In The Media
Josh Kurlantzick
{
"authors": [
"Josh Kurlantzick"
],
"type": "legacyinthemedia",
"centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
],
"collections": [],
"englishNewsletterAll": "asia",
"nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"programAffiliation": "AP",
"programs": [
"Asia"
],
"projects": [],
"regions": [
"North America",
"United States"
],
"topics": [
"Foreign Policy"
]
}
REQUIRED IMAGE
In The Media
The Decline of American Soft Power
Published on Dec 1, 2005
Source: Current History
In a recent Current History article, Joshua Kurlantzick argues that failures in America’s public diplomacy have resulted in the decline of America’s soft power. He explains although that the decline began under the Clinton administration, which cut the State Department’s public diplomacy budget and severely weakened the United States Information Agency; the actions following September 11th further compounded these mistakes. As a result, America’s soft power has diminished significantly and the United States must increasingly resort to the use of force and coercive measures to achieve the ends it desires.
Kurlantzick provides insightful advice on what it will take to repair America’s international image in this article that orginally appeared in Current History, December 2005.
Joshua Kurlantzick is a visiting scholar in the Carnegie Endowment’s China Program. Also a special correspondent for The New Republic, Kurlantzick is assessing China’s relationship with Southeast Asia, particularly in the context of China’s relationship with other parts of the developing world and the United States.About the Author
Josh Kurlantzick
Former Visiting Scholar, China Program
A special correspondent for The New Republic, a columnist for Time, and a senior correspondent for The American Prospect, Kurlantzick assesses China’s relationship with the developing world, including Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
- Fighting Terrorism With Terrorists
Recent Work
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Europe
- How the EU Can Become Energy IndependentCommentary
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has triggered a global energy crisis, but Europe is stuck in reaction mode. Without more strategic foresight, the EU will remain dependent on fossil fuels and will never be truly secure.
Milo McBride, Pauline Gerard
- Deciphering Europe’s Relationship with TurkeyCommentary
Debate is heating up on how Turkey could be integrated into a common European defense framework. Commercial and industrial deals offer a better chance at alignment than sweeping political efforts.
Marc Pierini
- Taking the Pulse: Is it Worth it for Europeans to Placate Trump?Commentary
After spending much of 2025 trying to placate Donald Trump, some European leaders are starting to change posture. But is even a hostile Washington still so important to Europe that the U.S. president’s outbursts are worth putting up with?
Rym Momtaz, ed.
- Europeans Are Quiet Quitting the United StatesCommentary
European leaders have now not only lost faith in Donald Trump’s U.S. presidency, but also in America’s hegemony as a whole. But short-term challenges make an immediate divorce unwise.
Rym Momtaz
- EU Integration Without Ratification?Article
Countries face several hurdles in joining the EU, including the final stage of ratifying their accession treaties. Procedural reforms and substantive adjustments could help move the process forward.
Stefan Lehne
