AP US Government : Foreign Relations

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP US Government

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Foreign Relations

Isolationism is __________

Possible Answers:

A policy, dominant in the Twentieth Century, where the United States tries to act as an arbiter in foreign conflicts.

a government policy that argues that the United States should not get involved in foreign conflicts.

When a President voted out of office, but still has a few months before he is replaced by the newly elected President.

The name given to the anti-Catholic fever that gripped American social and political life in the first half of the Twentieth Century.

a situation where the President is up against Legislative and Judicial Branches are controlled by the opposition party.

Correct answer:

a government policy that argues that the United States should not get involved in foreign conflicts.

Explanation:

Isolationism was a foreign policy that was dominant in the American political arena throughout the majority of the nineteenth century. It argues that the United States will not get involved in foreign conflicts and will try to remain isolated on the international stage.

Example Question #2 : Foreign Relations

The League of Nations was the brainchild of which American President?

Possible Answers:

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Herbert Hoover

Woodrow Wilson

Calvin Coolidge

Jimmy Carter

Correct answer:

Woodrow Wilson

Explanation:

The League of Nations was part of Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points, which he released on the eve of the end of World War One. The idea was to form an international body that would oversee international affairs and try to prevent another global conflict from breaking out. It failed in part due to a lack of support in the United States: it failed even to pass Congress, much to Wilson’s dismay.

Example Question #2 : Policy Relations

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created in the early years of __________

Possible Answers:

The Vietnam War. 

The Cold War. 

World War Two. 

World War One. 

The Spanish-American War. 

Correct answer:

The Cold War. 

Explanation:

NATO was created in 1949 as an alliance of the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and Turkey to meet the perceived threat of the Soviet Union and the rise of communism. It was primarily a military alliance. Its opposition was the Warsaw Pact, which was formed shortly afterwards between Russia and the communist nations of the Eastern Bloc.

Example Question #4 : Foreign Relations

The term appeasement is best defined as __________.

Possible Answers:

the act of making concessions to a political rival in order to prevent something even worse from happening

the releasement of funds from the Federal government to the states with a prescribed and narrow purpose

the maintenance of a large military presence so as to discourage an attack on the United States

the use of Federal funds to improve the infrastructure in only a small number of individual states

the gridlock that occurs in Congress when one party controls Congress and the other controls the Presidency

Correct answer:

the act of making concessions to a political rival in order to prevent something even worse from happening

Explanation:

Appeasement is the term given to making concessions to a political or military rival in order to prevent said rival from doing something even worse. It has long been a controversial form of making policy and is most notable in US History for America’s reaction to the Japanese occupation of Manchuria in 1931.

Example Question #1 : Foreign Relations

The first treaty concerning the reduction of nuclear weapons held by the United States and the Soviet Union was signed during the presidency of __________.

Possible Answers:

John F. Kennedy

Ronald Reagan

Bill Clinton

Richard Nixon

George H. W. Bush

Correct answer:

Richard Nixon

Explanation:

Throughout the initial decades of the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union continued to acquire more and more nuclear weapons until each nation possessed the capacity to destroy the planet many times over. In an attempt to mitigate this massive threat to humanity, the two superpowers signed a treaty in 1972 designed to reduce the stockpile of nuclear weapons possessed by both nations. This took place during the presidency of Richard Nixon.

Example Question #9 : Policy Relations

In his farewell address George Washington warned against which of the following?

Possible Answers:

Deficit Spending and Judiciary Power

Political Factions and Judiciary Power

Foreign Entanglements and Judiciary Power

Foreign Entanglements and Political Factions

None of these answers are correct

Correct answer:

Foreign Entanglements and Political Factions

Explanation:

George Washington was particularly concerned about entering long-term alliances with foreign nations, fearing it would draw America into unnecessary conflicts. His fear of political factions warring over the government was a common fear among the founders, best expressed by Madison's Federalist No. 10. 

Example Question #3 : Policy Relations

Before intervening in each World War, the US pursued which method of foreign policy?

Possible Answers:

Hot-Cold Tactics

Isolationism

Detente

Gunboat diplomacy

Interventionism

Correct answer:

Isolationism

Explanation:

The idea of getting involved in foreign conflicts was incredibly unpopular in America, and the isolationist politicians in Congress tried to keep America out of both of the World Wars as long as possible before the United States eventually entered both of the wars late.

Example Question #2 : Foreign Relations

Gunboat diplomacy is also referred to as what?

Possible Answers:

Touch-and-Go Diplomacy

Lightning Diplomacy

Military-Aggression Diplomacy

All of the other answers are correct

Big Stick Diplomacy

Correct answer:

Big Stick Diplomacy

Explanation:

"Big Stick" Diplomacy refers to Teddy Roosevelt, the American president most commonly associated with aggressive shows of strength. Roosevelt argued that a good leader should speak softly, and carry a big stick. The big stick referring to the coercive strength needed to backup threats and diplomatic appearances.

Example Question #3 : Foreign Relations

The Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine makes what argument?

Possible Answers:

That Latin American nations under US protection need to pay royalties 

That the US sphere of influence now expands past the Western Hemisphere to the Philippines

None of these options are correct.

That the United States needs to play a hands-on, intervening role in the Western Hemisphere

That European nations traveling to the Americas are enemies of the US 

Correct answer:

That the United States needs to play a hands-on, intervening role in the Western Hemisphere

Explanation:

The Roosevelt Corollary was made in the interest of intervention. While the original Monroe Doctrine was made solely to warn European nations away from the Western Hemisphere, the Roosevelt Corollary was made to name the United States as the policemen of the Americas.

Example Question #5 : Foreign Relations

The Roosevelt Corollary was a reaction to which foreign event?

Possible Answers:

The Spanish Flu epidemic

World War I

The Drago Doctrine

The Brazilian Debt Crisis

None of these answers are correct

Correct answer:

The Drago Doctrine

Explanation:

The Drago Doctrine was announced by Argentina in response to European nations' aggressive debt-collecting actions during the 1902 Venezuela Debt Crisis. It declared that European nations were not allowed to coerce Latin American nations into paying their debts. Roosevelt rejected this Doctrine, and added the Roosevelt Corollary instead, allowing American intervention in countries that couldn't properly conduct their own affairs.

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