VO131 EUROPEAN POLITICS AND SECURITY: American foreign policy

A series of sessions will focus on the problems of European security. Is Europe now independent or is it still a dependent of the United States? How will it manage without the US? Topics include NATO, the European Union, American foreign policy and European politics. Suggested readings are available for those who are interested in studying the issues in greater depth.

Session III American foreign policy

What is foreign policy? Is it the protection of interests or values? What is Trump’s policy toward Europe? How does this policy compare with traditional US foreign policy? What has changed? Why has it changed? What do the 2025 National Security Strategy and 2026 National Defense Strategy tell us about the geopolitical strategy of the Trump administration?

If the US is focused on the Western Hemisphere and China, who is responsible for Europe?

Mark SHEETZ is a member of WICE who lives in Paris. He taught international politics for over twenty-five years, including courses in International Politics, European Security, American foreign policy and US-European relations. Prof. Sheetz received his Ph.D in political science from Columbia University, M.A. in international relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and A.B. in government from Dartmouth College. Prof. Sheetz was a Fulbright Scholar and Chair of Security Studies at the College of Europe. His scholarly articles have appeared in journals such as International Security, Security Studies, Foreign Policy, Economic Diplomacy, and the Journal of Cold War Studies.