Special Providence_ American Foreign Policy and How It Changed World - Walter Russell Mead

Foreword

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incetheendoftheColdWar,scholarsofforeignpolicyhavebeen
seekinga waytodescribethenewarchitectureofAmericanfor-
eignpolicy.Certainthatsomethingprofoundhashappened,theyhave
engagedina wide-rangingsearchforthenew"grail"ofunderstanding-
someoverarchingsynthesisthatwouldexplainthecentralthemesand
goalsofU.S.policyforthetwenty-firstcentury.Thereareanumberof
significantobstaclestoachievingsuccessinthisquest.Notleastisthe
factthat,giventherelativelyshorttimesincetheendofthestandoff
betweentheWestandtheSovietbloc,thereis goodreasontobecautious
aboutthedurabilityofanyparticulardefinitionofcurrentglobalpoliti-
calissues.
Thepastdozenyearshavebeenfullofsurprises,startingwiththecol-
lapseoftheSovietUnionandextending;mostrecently,tothesudden,
perhapssignificant,openingofNorthKorea.Onemightexpect,there-
fore,thatthisconstantlyshiftinglandscapewouldcompelrestraintwhen
itcomestosweepinggeneralizationsaboutboththepresentandthe
future.But,tothecontrary,therehasbeena steadystreamofpublished
opinionoutliningnew"grandstrategies"fortheUnitedStatesinthe
post-ColdWarera.Withoutbelittlingthequalityofthebestofthese
works,itis fairtosaythat,asofthiswriting,westillawaitthedefinitive
analysisofU.S.policiestowardtheworldatthisearlymomentina new
century.
Thisisnottosaythat,becauseoftheremarkablealterationsinworld
politics,freshinsightintothenation'sgoalsandmissionsis impossi-
ble.Infact,asthisbookbyWalterMead,authorandseniorfellowfor
U.S.ForeignPolicyattheCouncilonForeignRelations,suggests,in
therighthandsthebroadquestionsofAmericanpolicyaresusceptible
tobothenhancedclarityanddeeperunderstanding.Mead'sbasicasser-
tionis straightforward.Hecontendsthat,althoughtheUnitedStates