Please join us for a lecture by Frank Lavin (former U.S. Ambassador and Reagan and Bush official)

U.S. Foreign Policy in the Post Post-Cold War Period

Foreign policy during the Cold War served as a model for the US for decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but recent years have shown increased dissatisfaction with U.S. international leadership and alliance management whether you look at Obama's reduction in U.S. commitment to NATO, Biden's withdrawal from Afghanistan, or Trump's sharp breaks with NATO and challenges to international trade. Is international leadership no longer central to U.S. security and prosperity? Or do the costs of leadership simply exceed the benefits? Does the U.S. need to reduce its international role and commitments, or is this reduced international footprint a mistake? Lavin draws on his new book, Inside the Reagan White House as a starting point for a broader discussion.

Frank Lavin is active in U.S.-Asia policy, U.S. domestic politics, and trade policy matters. He serves as a Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution as well as a Trustee of the Asia Foundation and as a Director of the Asia Society of Northern California. Lavin served as Under Secretary for International Trade at the U.S. Department of Commerce in the Bush (43) Administration. Lavin was previously U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, where he helped negotiate the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. Lavin also served in the Bush (41) and Reagan Administrations, working in the Department of Commerce, Department of State, National Security Council, and White House. In the Reagan Administration, Lavin served as White House Political Director.

• This event is in-person and also available via Zoom.