Guides: Political Science: Foreign Policy

Current Foreign Policy - Try These First

Note: There is no one place for U.S. foreign policy. Many U.S. government agencies and branches of government are sources of U.S. foreign policy, depending on the topic. Below are major sources of information.

The Whitehouse - Foreign Policy
Statements, remarks, releases, executive orders and related foreign policy documents of the current administration.
State Department website
Press briefings & releases; Secretary of State remarks; "This Week at State"; and more. Browse by issue or country.
Background Notes (U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets)
Country information relating to U.S. relations from the U.S. State Department. Each profile includes links to additional resources.
govinfo
Access online documents from all 3 branches of the Federal Government. Replaces FDSys, which was retired by the Government Publishing Office.

Foreign Policy Magazine. Published by Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 1970 - Present.

U.S. Congressional Committees

House Committee on Foreign Affairs (U.S. House of Representatives)
Responsible for oversight and legislation relating to foreign affairs. See committee statements, hearings, committee prints (reports accompanying legislation), etc.
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
'Responsible for overseeing the foreign policy agencies of the U.S. government...reviews and considers all diplomatic nominations and international treaties, as well as legislation relating to U.S. foreign policy. See their reports and hearings, etc.

State Department Historic Magazines & Bulletins

Department of State Bulletin
1939 - 1989. Some issues in print or microfilm. Later title Dispatch (1990-1999). Current title: State Magazine.
Foreign Policy Bulletin
Published commercially by Cambridge, it continues and expands the earlier Department of State Bulletin and Dispatch Magazine (see separate entries). In addition to U.S. foreign policy materials, it includes texts and reports from international organizations and representatives. 1990 - present.
Print: Davis Family Library Current and Bound Periodicals, E840 .F676 Also online.

U.S. Foreign Policy Historic Documents

See also the resources on the President / Executive Branch, Congress & International Security sections of this guide.

Digital National Security Archive (DNSA) This link opens in a new window
A database containing over 500,000 pages of declassified documents gathered through the U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The DNSA archive contains a range of policy documents including presidential memos, meeting notes, briefing papers, White House communications, email, letters, and other secret material detailing U.S.foreign and military policy since 1945. Topics include the Koreas, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Cuba, nuclear proliferation, among many others. See also smaller open access version from George Washington University.

Foreign Relations of the United States
U.S. State Department - Document record of major policy decisions, 1861-1970s. Only Recent volumes are online (Truman +) For earlier print editions see: Main Library JX233 .A3 and Govt Docs. For editions back to 1861 see the Univ. of Wisconsin Digital Collections. Also see American State Papers for 1789-1817.
American Foreign Policy: Current Documents
Published by the U.S. Dept. of State. Subject approach to principal statements, addresses, reports, etc. relating to U.S. foreign policy. Includes documents from other organizations (such as the UN) that pertain to U.S. foreign policy.
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks JX1417 .A33 1956 - 1967; 1977 - 1990.
American Foreign Policy: Basic Documents
See also the Current Document series.
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks JX1417 .A33 1950/55; 1977/80.
Decade of American Foreign Policy : Basic Documents 1941-1949
Covers period before American Foreign Policy Basic Documents.
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks JX1416 .A47.
Documents on American Foreign Relations
Boston: World Peace Foundation / Council on Foreign Relations. Narrative on U.S. foreign relations and documents. Click on more below for later volumes.
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks JX231 .D6 1938 - 1970.
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Continued by American Foreign Relations: A Documentary Record (1971 - 1976). See Also The United States in World Affairs (1931-1940; 1945 - 1970)
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks JX231 .D6 1938 - 1970.
Survey of International Affairs
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks D442 .S8 (1920/23 - 1963)
See also supplement: Documents on international affairs. 1958-1963
govinfo
Access online documents from all 3 branches of the Federal Government. Replaces FDSys, which was retired by the Government Publishing Office.
CIA Historical Collections
Declassified, historically significant CIA documents. Wide range of collections including Bay of Pigs, Korean War, Bosnia, Warsaw Pact, Czech invasion, Camp David accords, and much more.

U.S. Country-Specific Historic Collections

Afghanistan and the U.S., 1945-1963: Records of the U.S. State Department Classified Files This link opens in a new window
Full-text digital access to these historic documents.
This collection of U.S. State Department Central Classified Files relating to internal and foreign affairs contain a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats.
Chinese Civil War and U.S.-China Relations: Records of the U.S. State Department's Office of Chinese Affairs, 1945-1955 This link opens in a new window
Full-text digital access to these historic documents. "Provide valuable insight into numerous domestic issues in Communist and Nationalist China, U.S. containment policy as it was extended to Asia, and Sino-American relations during the post-war period."
Czechoslovakia from Liberation to Communist State, 1945-63: Records of the U.S. State Department Classified Files This link opens in a new window
Digital full-text access to these historic documents. "This collection documents the creation of the Third Republic, which was established after World War II."
Japan at War and Peace, 1930-1949: U.S. State Department Records on the Internal Affairs of Japan This link opens in a new window
Full-text digital access to these historic documents. "This collection of U.S. State Department Central Classified Files relating to internal and foreign affairs contain a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats." Continues Records of the Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs of Japan, 1910-1929 (on microfilm).

Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Political Relations between the U.S. and Japan, 1910-1949
Microfilm 798 (9 reels) 1910 - 1929
Microfilm 737 (5 reels) 1930 - 1939
Microfilm 738 (8 reels) 1940 - 1944
Microfilm 739 (19 reels) 1945 - 1949

British and Other Historic Foreign Policy Collections

Documents on British Foreign Policy, 1919-1939
London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1946 -
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks DA566.7 .A18
Series 1, 25 volumes; Series 2, 20 volumes, Series 3, 6 volumes
See also: MIDCAT Subject search: Great Britain--Foreign Relations
Documents on German Foreign Policy, 1918-1945
Subtitle: From the Archives of the German Foreign Ministry. London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1949 -
Print: Davis Family Library Stacks JX691 .A46. Series C, 6 volumes; Series D, 13 volumes
See Also MIDCAT Subject search: Germany--Foreign Relations
Foreign Office Files for China, 1919 - 1980 (trial through Dec. 8th)
Temporary trial access thru Dec. 8th. Consists of Official British documents from The National Archives, UK. Send feedback to eaccess-admin@middlebury.edu.

Foreign Office Files for India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, 1947-1980 This link opens in a new window
Three archival collections drawn from the British Foreign Office files on the countries of South Asia from shortly before Indian partition and independence up to 1980.
Foreign Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean States This link opens in a new window
Full-text digital access to these historic documents. This collection covers foreign relations interactions between Central America, South America, Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. It includes cables, memoranda, correspondence, reports and analyzes, and treaties.