U.S. Economic Statecraft in a Realigned World

The global economy has entered a period of fundamental realignment. As the Trump administration deploys tariffs to reshape trading relationships and redefine economic alliances, policymakers worldwide are adapting to a new reality in which economic security and national security have become inseparable. At the forefront of this effort are America’s tools of positive economic power – the institutions that are already mobilizing U.S. public and private capital, financing critical infrastructure, and expanding trade relationships. Yet new capabilities are essential, including coordinated interagency economic packages designed to stabilize transitioning regimes in countries such as Venezuela, and potentially Iran and Cuba – with clear guardrails to ensure that U.S. economic engagement advances strategic objectives without compromising American values or long-term interests.

How is positive economic power evolving in response to the current moment? How can the responsible agencies complement sanctions and export controls, and more seamlessly integrate their responses? And what tools and capacities does the United States need to deploy economic power effectively?

To discuss the evolving architecture of American economic statecraft, please join FDD for a fireside chat with Ben Black, CEO of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Subcommittees on Financial Services and General Government; National Security and International Trade and Finance; and State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development. The conversation will be moderated by Elaine Dezenski, senior director and head of FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power, with introductory remarks by Daniel Swift, senior research analyst at FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power.

For more, check out: https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/09/15/us-economic-statecraft-in-a-realigned-world/