How Does it Affect America?
Monroe did not actively seek to add territory to the United States. Presidents after James Monroe, which would include James Polk and Theodore Roosevelt, used the Doctrine to justify the implementation of new land in the United States. The use was made noticed when President Polk added Texas to after via the Mexican-American War. Soon after, President Roosevelt embedded Monroe’s philosophy to establish a strong American presence in Central America, the Philippines, and the Caribbean.
Whether from an economic, political, educational or military point of view, Influences from Noth America is to be noticed in every relevant field of the international affair. For the future generations, this might come as a natural feature, but not so many know that actually, this was not the case for a long period of time in the country’s history. The best example in this sense is the Monroe Doctrine, established almost two centuries ago, that, in short, politically isolated the American states from the European Great Powers’ influence. For almost a century, until the late involvement in the World War I, this was the fundamental approach in the US foreign policy.
How Does it Affect the U.S Foreign Policy?
For most of the American history, the isolationist tendency prevailed in its foreign policy. In its early years, American foreign policy was, in fact, a reflection of the American national interest, namely to fortify the new nation’s independence. With the European continent torn apart by the great powers’ rivalry, the American nation could develop at its own pace, without any major external threat. Therefore the nonalignment practice, the isolationism, the constant effort to remain free of entanglements overseas became characteristic features of the early American foreign policy (Kissinger, 10-12). The step forward in strengthening this view was made in 1823 when the Monroe Doctrine was proclaimed, a political decision basically stating that further European action on the American continent will be interpreted as an intervention and a threat for the new nation’s stability. Surprisingly accepted without much of a revolt by the European powers, the new doctrine defended America and assured an uninterrupted pursuit of its goal: growing internally and turning itself into a Great Power, with the formidable advantage of not being threatened by state rivalry.