Knowledge Base
Terms You May Have Heard:
Liberal international order: The liberal international order established after World War II relies on the principles of liberal democracy, open markets, and multilateral institutions to guide international relations.
Democratic peace: Democratic peace is a theory positing that democracies do not go to war with other democracies.
Tariffs: A tariff is a tax that the federal government levies on imported products. Tariffs are often charged as a percentage of the value of a product that a US buyer pays a foreign exporter.
World Trade Organization (WTO): The WTO is an organization that deals with international trade between nations. It serves as a place for governments to solve trade problems as well as negotiate trade agreements. The WTO was founded in 1995, but it has roots in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which served as the standard for international free trade from 1948 to 1994.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): NATO is an alliance between 30 countries in continents bordering the North Atlantic Ocean. It was established by the North Atlantic Treaty (also called the Washington Treaty) on April 4, 1949, with the mission to protect the freedom of its members.
Populism: Populism refers to a political approach that places emphasis on the concerns of “ordinary people” who feel disregarded by elite groups. Populism inherently requires the division of peoples, relying specifically on the creation of an “other” on whom a group can focus their grievances.
Nativism: Nativism refers to the political policy of protecting and promoting the interests of native-born or established citizens of a country, especially against the interest of immigrants.
Isolationism: Isolationism refers to the policy of disengaging from the political affairs of other countries.
Protectionism: Protectionism refers to the practice of applying tariffs to foreign imports as a means of protecting a country’s domestic industries.
Nationalism: Nationalism refers to the sense of loyalty to a nation, especially through the emphasis on and promotion of its culture and interests.