Lesson 23 — Activity 1:
What Is Foreign Policy?


Warm Up


In this activity, you will understand what foreign policy is and why a country must have a foreign policy.

As you learned in previous lessons, Canada is linked to countries around the world in several ways. Because we share the same world, no country can remain completely isolated on their own.


Think about your own living situation. You may live with your family or with roommates, but you probably share your living space with other people. When people live together, they interact with each other.

If problems are not solved, the living situation can become very unpleasant. The world's nations share one planet, which means that countries around the world have to interact with each other. Just as families and roommates do, countries interact with each other in many ways.

fingers


Just like living with roommates, countries often try many things before a solution is found.

  • Various situations need to be dealt with in different ways.
  • Not everyone agrees on the best way to solve problems.
  • When one method does not work, another has to be tried.


Since relationships with other countries can be quite complicated, each country's government has a foreign policy. This is a plan for how a nation will interact with other nations.

What is Foreign Policy?

  • Foreign Policy is the way a nation handles relations with other countries in the best interest of the people and the country.       

Countries use various strategies when they interact peacefully with each other. A country's foreign policy, or plan for interacting with other countries, can include any of the following methods.



Cultural Relations


Countries share cultural activities such as sporting, musical, and other events.

 

Negotiations


Discussing issues with other countries often leads to solutions to problems. 

International Law


Some laws apply to all countries and are used to settle disputes between countries.

mediation fingers   

Mediation


When a third party tries to resolve a problem between two countries, problems can be solved.


Propaganda


When a country tries to influence the way people think, it will use the media (radio, television, newspapers, etc.). This is known as propaganda.

 

Trade


Countries exchange goods and services.

Canada's Foreign Policy


Canada's foreign policy involves foreign aid, as you already learned about. However, Canada also focuses on the following with respect to foreign policy:


  • promotion of trade and economic growth
  • the environment
  • peace and security
  • Canadian sovereignty
  • human rights and social justice


Click here to read more about each of these areas of Canada's foreign policy.

Self-check!

Try This!

Try the question below on your own first, and then click on the tab to check your answer! You may look back at the lesson to find the answer.


Name the six strategies that countries use to peacefully interact with one another.



  • cultural relations
  • negotiations
  • international law
  • mediation
  • propaganda
  • trade