This thesis examines the reason for the failure of the U.S. National Drug Control Strategy, and the Andean Initiative. Its scope is limited to cocaine trafficking from the Andean nations of Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru, to the United States. It provides the background of those strategies, and analyzes various explanations for failure. Based on this analysis, the thesis provides policy recommendations for antidrug efforts, which include increased emphasis on demand-related issues, judicial system consistency and harsher penalties, improvement in domestic and international coordination, and expanded restrictions on U.S. government agencies conducting covert operations. In conclusion, this thesis proposes that any real solution to the drug problem lies not with supply interdiction, and not with expanded foreign assistance, targeting user accountability in the United States.

abstract: The purpose of this dissertation is to study not only relations between Latin America and the United States, but also Latin American states with each other. It specifically aims to examine the extent to which the United States, the principal hegemonic power in the Americas, can play a constructive role by providing regional public goods. These goods include conflict resolution and economic progress. Although the United States has the potential to create such goods, it also has the potential to create public bads in the form of regional instability, political terror, and economic stagnation. This raises two fundamental research questions: Under what conditions can Washington play a positive role and if these conditions cannot be met, under what conditions can Latin American nations bypass the United States and create their own economic progress and conflict resolution strategies? Drawing upon qualitative research methods and case studies that have attracted scant academic attention, this dissertation finds that through regional multilateral diplomatic negotiations, the United States can play a positive role. However, due to U.S. parochial economic interests and the marginalization of diplomacy as a foreign policy tool, these conditions rarely occur. This research further finds, however, that through flexible regionalization Latin American nations can bypass the United States and create their own goods. Supported by an alternative regional power, flexible regionalization relies upon supranational institutions that exclude the United States, emphasize permanent political and economic integration, and avoid inflexible monetary unions. Through this type of regionalization, Latin America can decrease U.S. interference, sustain political and economic autonomy, and open space for alternative conflict resolution strategies and economic policies that Washington would otherwise oppose. This dissertation is academically significant and policy relevant. First, it reconsiders diplomacy as an instrumental variable for peace and offers generalizable results that can be applied to additional cases. Moreover, finding that Latin American countries can address their own regional issues, this study recognizes the positive agency of Latin America and counters the negative essentialization commonly found in U.S. academic and policy research. Finally, this research offers policy advice for both the United States and Latin America. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Political Science 2013

Il presente lavoro di ricerca indaga i rapporti tra la disciplina delle Relazioni Internazionali (RI) e la tradizione filosofica americana del Pragmatismo (PP), focalizzandosi sui possibili contributi che quest’ultimo può fornire alle RI, guardando sia allo sviluppo del dibattito paradigmatico della disciplina sia alla dimensione delle politiche. In particolare, dopo aver fornito un quadro generale dei principi fondamentali del pragmatismo e averne evidenziato la positiva influenza sullo sviluppo della disciplina delle Relazioni Internazionali, il lavoro di ricerca si concentra sul tema del pragmatismo applicato alla dimensione della politica estera, qui concepita come sottolivello delle RI multifattoriale, multidisciplinare e nel quale l’agente/attore specifico assume un ruolo centrale. In linea con questa impostazione, la ricerca si concentra sull’elaborazione della politica estera del 44° Presidente americano, Barack Obama, mettendone in luce gli explanans, la cui applicazione viene poi testata nell’ambito di due casi-studio particolari: le relazioni degli Stati Uniti con Cuba, da un lato, e Israele, dall’altro. Attraverso l’analisi della letteratura esistente, in gran parte piuttosto recente, di documenti ufficiali rilasciati dall’Amministrazione Obama e dai discorsi ufficiali del Presidente stesso, il lavoro mira a dimostrare l’effettiva importanza del Pragmatismo sia per gli studiosi delle RI che per i policy-makers. / This research work aims at addressing the relations between the discipline of International Relations (IR) and the American philosophical tradition of Pragmatism (PP), investigating the possible contributions PP can provide IR with, both at a theoretical and a policy level. In particular, once given an overview of the basic principles of PP and the positive inputs it can provide to the discipline of the IR, the research work addresses the issue of whether pragmatism can direct and explain the formulation of a foreign policy (FP) – conceived as the sublevel of IR which is actor-specific, agent-oriented, multifactorial, multilevel, and multidisciplinary. In order to do so, an interpretative actor perspective is adopted, and the foreign policy of former U.S. President Barack Obama is analyzed, focusing on the explanans of his foreign policy making and vision. Their application is then tested on two case-studies: U.S.-Cuba relations and U.S.-Israel relations, in the timeframe of the Obama Presidency. Through the analysis of the existing literature – some of which quite recent, official documents released by the Obama Administrations and speeches given by the President, the research work tries to demonstrate that PP can indeed constitute a useful tool-kit for both IR scholars and policy-makers.

