Kerry: New directions for foreign relations

[ProSense]

New directions for foreign relations

By John F. Kerry

AS SENATOR Hillary Clinton appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today for confirmation hearings as secretary of state, the foreign policy agenda of the US government is confronting many challenges. We are engaged in wars in different stages in Afghanistan and Iraq. Global climate change represents a potential catastrophe. The danger from the spread of nuclear weapons and technology remains significant.

Yet it would be wrong to infer that we cannot triumph over the torrent of troubles afflicting the world today. After eight years of unilateral decision-making on the world stage and log rolling and partisan paralysis at home, we have an opportunity to reshape the way the United States does business with the world. We can resolve these issues by reasserting our moral leadership and restoring the world's trust in us through multilateral problem-solving rooted in diplomacy.

The Defense Department has fulfilled the enormous burdens placed upon our men and women overseas with honor and professionalism. But the road to reestablishing American leadership and improving the lives of our citizens and the rest of the world also runs through the State Department and the Congress. As incoming chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, I am determined to push an agenda that recognizes a new reality, returns civilian functions to civilians, and enhances the ability of US diplomats to play the leading role in solving these problems through effective foreign assistance and diplomacy.

We live under the constant threat of catastrophic terrorism. In recent weeks, we have heard chilling warnings about the prospect of nuclear terrorism. No issue is more urgent than dealing with nuclear proliferation. And none cries out louder for international cooperation. We need to signal the world that the United States is again ready to lead the way toward a world free of nuclear weapons. The ultimate goal may be far in the future, but now is the time to begin the journey with two dramatic steps.

First, I will urge the Obama administration to embrace the goal of reducing our strategic nuclear arsenals to 1,000 deployed warheads and work to persuade the Russians to do the same. That number is more than enough to keep us and our allies safe, but it will tell the world that we are determined to fulfill our responsibilities to eventually eliminate these doomsday weapons. In conjunction, it is essential that the new administration immediately open serious discussions with the Russians on extending or replacing the landmark Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which expires in less than a year.

Second, I will begin working to build the necessary bipartisan support for US ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which would impose a worldwide ban on nuclear testing under the watch of a far-reaching verification regime. Winning approval of two-thirds of the Senate will be a long and difficult process. It will require the unyielding support of the Obama administration and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. But success would be the single greatest arms control accomplishment for the new Senate and it would reestablish America's traditional leadership role on nonproliferation.

Just as we must work diligently to prevent a nuclear attack, the same leadership must be applied to avert a potential disaster of equal magnitude - global climate change. For eight years, the United States has been the world's laggard on this vital issue, and the global community craves new and aggressive leadership. We need to send a strong and certain message that we are ready to lead the effort to combat climate change through action at home and active engagement with other countries to develop a comprehensive new treaty.

In two months, negotiators will meet for the next round of discussions on a pact to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. The essential elements of that treaty must be defined by the next Conference of Parties in Copenhagen this December. The time is short and the task is tremendous. The Senate has a vital role to play in defining the scope of the treaty to meet this urgent challenge.

And just as we must work with allies and other progressive nations to meet these challenges, we need the assistance of the international community to achieve stability in the Middle East and find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Strengthening our alliances through leadership and cooperation will help when it comes to persuading Iran to abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions and to deliver the political and economic stability we seek in Afghanistan and across South Asia.

The common element in this formula for a new foreign policy is replacing military solutions and unilateral action with diplomacy and multi-national consensus. Clinton's work on the Armed Services Committee, her lifetime of public service, and her global stature have prepared her well to help pave this new road for American leadership.

WaPo article:

Kerry, who first put Obama in the national spotlight by inviting him to give the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in 2004, endorsed Obama over Clinton early in the 2008 presidential primaries, much to the irritation of the Clinton campaign. But Obama chose his defeated nemesis for the top diplomatic position -- a job that Kerry openly sought with the backing of many prominent Obama supporters. Instead of joining the Obama Cabinet, Kerry became chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, with the goal of leading it back to its former prominence.

Now, the three appear to have largely put the past behind them, with Kerry and Clinton having preliminary discussions about what foreign trips they can take together and Obama working to forge a close working relationship with Clinton in a series of regular phone calls and meetings since he chose her for secretary of state in mid-November.

Still, Kerry will have a different mission than Clinton and the president she serves. In an interview, Kerry said it is not his goal to hold the Obama administration's feet to the fire. "On the other hand, I don't work for them," Kerry said. "The committee is an independent branch . . . and where necessary, we're obviously going to push and cajole and prod and try to hold accountable. But we'll do it in a way that I hope is entirely constructive and in partnership wherever possible."

For Kerry, assuming the committee chairmanship represents the culmination of his life's work, starting with his appearance before the committee as a 27-year-old Vietnam veteran who had returned home opposed to the war. "How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?" Kerry famously asked in an appearance that would define much of the rest of his career.

It was also on the committee that Kerry developed a reputation as an investigator, digging into the financing of terrorist networks in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He said he hopes to bring that investigative spirit to the committee as a whole, not to unravel wrongdoing of the Bush administration but to shed light on murky global transactions, such as those involving offshore entities and U.S. money spent on anti-narcotics efforts. He is also planning a robust environmental program, in addition to retaining the committee's regular status as a kind of "think tank" that addresses international issues as they emerge.

more

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. John Kerry,
D-Mass., listens to the opening statement from Secretary of
State-designate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, right, during
her nomination hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday,
Jan. 13, 2009.

[Cha]

1. Thanks for this article..I love that

all of them are working together now to clean up.

I just saw Kerry on my local news station during the confirmation hearing for Hillary's SOS and I gotta say..I love his tie!

[ProSense]

2. Things are looking up.

:)

[Cha]

4. They certainly

are! Oh boy:bounce:

[Democrafty]

3. LOL!

Many of us are big fans of JK's ties :)

[Cha]

5. It looked all

turquoise on my screen:)

[karynnj]

6. I'm jealous, my screen showed the normal light blue

[Cha]

7. Oh wow..if not for this

thread I would be thinking Kerry wore a turquoise tie. It looked quite spiffy..he should consider in the future:)

[ProSense]

8. Excellent video clip

here