Tanguy Struye de Swielande

Obama’s legacy and the way forward

This article aims at providing an assessment of the principles that have guided the foreign policy of President Obama’s two terms in the Oval Office. Our analysis adopts three angles: first, demons...ABSTRACT This article aims at providing an assessment of the principles that have guided the foreign policy of President Obama’s two terms in the Oval Office. Our analysis adopts three angles: first, demonstrate the (necessity of) continuity in American foreign policy throughout the years and the presidents; second, analyse the impact that President Obama’s main doctrines have had in the short term (such as selective engagement, nation-building at home, leading from behind, etc.); and third, propose five general guidelines for the way forward to guarantee American leadership in the next two decades.