This study focuses on the construction of American identity over time as it relates to U.S. foreign policy. It is based on the insights of poststructuralism and variants of discourse theory. In particular, the study depicts the historical development of identity representations within U.S. foreign policy discourse from 2008 to 2020, in order to demonstrate how the ongoing construction of identity enabled Donald Trump's disruptive foreign policy. Much of identity research in IR focuses on Self/Other relationships and understudies affirmative representations of identity. The current study fills this research gap by examining processes of affirmative linking in the construction of identity. The main results of the study found that the Trump administration's identity representations radically diverged from those of the Obama administration. The latter articulated America predominantly as a leader in the world, while the former reconstructed American identity as one of being a victim. However, two representations of American identity stayed constant: America as an inspiration to others and America as a force for good in the world.

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This dissertation explores the ways in which Americans constructed a public understanding about gender relations in Muslim countries from the Iranian Revolution through the post-9/11 period that cast Muslims as oppressors of women. It argues that such understandings significantly influenced U.S. foreign policy in recent decades. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, the degree to which women had or lacked rights became one barometer by which Americans judged Muslim societies. Journalists, scholars, women's rights activists, novelists, filmmakers, politicians, and others in the U.S. contributed to public debates since 1979 that cast Muslims as particularly oppressive of women. The pervasiveness of such views and lobbying efforts by women's rights activists pushed policymakers to situate the attainment of rights for women within the constellation of legitimate areas of policy concern regarding the Muslim world. As a consequence, by the 1990s concern for Muslim women's rights sometimes drove U.S. policy, as when President Clinton chose not to recognize the Taliban regime in 1998; at other times, rhetoric about the oppression of Muslim women became a political tool which policymakers could use to provide legitimacy and moral force for their interventions in the Islamic world. This story is both national and transnational and involves both state and non-state actors. / History

