U.S. Soft Power: Retreat or Reinvention?

Soft power — the ability to influence others through attraction and persuasion rather than coercion or inducements — has long been regarded as an important tool for advancing U.S. values and interests abroad . Recent foreign policy developments, however, have renewed debate over its usefulness. These include the scaling back of established instruments that have helped generate U.S. goodwill and influence abroad, such as humanitarian and global health assistance, educational programs, and openness to international students. This talk analyzes how soft power operates in practice and asks: Is the United States retreating from it, or can it be reinvented for a 21st-century world of rapid technological change and great-power competition? And does the United States still have the credibility and institutional capacity to deploy it effectively? Richard M. Mills, Jr. is the former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria and U.S. Deputy Representative to the United Nations. He previously served as Chargé d’Affaires, ad interim, of the U.S. Embassy to Canada, as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia (2015-2018), Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon (2012-2014), and as Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires, ad interim, of the U.S. Embassy to Malta (2010-2012). Please RSVP here to sign up for in-person or Zoom attendance. This seminar will be held in E40-496 (Pye Room). Lunch will be available at 11:45am. Contact [email protected] with any questions. This event is part of the CIS Global Research & Policy Seminar Series. Join our mailing list here to learn about upcoming seminars in the series.