Foreign Policy Blogs

The Art of Negotiation

 negotiation

You are president and confronted with a situation which tests your basic philosophy about diplomatic negotiation, your philosophy can be described as:

A. Talk with friends and ignore enemies.

B. Talk to friends and enemies.

This is the simplistic depiction of how diplomatic negotiation has been presented during the election and we can all acknowledge that reality is much more complex. The Progress Report blog offered a post today that examines the issue and explains why the Bush Administration has both vilified negotiating with enemies while pragmatically doing just that. I suspect that a McCain Administration would continue that tradition, while an Obama Administration would dispense entirely with the notion that enemies are not worthy of direct negotiation. The voters will soon decide which approach best reflects the American temperament.

     
    Add a comment

    Comments (1)

    1. Joel Davis
      Joel Davis Thursday - 30 / 10 / 2008 Reply
      And if you are wondering exactly what leverage the U.S. would have in negotiating with Iran, see this op-ed in The New York Times in which Thomas Friedman explains that the U.S. does have some cards to play.

    Add a comment


    Study International Affairs in New York City

    Author

    Joel Davis
    Joel Davis

    Joel Davis is the Director of Online Services at the International Studies Association in Tucson, Arizona. He is a graduate of the University of Arizona, where he received his B.A. in Political Science and Master's degree in International Relations. He has lived in the UK, Italy and Eritrea, and his travels have taken him to Canada, Brazil, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and Greece.

    Follow U.S. Role on Twitter: @FPAUSRole
    Follow Joel on Twitter: @joeladavis

    Areas of Focus:
    State Department; Diplomacy; US Aid; and Alliances.

    Contact Joel by e-mail at [email protected]