Is ISIS America’s Problem?

I was giving a speech a few nights ago and someone asked me a question I’m still thinking about. Is ISIS our problem? By “our” she meant America’s. I’m willing to speak as both an analyst and as an American, so long as I’m clear that’s what I’m doing.

I’ve been getting variations of this question a lot lately: Is Ukraine our problem? Is Syria our problem? Is the Middle East our problem? Is Europe our problem? Is the world our problem? All these questions go to the heart of the matter: Who are we? Who do we want to be? What role should America play in the world?

On one level, it’s clear that ISIS is our problem. They’ve brutally killed Americans simply because they’re Americans. They’ve inspired attacks against Americans both in the US and abroad; they’ve called for more. It’s only a matter of time.

So clearly we care. And yet others should care more. ISIS is a bigger problem for the Europeans than for the Americans. It’s a bigger problem for the Turks than for the Europeans. It’s a bigger problem for the Lebanese and Jordanians than for the Turks. It’s a bigger problem for the Saudis, Libyans, Iraqis and the Syrian people than for the Lebanese and Jordanians.

It’s America that the world still turns to. Many around the world still expect the US to step up and deal with those mounting threats that others are unable or unwilling to tackle. Many US politicians, invoking American exceptionalism, argue that the world needs America now more than ever. And that may be true. But it’s clear that most of the American people and those currently in charge of US foreign policy are wary of continuing down this ‘indispensable’ America path. America can no longer pretend to be the world’s policeman when we’re not prepared to answer the most important calls. We tell the world consistently that we’ll “destroy” ISIS, but have no willingness to implement the policies that could make that happen.

It’s time for Washington to be honest. If we’re not prepared to bear the full costs, we shouldn’t mislead our allies. America needs to explain to countries on the front lines what America is and is not prepared to do, and we need to do it credibly. You need to explain just how limited the American engagement will be.  The alternative is that everyone will wait for an America that’s not coming.

Nor should our leaders mislead the American people. We must match the word to the action, and the action to the word. We must decide what price we’re willing to pay, and then do what we say we’re going to do.

The world expects America to take the lead because:

1) The US remains the world’s sole superpower, and 2) the US consistently sets expectations higher than other countries do.

 Time for a rethink.

Ian Bremmer is president of Eurasia Group, foreign affairs columnist at TIME and Global Research Professor at New York University. Register here for his upcoming course on Global Political Risk at NYU Stern. You can also follow him on Twitter and Facebook.