US Foreign Policy

The 2012 summit of the G8 industrialized nations gets under way May 18 at Camp David in the woods of northern Maryland. Initially planned for Chicago, U.S. planners moved it to facilitate better conversation and brainstorming among the leaders of the eight nations involved.

Occupy protestors who planned to march against the assembly, though, say the mere threat of their presence in Chicago forced the move.

What's the G8, you ask, and why all the fuss? Read here.

With Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng seeking protection in the American embassy in Beijing two weeks ago, and with various U.S./Chinese economic and strategic summits ongoing, it's hard to believe that forty years ago the U.S. and China had no diplomatic relations.

China was Communist, and the U.S. patently hated all Communism. Plus, the U.S. had recognized Nationalist China in Taiwan as the Chinese government, and mainland China hated that.

Then, in 1972, Richard Nixon went to China and began the process of normalizing relations between the two powers. Most people remember Nixon, of course, for one thing -- Watergate. But Nixon was a consummate foreign policy specialist, and his bold trip to China helped pave the way out of the Cold War. Read here for more on Nixon's trip.

Photo: Richard Nixon, his wife, Pat, and a Chinese entourage walk along the Great Wall of China in February 1972.

White House photo by Byron E. Schumaker, courtesy National Archives and Records Administration

Until last week, when Chen Guangcheng sought refuge in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, China, you may not have heard much about Gary Locke -- unless you're from Washington state. The former Washington governor and U.S. secretary of commerce is now the U.S. ambassador to China, and he became fully involved in the Chen incident.

Locke has received both praise and criticism for his handling of events. You can find out more about him here.

Photo: U.S. Ambassador To China Gary Locke.

Photo Courtesy U.S. Department of Commerce

All across American college and university campuses this weekend and next, commencement speakers will be talking about "the value of education." In an unintended way, New York University's offer to accept Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng as a visiting scholar proves that education also has value in the realm of foreign policy.

Chen sparked a diplomatic crisis when he sought refuge in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on April 30, then decided to return to Chinese jurisdiction, then said he wanted to leave China. The back-and-forth made American diplomats look indecisive and Chinese diplomats look heavyhanded and dictatorial.

New York University's offer on May 4 gave the U.S. an out. The offer forced China to extend Chen the same rights of educational travel that all Chinese citizens have, and the U.S. promised to expedite the process. For more on the incident, read here.

If China makes good on its promise to allow Chen to leave -- great. If not, China looks like the bad guy and the U.S. can make diplomatic hay of that. There are some scenarios -- bad ones -- which could point up U.S. indecision, but with international attention on Chen those probably won't happen.

In short, the most probable outcomes to the deal help the U.S. come out on top. And therein is "the value of education."

Photo: In this handout photograph provided by the U.S. Embassy Beijing press office, Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng (R) looks on as U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke (L) talks on the phone May 2, 2012 in Beijing, China.

Photo by U.S. Embassy Beijing Press via Getty Images

George C. Marshall, the 50th U.S. secretary of state, was both a man of war and a man of peace. As U.S. Army chief of staff in World War II, he coordinated American and allied war efforts; as secretary of state he crafted the economic plan that reinvigorated post-war Europe. Read here for this installment in my series of bios on American secretaries of state.

Photo: George C. Marshall as U.S. Army chief of staff.

Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Defense.

The United States has had troops in Japan since the end of World War II, most of them stationed in the southern island prefecture of Okinawa. Numbers of U.S. personnel there have topped 52,000, and their behavior -- ranging from traffic accidents to incidents of rape -- have frequently irritated Okinawans.

Since 2006, the U.S. and Japan have been working on a deal to move some 9,000 Americans off of Okinawa. On April 27, they announced the rudiments of the deal. Read here for more.

On April 23, 2012, North Korea threatened to attack South Korea and turn Seoul to "ashes." More Kim-family rhetoric? Probably, but the comment underscores North Korea's anger over its failed missile test earlier this month. It also keeps the people of the Korean peninsula -- and the world -- on edge. After all, North Korea does have nuclear weapons capability, and it does not ascribe to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968.

Nor does it want to be told what to do. President Obama has called for North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un to avoid provocative actions, but to no avail.

Non-proliferation remains a centerpiece of U.S. foreign policy. Five of the nine nuclear nations have signed onto the NPT; of the other four, all except North Korea agree with non-proliferation. For more about the 1968 non-proliferation treaty, read here. For more on North Korea, stand by.

Photo: Nagasaki, Japan, August 9, 1945.

Photo courtesy U.S. State Department.

Last week North Korea launched a dud of a missile, and the world went into a frenzy of worry and dread. This week, India successfully launched a missile with a range of 3,100 miles that could potentially hit Beijing, China, and hardly anyone noticed.

Why the difference in international and U.S. reactions? Read here for some answers.

Good to his word, U.S. President Barack Obama cancelled planned food aid to impoverished North Korea after that country tried to launch a missile on April 12. The missile left the pad, but it exploded a few minutes later and fell into the sea.

Nevertheless, the attempt proved Kim Jong-Un isn't any better at heeding international will than his dad was. Here's a complete look.

Photo: South Koreans watch a live television report of North Korea's abortive missile launch April 12, 2012.

Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

As of this posting, the United States and the rest of the world are watching the skies over North Korea to see if that country makes good on its intention to launch a missile, ostensibly to place a satellite in Earth orbit.

The U.S. and the United Nations have said that such a launch would be unnecessary provocation, and U.S. President Barack Obama has said North Korea would lose promised food aide from the United States if it goes through with the launch.

You can read more about the "launch watch" here; meanwhile, standby.