Throughout his presidency (1912 " 1920) Woodrow Wilson(TM)s foreign policy was a failure Explain why you agree or disagree with this opinion
“Throughout his presidency (1912 – 1920) Woodrow Wilson’s foreign policy was a failure” Explain why you agree or disagree with this opinion
Wilson faced many big events in his time in office. He had to deal with a Mexican civil war, the first world war and the peace talk after this. In my opinion the statement is partially correct as he failed to complete many of his aims.
In 1913, Mexico fell into a bloody revolution when Mexican general Victoriano Huerta overthrew the nation's government and declared himself its military dictator. Wilson immediately denounced Huerta, declaring that the United States could not and should not recognise violent dictators. The President attempted to initiate peaceful negotiations between Huerta and the old government, but both sides refused to submit to his proposal. Unsure how to proceed, Wilson permitted Huerta's enemies, the Constitutionalists, to purchase military equipment and arms in the U.S. in order to stage a counterrevolution. With America’s help, the conflict was eventually resolved. Huerta fled the country, and a new government was established in 1915 under the leadership of Constitutionalist President Venustiano Carranza. Soon after Carranza was instated as Mexico's new president, one of his chief generals, Pancho Villa, led a second revolution to depose Carranza. A second bloody civil war erupted in Mexico barely after the first had ended. To encourage the American military to enter the conflict, Villa sent his forces into the U.S., where they destroyed the town of Columbus, New Mexico, and killed nineteen Americans. This produced the reaction Villa sought: within days of the raid on Columbus, Wilson sent the Punitive Expedition of 5,000 U.S. Army regulars. However with the war in Europe drawing their attention, Carranza and the USA negotiated a deal and drew up a new constitution which suited US interest in the country.
