Global Swing States: Brazil, India, Indonesia, Turkey and the Future of International Order

The rise of four powerful democracies – Brazil, India, Indonesia, and Turkey – presents one of the most significant opportunities for U.S. foreign policy in the early 21st century. Daniel M. Kliman of the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) and CNAS President Richard Fontaine urge U.S. leaders to pursue closer partnerships with these four countries, which they term “global swing states.” In this new report, released as part of a joint initiative of GMF and CNAS, Kliman and Fontaine offer a new framework for thinking about how U.S. engagement with these pivotal powers can bolster peace, prosperity, and freedom.

The authors offer policy prescriptions specific to each of the four countries while recommending that the United States' engagement with the global swing states include four broad components:

1. Capitalizing on areas where Brazil, India, Indonesia, and Turkey have already taken on new global responsibilities;
2. Addressing some of the demands of the “global swing states” for greater representation in international institutions;
3. Helping the four countries strengthen their domestic capacity to more actively support the international order;
4. Increasing the resources and attention that the U.S. government devotes to these nations to better match their rising strategic importance.