Foreign policy is the way that nation states conduct their relations with the rest of the world. It covers a broad range of issues, including determining how much influence a power has, managing trade agreements, and dealing with threats to national security. Many think tanks exist that study foreign policy, such as the Council on Foreign Relations and Chatham House.

The subject of foreign policy is extremely complex, as there are many actors, issues, and factors that interact with and influence each other in the global arena. Because of this, the decisions that politicians make regarding foreign policy can have both positive and negative consequences.

In addition to domestic issues, foreign policy can involve coordinating with other countries, such as when the United States and Europe work together on issues like climate change or pandemics. A large percentage of Americans see preventing terrorist attacks, keeping illegal drugs out of the country, and maintaining the United States’ military advantage as their top long-range foreign policy goals.

There has been a basic foreign policy consensus since 1947, defined as “containing communism.” This framework, first formulated by George Kennan’s long telegram sent from the Moscow Embassy in February of that year, essentially defined how America should conduct its international affairs for the next three decades. Among other things, it asserted that the success of U.S. efforts abroad would be a direct result of the strength of America’s allies, while also acknowledging that the United States must create critical obstacles to Soviet expansion.