The Obama foreign policy has been a failure.

The goal of any foreign policy must always be the furthering of the nation’s own interests abroad. Even in this global modern era, foreign policy is about the one’s own nation first and foremost. This is not to say that humanitarian and global concerns cannot play a major role in that nation’s interest; it is merely to say that foreign policy must always advance one’s country’s situation. Bearing this in mind, the rational observer must conclude that President Barack Obama’s foreign policy has been an utter failure. On every level, in every theater, and at every opportunity, this administration has shown an utter lack of understanding of international politics and has undermined America’s position at every turn. I present three contentions to illustrate the gross incompetence of the Obama foreign policy.1. Obama has failed to make significant gains against America’s enemies and rivals. Even before he started his first term, Obama touted a new foreign policy approach of “engagement” with countries that were considered unfriendly to American interests and goals. He resolved to meet with the leaders of Iran, to “reset” the troubled relationship with Russia, and to repair America’s image in the Arab world [1]. Boiled down, Obama’s argument was that warmongers like George W. Bush had destroyed America’s reputation around the world with outdated ideas like the “freedom agenda” and “American exceptionalism,” and it could only be fixed by Obama’s new brand of “smart diplomacy. ” This strategy has failed spectacularly. In Iran, the Ayatollah still runs a brutal dictatorship that is utterly unwilling to cooperate with the international community [1]. Their nuclear program is, by many estimates, only months away from weapons capability, threatening the very existence of one of our closest allies, Israel. Iranian Republican Guard troops have been sent to aid Assad’s crackdown in Syria. When, in 2009, the people of Iran rose up against the tyranny and attempted to overthrow the dictatorship, the President, the Leader of the Free World, refused to support them [1]. He still believed that a diplomatic agreement could be reached with this rogue state. The rebellion was crushed, and with it, the only hope of a pro-American, internationally cooperative government in Tehran. America’s relationship with Russia was supposed to “reset” under the Obama presidency. Both nations were supposed to set aside their Cold War differences and move forward together into broad sunlit uplands. Obama even brought Vladimir Putin a big red button, on which was printed “Reset” in Russian (actually, it was a mistranslation, adding further embarrassment to an already childish display) [4]. The result of this “smart diplomacy” has been staggeringly counterproductive. Putin’s regime has blocked American interests at every turn: in Syria, Assad’s bloodbath continues due to the Russian veto in the Security Council and Russian and Iranian economic support; Edward Snowden, a fugitive charged with treason and saturated with highly sensitive information about American intelligence, successfully found asylum in Russia; and relations between the two countries are as strained as ever [1]. Obama’s one claim to foreign policy success, which he has touted for years now, is the killing of Osama bin Laden. And, while this is unquestionably a laudable achievement, his further claims that Al-Qaeda and their affiliates are on the run are absolute drivel. For the past few years, we have been seeing a resurgence of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan, even as the President seeks to abandon that theater for political reasons [2]. On the 11th anniversary of 9/11, these very same terrorist groups attacked the American Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, killing the Ambassador and three others, while launching attacks on several other American embassies in the Middle East [2].2. Obama has hurt relations with important American allies. With the strengthening of American enemies on all sides, one would think that the maintenance and fortifying of important alliances would be a priority to the President. Not so for the champion of “smart diplomacy. ” From the very beginning, Obama has alienated, ignored, or just dismissed some of America’s oldest and most strategic alliances. The American relationship with the United Kingdom has always been special. When Britain stood alone as the last outpost of democracy in Nazi-occupied Europe, America was by her side. When Britain led the Western European fight against a rapidly advancing Iron Curtain, America gave her support. When America looked for support for wars in Afghanistan and then Iraq, Britain stood ready and willing. They even played the Star-Spangled Banner outside Buckingham Palace on September 12th, 2001. So how, on the brink of another seemingly inevitable conflict, could Britain vote to refuse our call for aid in a military intervention in Syria [5]? Thank Mr. Obama. After sending back a bust of Winston Churchill that had occupied a place of honor in the White House for decades, he rubbed salt on the wound at every opportunity, refusing support over the Falkland Islands dispute and favoring France and Germany as European leaders [1]. In the Middle East, our biggest ally happens to be the only functioning democracy in the region. Since its founding, Israel has been an integral of American foreign policy in the Middle East. Now, with terrorism stemming from the region more of a threat than ever, Obama has decided that he doesn’t like Benjamin Netanyahu [6]. He has repeatedly and publicly shown his disdain for the Israeli Prime Minister, even refusing him an audience at a time when Israel seemed poised to strike the burgeoning Iranian nuclear program (Obama ended up using that time to go on Letterman) [7]. The Israeli relationship is critical to US interests and has been utterly cast aside. Finally, an area often overlooked in foreign policy has been deliberately snubbed by Obama. Eastern Europe has, since the end of the Cold War, expressed a great deal of camaraderie with the US, acknowledging America’s role in their new freedoms. American presidents have fostered this feeling with favorable trade agreements and a large missile defense network, until 2009, when Obama canceled that network to curry favor with Russia [3]. This betrayal has left Eastern European nations like Poland and the Czech Republic with nowhere to turn but their perennial rivals, Germany and Russia [3]. 3. Obama has destroyed America’s humanitarian image. Several humanitarian crises have arisen during Obama’s presidency. The Syrian bloodbath, the struggle for democracy in countries such as Iran and Egypt, and oppression in China all demanded the attention of an arsenal of democracy like the US, but Obama paid them no heed. He failed to act on the Syria situation until Assad crossed the rhetorical “red line,” after over 100,000 civilians had already been slaughtered [8]. As I already touched on, the freedom fighters in Iran received no support whatsoever from the President and the only attention he’s paid to Egypt has been his waffling over which new regime to supply massive amounts of unconditional military and economic aid [1]. Finally, his prioritization of an economic summit with China over the desperate plea of a Chinese dissident seeking asylum reveals his utter lack of concern for the American commitment to human rights [9]. It is obvious that the Obama administration has been a detriment to American goals in foreign policy since his inauguration. In each situation America is confronted with, he and his advisers display an appalling lack of understanding of how world politics work and what America stands for. [1] Commentary Magazine[2] Foreign Policy Magazine[3] The Guardian[4] BBC[5] NBC[6] Jerusalem Post[7] USA Today[8] NY Times[9] Al-Jazeera