Foreign Policy Under Clinton and Bush (the son)

Bush's (the son) Foreign Policy

• Al Qaeda 

• War on Terror 

• Iraq

Bosnia and Kosovo 

• Who’s involved? Christian Serbs, Clinton

• What happened?  War broke out in Yugoslavia and Christian Serbs wanted to commit genocide known as “ethnic cleansing”. Clinton stepped in to negotiate peace. He used American air power against the Serbs.

• How did it affect the US?  NATO intervention helped restore peace in the Balkan region

Al Qaeda 

• Who's involved? Islamic Fundamentalists in Saudi Arabia

• What happened? They opposed Western influence and especially resented the presence of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia. They began what they considered to be a jihad, or “holy war” against the United States 

• How did it affect the United States? On September 11, 2001, the terrorists boarded  several commercial jets and used box cutters they had smuggled on board to threaten passengers, they flew the planes into the World Trade Center in NY, and the Pentagon in D.C.

Rwanda  

• Who’s involved? US, Hutus 

• What happened? A near case of genocide occurred in a small country in Central Africa. The Hutus began slaughtering the Tutis. The United States and other Western Countries were slow to react and as many as 850,000 people were killed.  

• How did it affect the US? The US were probably viewed as an unhelpful way by Americans if they were slow to react.

War on Terror

• Who’s involved? President Bush, Taliban, Osama Bin Laden, Afghanistan

• What happened? Bush declared a war on terror, and demanded Taliban hand over bin Laden

• How did it affect the US? The US attacked Afghanistan, overthrowing the Taliban but couldn't capture bin Laden. Many Americans grew fear/hatred towards muslims and middle easterns in the US after all this

Haiti 

• Who was involved? Clinton, Haiti, American troops.

• What happened?  When Military leaders overthrew a democratically elected leader in Haiti, Clinton sent in American troops, who restored the elected leader to power.

How did it affect the US? It showed that president Clinton also showed great concern for human rights.

Iraq

• Who’s involved? Bush, Iraq, Saddam Hussein

• What happened? Bush suspected Iraand Hussein was concealing forbidden chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction from U.N. weapon inspectors

• How did it affect the US? Although they overthrew the government in Iraq, no weapons were found, and critics claimed that the whole invasion was a mistake

World Trade Organization

• Who was involved? United States and China

• What happened? In 1994, the World Trade Organization was created to help oversee international trade and settle trade disputes. For the first time, China invited companies from the United States and other Western nations to invest in China.

• How did it affect the US? Trade between the US and China surged.

NAFTA 

• Who’s involved? President Clinton,  Canada, Mexico, and the US

•  What happened? An agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico, created a giant trade zone with lower tariffs. 

• How did it affect the US? The US, Canada, and Mexico agreed to gradually reduce their tariffs on one another’s goods and to carry out other forms of cooperation. This agreement, however, had yet to be ratified. Clinton was able to persuade members of Congress to approve the NAFTA agreement.