{"id":22,"date":"2025-08-07T19:50:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T19:50:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/politicsuk\/?p=22"},"modified":"2025-10-06T09:26:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T09:26:20","slug":"chapter-2","status":"publish","type":"content","link":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/politicsuk\/part-1-context\/chapter-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\tHome\n<\/span><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Chapter 2<\/h1>\n\n\n

The UK, Europe, and the world<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Chapter Summary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This chapter began by exploring the history and legacy of the UK\u2019s key international relationships, focusing on its membership of key international organisations: the UN, the EU, NATO, the OSCE and the OECD. It moved on to explore the most prominent ideas that have shaped contemporary UK foreign policy thinking. It does this by splitting the history of British foreign policy into five periods: the Empire, the post-war era, the Cold War, and the new millennium, ending with the post-Brexit, \u2018pre-war\u2019 2020s. Organising the material in this way helps students appreciate, in a simple, accessible way, the continuities and changes which have shaped (and which will continue to shape) UK foreign policy over a long period of time. The chapter shows how UK governments, Labour and Conservative alike, have wrestled with a series of foreign policy dilemmas relating to the economy, politics and identity, leading to some creative thought about how to construct, implement and justify the UK\u2019s role in the world.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Learning Objectives<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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  • To understand the nature and extent of the UK\u2019s key international relationships.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • To appreciate the key ideas that have shaped UK foreign policy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • To explain changes in UK foreign policy from the end of the Cold War onwards.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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    Quizzes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Test your knowledge with the Chapter 2 quizzes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Quiz<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n