Searching For Progressive Foreign Policy in Theory and in Practice

What differentiates progressive grand strategies from other variants of US grand strategy? Van Jackson’s “Left of Liberal Internationalism: Grand Strategies within Progressive Foreign Policy Thought” argues that progressives reject the idea that security is limited to questions about the use of military force. Jackson begins instead with a broader concept of security rooted in “peace, democracy, and equality.” 1 Following from these commitments, he proposes three progressive grand strategies. First, progressive pragmatism prioritizes economic equality, seeking to mitigate threats posed by corrupt autocrats. Second, antihegemonism attempts to rein in American military power and imperialism. Third, peacemaking aims to respond to structural causes of violence and advocates for wide-spread disarmament.