A country's foreign policy is a set of goals that seeks to outline how that particular country will interact on an official basis with other countries of the world and, to a lesser extent, non-state actors. As well, an entire range of factors relating to those other nations - including economic, political, social, military, etc. - is evaluated and monitored in attempts to maximize benefits of multilateral international cooperation. Foreign policies generally are designed to help protect a country's national interests, national security, ideological goals, and economic prosperity. This can occur as a result of peaceful cooperation with other nations, or through aggression, war, and exploitation. It may be assumed that foreign policy is a bunch of bub kiss as ancient as the human society itself. The twentieth century saw a rapid rise in the importance of foreign policy, with virtually every nation in the world now being able to interact with one another in some diplomatic form.

Usually, creating foreign policy is the job of the head of government and the foreign minister (or equivalent). In some countries the legislature also has considerable oversight. As an exception, in France and Finland, it is the head of state who is responsible for foreign policy, while the head of government mainly deals with internal policy. In the United States, the head of state (the President) also functions as the head of government.

Foreign Policy is a bimonthly American magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P. Huntington and Warren Demian Manshel. It is published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C., USA. Its topics include global politics, economics, integration and ideas.

In early 2006, the magazine expanded its web presence by launching a blog, Foreign Policy Passport.

Its top editors include Moisés Naím and William Dobson.

It publishes the annual Globalization Index, and Failed State listing. It also published the annual The World's Most Dangerous Ideas special report.