographical position and its neutrality. And if America maintains its neutrality it could be caught off guard.

The neutrality of our country can not be maintained in the current circumstances. However, the President's intention of abandoning the isolationist policy hits a strong opposition from the Congress. The public opinion does not wish for America to be involved in any war, especially after the experiences in World War I. War is not desirable for our country, but we have the duty to defend ourselves and prevent the tragedies that could come over our country. A nation that proved that it does not obey any peace pact is a nation that must be stopped and U.S. can not refuse to deal with such a threatening problem.

President Roosevelt's speech is obviously directed at Japan, following the Japanese attack on China in July. Although not specifically mentioned, Japan is the main target of Roosevelt's speech and it is qualified as an aggressor. The President could not make such a diplomatic mistake as to name the countries he critiques especially not without Congress support. However, considering the international context, it is easily imaginable to what countries he referred at.

The President proposed that countries that do not respect peace agreement and international laws and that behave as "aggressors" should be quarantined by other peace-loving nations. What is most important in this speech is that the quarantine of the aggressors affirms the President's trust in a collective security system. He believes that peaceful countries should group against aggressors and that only together nations can fight against violent nations.

America is a peaceful nation and clearly it is not the wish of our country to go to war, but neither can we stand aside and wait for us to be the next victims. The current international situation must be controlled or the consequences could be devastating. What the President proposed in Chicago is that countries that share common peace values as the United States form an alliance against aggressors, namely against Japan. The idea of collective security supported by President Roosevelt can be a solution for controlling an eventually threatening situation. As the President argued, modern world is bounded by "solidarity and interdependence" and these should be the principles according to which we should guide ourselves in term of security.

The quarantine proposed by President Roosevelt supports economic sanctions on aggressive nations as an alternative to military offensive. This is also a debatable issue, as many countries might not support the idea of cutting economic relations with strong nations such as Japan. It remains to be seen how many peace-loving nations will actually support economic sanctions against aggressors. This could be one of the main flaws in the President's proposal.

Despite whether the "quarantine of the aggressors" speech will have any immediate effect or not, it is clear that the President has renounced his isolationist policy and that he supports American involvement in the attempt to stop the expansionist urges of some nations. Clearly any attempt to reorient the foreign policy of our country must have Congress approval and it is predictable that this will be the following step in U.S. security policy. We should be prepared to defend ourselves from nations such as Japan that proved that they have no respect for peace pacts. The next investment performed by our government will most likely be in defence and military and considering the international context, this is the safest thing to do.

Many conclusions can be drawn from the President's speech. First of all, it is clear that America is ready to renounce its neutrality policy. Second of all, the President pleads for collective security arguing… READ MORE

How to Reference "U.S. Relations" Term Paper in a Bibliography

Related Term Papers:

How Is the U.S. Army Utilizing the Human Resource Model Today? Term Paper

U.S. Army Utilizing the Human Resource Model Today

A human resource model is a performance framework that oversees conduction of tasks from an efficient point-of-view with the intention of attaining… read more

Term Paper 7 pages (2504 words) Sources: 7 Style: MLA Topic: Military / Army / Navy / Marines

---

U.S. Foreign Policy and the Middle East Term Paper

U.S. Foreign Policy and the Middle East

Just as the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor forced United States into World War II, the attack on the World Trade Center during… read more

Term Paper 3 pages (956 words) Sources: 1+ Topic: American History / United States

---

Russian-u.S. Relations Surrounding Syria Today Summarize Journal

Russian-U.S. Relations Surrounding Syria Today

Summarize how the following case would be explained by a) an offensive realist, b) a defensive realist, and c) a classic realist: Russian-U.S. relations surrounding… read more

Journal 4 pages (1439 words) Sources: 16 Topic: Government / Politics

---

U.S. Iran Diplomatic Relations and Military Cooperation Before and After the Revolution Research Paper

U.S. Iran Diplomatic

Pre- and Post-1979 Revolution in Iran: Comparative Study of the U.S. Diplomatic Relations and military cooperation with Iran in the 1919-79 and 1979-2011 periods.

In this assignment… read more

Research Paper 12 pages (3532 words) Sources: 20 Topic: Government / Politics

---

U.S. Government the United States Democracy Term Paper

U.S. Government

The United States democracy and government can be considered to be one of the most important political structures of the modern times. From the point-of-view of the principles… read more

Term Paper 10 pages (3390 words) Sources: 1+ Topic: Government / Politics

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>