It is not an easy task to analyse what is the national security and what it is not in an American perspective. At least since the attacks of September 11, 2001, the defense of the American territory from terrorists and other attacks has redefined what is national security. To answer the question above, I simply define national security as including national defense and the protection of a series of geopolitical, economic, and other interests and I will try to analyse how American foreign policy is effective in that area.
To understand the effectiveness of American foreign policy with respect to matters regarding national security one needs to assess the American power. In fact, US uses soft and hard power in shaping its foreign policy in matters of national security . The effectiveness of this power in shaping foreign policy can be understood by using examples. The USA sees itself as the source of the democracy tradition which is deep-rooted in American beliefs about political order, national identity, national interest and international relations. The national identity, liberalism, exceptionalism and universalism have shaped how America has seen itself as a democracy and, accordingly, what its role in the world should be. Willing to expand these beliefs, the US have to choose between using soft power, attract other countries to like its ideals, or use hard power, thus military power to impose its ideals . The effectiveness of the use of these two powers, which complement each other can be analyse case per case.
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Even the “war on terror” was backed by several core beliefs such as expansion of the expansion of democratic values and the homeland security, the overall outcome of this war in Iraq was that the international image of the USA was