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Inboden Weighs in on the Geopolitical Impact of COVID-19

Jun 11, 2020 |

Professor William Inboden, Strauss Center Distinguished Scholar, Executive Director of the Clements Center for National Security, and Associate Professor at the LBJ School, discussed the impact of COVID-19 on the geopolitical sphere in a recent UT News article. Inboden began by distinguishing between what he views as the two categories of impact: “trends that were already in place that the coronavirus is accelerating, and things that are changing directions substantially,” and he provided illustrative examples of both. Inboden then commented on the relationship between COVID-19 and different forms of governance, noting that COVID-19 has the potential to expose the internal weaknesses of authoritarian states while simultaneously exemplifying the benefits of democracy, given that authoritarianism’s proclivity for the suppression of free speech can lead to delayed policy responses. While acknowledging that democracies, too, have fumbled in their response, Inboden expressed optimism about the capacity for democracies to produce innovative policy responses, as they can engage a type of trial-and-error approach.

Inboden concluded with a broad overview of U.S. foreign policy presently, providing his thoughts on the global threat landscape and the role of moral inconsistency in foreign policy, particularly as evidenced by the U.S.-Saudi relationship. Read the full article here.

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