Hosted by the Institute of World Politics

Co-Sponsored by the American Council on Women, Peace & Security

For generations, America's influence has rested on more than military strength or economic power. It has rested on the attractiveness of American ideas—constitutional government, individual liberty, equal citizenship, religious freedom, the rule of law, and the belief that every person possesses inherent dignity. These ideas helped build alliances, rebuild nations after war, and distinguish the United States from authoritarian rivals.

Today, as the United States competes with China and Russia for influence around the world, the competition is once again about ideas. Through diplomacy, humanitarian assistance, development, and security cooperation, America exports not only resources but also assumptions about government, family, human dignity, and the relationship between the individual and the state.

Which ideas make America the partner of choice in great-power competition?

This question has taken on new urgency as China and Russia seek to expand their influence across the Indo-Pacific, Africa, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. U.S. security cooperation is one of America's principal foreign policy instruments in this competition. Beyond building military capacity, it strengthens institutions, develops leaders, and shapes the values and ideas associated with American partnership. As nations compete to become the partner of choice, the ideas embedded in these relationships matter as much as the equipment and training they provide.

The Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Act offers an illuminating case study. Originally enacted with broad bipartisan support as a national security initiative, its implementation has reflected competing visions of the purpose of American foreign policy. One vision understands WPS principally as a national security and human rights instrument rooted in American constitutional values and strategic interests. Another increasingly incorporates broader ideological frameworks that have become influential in international institutions and development policy. Examining this evolution provides broader lessons about how ideas become embedded in government institutions and exported through American foreign policy.

This discussion asks a fundamental question: What values should America export? How can the United States ensure that the principles embedded in its foreign assistance and security cooperation strengthen—not weaken—its strategic position while remaining faithful to America's constitutional traditions?

Drawing on lessons from postwar Japan, Afghanistan, and the implementation of the WPS Act, the panel will examine how policy, bureaucracy, education, and institutional incentives shape the ideas America projects abroad. It will also explore how bipartisan consensus can be restored around enduring American principles that promote both human freedom and national security.

This conversation speaks directly to the mission of the Institute of World Politics and its focus on employing all dimensions of statecraft. Throughout the twentieth century, the world witnessed the profound consequences of exporting political ideologies through state institutions. Today, as authoritarian powers promote alternative models of governance and influence, Americans must once again consider which ideas their own nation exports—and whether those ideas advance freedom, strengthen alliances, and reinforce America's moral leadership.

At a time of renewed great-power competition, America's greatest competitive advantage may still be what it has always been: combining strength with goodness in the service of freedom.

PANELISTS:

Susan Yoshihara, Ph.D.
Founder and President, American Council on Women, Peace and Security; Editor, Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) in U.S. Security Cooperation

Piero Tozzi, J.D.
Member, Board of Directors, American Council on Women, Peace and Security; Senior Director for China Policy, America First Policy Institute

Charlotte ("Charlie") Ponticelli
Senior Fellow, American Council on Women, Peace and Security; Former Deputy Under Secretary for International Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor; Former Senior Coordinator for International Women's Issues, U.S. Department of State