Why and how do geography and ideology affect foreign policies of sovereign states? What is geopolitics? What three ideologies have been most important in twentieth century international relations? Where in the world can examples of these ideologies can be found?

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The Answer is Geography and ideologies are key ideas in understanding the nature of foreign policies. Geopolitics is a term used to describe the relation between geography and security that policymakers take into account. Geography is important, because if a state is satisfied with its geography it will create policies to try to protect it, and if a state is dissatisfied it will use policy to try to get from others what it wants. Ideologies, deeply held visions of what the correct form of government should be, are also largely important to foreign policies. Three ideologies that are important to twentieth century politics have been the fascist ideology, the democratic ideology, and the communist ideology. Fascist ideology can be seen with Hitler, Mussolini, and some countries where significant social turmoil exists. Communism today is the ruling ideology in governments in China, North Korea, and Cuba. Democratic capitalist ideology is dominant throughout the world and is the prevailing U.S. belief.

Why and How Do Geography and Ideology Affect Foreign Policies