American National Security

Paper Summary:

The paper argues that although the term national security, as a Cold War construct, is new, the application of power abroad, as needed by the state, is recorded even in Biblical times. The paper looks at US foreign policy throughout the 20th century, around the time of the world wars and during the Cold War. Some of the questions looked at are: How the state defines the goals that compose its national interest, the means the state selects to pursue those goals, and the state's identification of others as friend or foe determine how the promotion of the inherently ambiguous concept of "national security" parlays into actual policy. The paper proves that promotion of national security is the logical means by which the state's preferences are realized.

From the Paper:

"Instead, maintenance of a subservient client role for such states was sufficient; the United States would enjoy the benefits of its clients acceding to American preferences for their economic and foreign policies, without being burdened with the chore of actually administering British-style colonies. The international capitalist order, which allowed free mobility of capital, made control of large swaths of territory and people irrelevant to increasing wealth."

More papers on American National Security:

• Analytical Essay # 87882 : "National Security Changes"
• Essay # 73503 : "The National Security State"
• Analytical Essay # 62454 : "National Security and the President"

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