In 1513, Niccolo Machiavelli wrote a book on statecraft and the wielding of power called “The Prince.” That more than 500-year-old book, which has just over 100 pages, is still considered one of the best books on foreign policy and leadership ever written.
In 1513, Niccolo Machiavelli wrote a book on statecraft and the wielding of power called “The Prince .” That more than 500-year-old book, which has just over 100 pages, is still considered one of the best books on foreign policy and leadership ever written. Of course, the book is also considered DANGEROUS and scary by some people because Machiavelli was a relentlessly practical realist who understood that wielding power is not for the faint of heart. Personally, I think Machiavelli had a keen understanding of human nature and is one of the most brilliant thinkers to ever live. After you read these quotes, you will understand why. 20) “He who becomes a prince through the favor of the people should always keep on good terms with them;…Open
A realist analysis of power and interests points to a mutually beneficial outcome. The post The Iran War Is Lose-Lose appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs The Iran War Is Lose-Lose A realist analysis of power and interests points to a mutually beneficial outcome. Photo by Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images The conflict between the United States and Iran has laid bare a profound failure of political judgment and strategic adaptation in Washington and Tehran alike. Both sides locked themselves into rigid adversarial paradigms and prioritized short-term tactical military successes at the expense of long-term strategy. For the United States in particular, this failure is a symptom of a much larger, more dangerous disease—a stubborn adherence to a…Open
In Latin America, the White House abandons its own strategic doctrine for democracy promotion. The post Marco Rubio’s “Democratic Hemisphere” vs. the National Security Strategy appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs Marco Rubio’s “Democratic Hemisphere” vs. the National Security Strategy In Latin America, the White House abandons its own strategic doctrine for democracy promotion. Photo by YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images Earlier this month, Daniel Ortega, the dictator of Nicaragua, announced that his country would no longer hold elections. In response, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a statement condemning Ortega and declaring that Nicaragua “cannot expect to maintain business as usual with other nations when it is thwarting the basic tenets of our democratic hemisphere.” There is no doubt that…Open
What does it mean for the United States to pursue its national interests in the Western Hemisphere? The Trump administration has made a renewed focus on the American near abroad a centerpiece of its foreign policy, declaring in its 2025 National Security Strategy that it intends to “enforce a ‘Trump Corollary’ to the Monroe Doctrine.” […] The post The ‘Donroe Doctrine’ Divide appeared first on The American Conservative .
Latin America The ‘Donroe Doctrine’ Divide The administration’s Western Hemisphere strategy continues to divide the realism and restraint community. What does it mean for the United States to pursue its national interests in the Western Hemisphere? The Trump administration has made a renewed focus on the American near abroad a centerpiece of its foreign policy, declaring in its 2025 National Security Strategy that it intends to “enforce a ‘Trump Corollary’ to the Monroe Doctrine.” That means ensuring that the “Western Hemisphere remains reasonably stable and well-governed” enough to prevent mass migration to the U.S.,…Open
Robert Jacob Alexander, Baron Skidelsky: rest in peace. The post The Task of Diplomacy appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs The Task of Diplomacy Robert Jacob Alexander, Baron Skidelsky: rest in peace. (Photo by Jyoti Kapoor/The India Today Group via Getty Images) My quest for Robert, Lord Skidelsky to write an essay for The American Conservative started in earnest after a Duke of Marlborough (James Spencer-Churchill) tweet (it was still called that then), wherein Marlborough wrote that Winston Churchill, his great uncle, would be appalled at the use of the wartime prime minister’s name to continue the needless loss of life in Ukraine in preference to a negotiated compromise. The tweet he was responding to was from Lord…Open
All things pass, but the Iran War is hastening the process. The post The Final Chapter of the Unipolar Moment appeared first on The American Conservative .
The Iran War The Final Chapter of the Unipolar Moment All things pass, but the Iran War is hastening the process. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images) The attar of Nishapur, when asked by the king to say something that might make a happy man sad and a sad man happy, noted īn nīz bogzarad (this too shall pass). As a matter of history or political analysis, the phrase doesn’t offer much specific. But as a summation of all things temporal, it is unparalleled. At the time of writing, there is no clarity “why” we are in another war against one of the most objectively beautiful and historic countries in the…Open
A new book offers a realist strategy for dealing with a region in rapid flux. The post The Middle East has Become the New ‘West Asia’ appeared first on The American Conservative .
Books The Middle East has Become the New ‘West Asia’ A new book offers a realist strategy for dealing with a region in rapid flux. (AFP via Getty Images) West Asia: A New American Grand Strategy in the Middle East, by Mohammad Soliman. Polity Books, 272 pages. The Trump administration’s 2025 National Security Strategy laid out its vision for a new U.S. role in the Middle East based on a pragmatic scaling back from the ideological misadventures of prior years. Instead of attempting to reshape the countries of the Middle East through violence and money, the strategy advocated an orderly withdrawal from a region that…Open
When perpetuating an alliance becomes its own end, danger is not far off. The post Appeasing Allies appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs Appeasing Allies When perpetuating an alliance becomes its own end, danger is not far off. The concept of “appeasement” is something invoked by foes of diplomacy who are in love with making bad Second World War analogies and applying black-and-white absolutism to the nuances of geopolitics. But there is one place where the term might actually have some constructive purpose: not for giving in to rivals by practicing diplomacy, but for giving in to the demands of allies uncritically. Such appeasement does in fact exist and is indeed dangerous, but not in the way that most who deploy the term mean. Only defense…Open