Jungtinės Amerikos Valstijos (JAV) vis dar neabejotinai yra galingiausia pasaulio valstybė, todėl įvairiapusė šalies užsienio politikos analizė yra labai svarbi. JAV užsienio politika išsiskiria savo daugiavektoriškumu, kadangi šalis turi interesų visuose pasaulio regionuose, gali veikti įvairiomis priemonėmis. Politinės partijos, kaip demokratinės valstybės vidaus veikėjas, užsienio politikos procesų kontekste gali būti reikšmingas tuo atveju, jei valstybė turi platų spektrą lygiaverčių savo vaidmens tarptautinėje arenoje vizijų, o politinė sistema yra pilnai susiformavusi ir visiškai stabili. JAV yra būdingi abu šie aspektai, todėl pagrindinių šalies politinių partijų užsienio politikos nuostatų analizė yra labai aktuali. Pagrindinis šio darbo tyrimo objektas yra JAV Respublikonų partijos užsienio politikos nuostatos. Svarbiausias tyrimo tikslas - išanalizuoti JAV Respublikonų partijos užsienio politikos nuostatas bei jų kaitą 2000 – 2013 metų laikotarpiu. Darbe teigiama, jog JAV išsiskiria labai stipria prezidento institucija, kuriai suteikti įgaliojimai vadovauti visam užsienio politikos aparatui, tačiau Kongresas (kurį sudaro Atstovų Rūmai bei Senatas) taip pat turi įvairių politinių instrumentų varžyti ar palaikyti prezidento iniciatyvas. Dėl įtvirtintos JAV dvipartinės sistemos, Respublikonų ir Demokratų partijos yra plačios skirtingų interesų, visuomenės grupių koalicijos, o jų ideologinės nuostatos yra giliai įsišaknijusios į šalies politinę sistemą. Prezidentas... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / United States of America (U.S.) is still undoubtedly the most powerful state in the world therefore diverse analysis of its foreign policy is very important. There is no doubt that U.S. tries to secure its current position using various foreign policy instruments. What can be called U.S. Grand Strategy depends on many external and internal factors and foreign policy visions of two main political parties of U.S. are not at last place. Political parties can possibly be important object of foreign policy analysis in case when state‘s democratic political system is fully functioning and state has many competing visions of its role in international arena. These features are typical of U.S. political system therefore analysis of foreign policy visions of state‘s two main political parties is very relevant. The main object of this research is foreign policy views of the Republican Party of United States. The main goal of this research is to analyse change of foreign policy views of the Republican Party in the period 2000 - 2013. U.S. political system is characterized by strong presidential institution that has authority to lead state‘s foreign policy. However U.S. Congress also has various political instruments that can be used to support or restrict initiatives of U.S. President. President is also the leading voice and leader of his political party and represents consensus of party‘s ideology. This research concludes that U.S. political parties are broad coalitions of various... [to full text]

Approved for public release; distribution in unlimited. / The role of Latin America in U.S. foreign policy has ebbed and flowed for over 100 years. Over the last 15 years, the relationship between the United States and Latin America has seen a precipitous drop in both cooperation and cordiality. The amicable relationships that the United States once enjoyed with Brazil and Venezuela specifically have become acrimonious. With the United States' increased interest in completing a Free Trade Area of the Americas agreement by January, relations with Brazil are vital. The United States' continued dependence on imported petroleum from Venezuela and America's concern over Venezuela's growing relationship with Cuba make this country also important to U.S. foreign policy. The thesis focuses on the United States' ability to use its cultural influence (soft power) to positively effect U.S. relations with Brazil and Venezuela. By analyzing past and present effects of U.S. cultural influence in these two countries, the U.S. can better understand and appreciate the influence it wields as the world's only remaining super power. This thesis finds that despite historic evidence, the U.S. has had and continues to have a propensity to use soft power influence tactically, diminishing the effectiveness of its innate power and influence as being the global leader in military, economic, cultural, and technological matters. Conversely, the U.S. attempts to use its hard power (military and economic) strategically, thereby only breeding anti-Americanism globally. / Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy

This thesis is dedicated to the rupture between Henry A. Wallace and Truman's administration during the forties of the twentieth century, that is mainly to the Wallace's disagreement with the Democratic Party regarding U. S.-Soviet relations. Disapproval of the former Roosevelt's vicepresident with the official standing of the American foreign policy ultimately lead to his presidency candidacy in 1948 and to the creation of protest Progressive Party, which was supposed to shield this candidacy. The purpose of the thesis was to ascertain to what degree these events had been formed by the commencing Cold War and on the contrary which role was played by Wallace and his followers. In the thesis, I analyzed Wallace's shift in opinion towards Soviet Union, determinants of his viewpoint and direct causes of his leave from Democratic Party. I devoted to the circumstances leading to creation of the Progressive Party, its structure and the role of communists in this process. The core theme is presidential campaign in 1948 and analysis of the reasons behind Wallace's defeat; one chapter is devoted to the reflection of this campaign in the forming Eastern Bloc, including its propaganda employment in the communist media press. Additionally, following evolvement of Progressive Party and the reasons of the Wallace's...