Is the U.S. Still the “Indispensable Nation?”: A Conversation With Madeleine Albright

Madeleine Albright served as U.S. Secretary of State (1997-2001) and also was a Wilson Center Scholar in 1981-82.

She returned to the Center to take part in an alumni event, joining Wilson Director, President, and CEO, Jane Harman for a discussion of America’s historic and evolving role in world affairs. While in office, Secretary Albright would often invoke the idea of the US as the “indispensable nation.” Is that phrase still an accurate description of the role of the United States among nations? That’s just one of the questions Secretary Albright addresses during her conversation with Harman and a gathering of fellow Wilson Center alumni. Highlights from the discussion provide the focus for this edition of REWIND.

Watch the entire session with Madeleine Albright here.