An Investigation of Sweden’s Feminist Foreign Policy and Applicability for the United States of America

Feminist foreign policy began in 2014 with the first large-scale implementation of the foreign policy taking place in Sweden. Governments of several developed nations have since taken on feminist foreign policy initiatives, finding the worldview that human rights are an imperative step in the commitment to international peace. This study aims to establish the merits and demerits of feminist foreign policy, using the example of Sweden’s feminist foreign policy, to assess whether the United States could adopt similar elements of this brand of foreign policy to their own. This study investigates current foreign policy approaches in both Sweden and the United States, analyzing the lessons that the United States can learn from Sweden’s approaches, and addressing any gaps that are found in current foreign policy practices that can be addressed going forward. Key factors demonstrated through feminist foreign policy include the prioritization of gender equality as a core security issue. This factor is responsible for the focus on gender analysis and the inclusion of feminist theory when developing foreign policy plans. This focus creates a need to increase resources and rights for women and girls within foreign policy. Further, a key factor represented in a feminist foreign policy is the parallel between domestic gender equality and the motivation to expand these values into the state’s global initiatives. Overall, this study demonstrates how these key factors in feminist foreign policy can benefit developed nations move forward with a commitment to rethinking concepts such as world peace and security.