A Timely Event: Signalgate & Theories of IR

The biggest news story of last week was the inadvertent leak of sensitive DOD intelligence to The Atlantic by way of a Signal group chat. Although most of the coverage focused on the leak itself, several outlets noted that the conversations in the group chat were further evidence of the shifting geo-political climate, whereby top U.S. officials are increasingly skeptical of the postwar settlement with Europe. 

Just days after the news broke, we at Blue Ridge hosted a debate on international relations theories featuring Dr. John Owen IV and Dr. Dale Copeland, both of UVA politics. Although the timing between the two was entirely coincidental, the event was a good opportunity for UVA students to hear about competing views on international relations. Despite the event being billed as a seminar in which the professors would “debate whether events in Ukraine, the Middle East, and China support or undermine the most influential theories of international politics”, the most important developments in IR today are arguably coming, not from any of those spheres, but from within the US government itself.

 “Signalgate” as it has come to be known, confirms what was already obvious from the new presidential administration: that at least for the next four years, US foreign policy is going to be increasingly focused on distancing the US from the alliances and relationships that have characterized our postwar existence, especially with regards to Canada and the European Union. Our International Relations debate last week was one example of how Blue Ridge is working to provide outlets for UVA students to think seriously about these issues. Whatever the future looks like (and it may well change with the next presidential election), we are living in history. These are the times that try men’s souls. Here at Blue Ridge, we exist to equip students with the virtues and abilities to flourish, whatever the future may bring.