7/16/09

Yesterday at the Council on Foreign Relations, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton laid out the progressive vision for U.S. foreign policy. Many in the press sought to portray the event as a re-do of the 2008 primary, but the speech demonstrated the opposite – a Secretary in sync with President Obama’s vision, embracing the foreign policy legacies of FDR, Truman, and Kennedy, and applying those legacies to the new realities of the 21st century. After eight years in which non-military tools of foreign policy were neglected, Clinton’s speech marks a shift back to a foreign policy that utilizes all the tools in the tool kit, including diplomacy and development.

Those seeing signs of a 2008 primary re-tread in Clinton’s speech miss the mark, as Secretary of State in-sync with President, progressives.  Reporting following Secretary Clinton’s address at the Council on Foreign Relations attempted to pit the State Department and the White House against one another, in a contest for control over foreign policy.  The Associated Press reported that “Clinton is trying to retake center stage as the administration's top foreign policy voice after four frustrating, low-profile weeks during which a fractured elbow forced her to cancel two overseas trips.”  The New York Times coverage included the headline “For Clinton, 09’ Campaign is for Her Turf” and called the address “an effort to recapture the limelight after a period in which Mrs. Clinton has nursed both a broken elbow and the perception that the State Department has lost influence to an assertive White House.”  In fact, Clinton’s speech was fully in concert with the aspirations outlined by the President, as she provided more details and laid out the Administration’s next steps in its efforts to implement this vision. Clinton re-iterated the President’s commitment to non-proliferation, stating: “President Obama is committed to the vision of a world without nuclear weapons and a series of concrete steps to reduce the threat and spread of these weapons, including working with the Senate to ratify the follow-on START agreement and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, taking on greater responsibility within the Non Proliferation Treaty Framework and convening the world’s leaders here in Washington next year for a nuclear summit.”  Clinton also re-committed the State Department to another administration priority – Middle East peace – using the same language as the President.  And, as the President did back in April, when he cautioned that moving “the ship of state [was] a slow process”, Clinton urged patience, quoting Max Weber: “Politics is the long and slow boring of hard boards. It takes both passion and perspective.”  [AP, 7/15/09. NY Times, 7/16/09. Secretary of State Clinton, 7/15/09. President Barack Obama, 5/18/09. President Barack Obama, 4/05/09. President Barack Obama, 4/07/09]

Secretary Clinton’s speech marks a return to a foreign policy centered on “pragmatic and principled” diplomacy. Clinton went out of her way to emphasize core principles of the Administration’s approach – commitment to “liberty, democracy, justice” and leadership through cooperation -- and grounded them in a pragmatic view of the world.  “Today, we must acknowledge two inescapable facts that define our world: First, no nation can meet the world’s challenges alone. The issues are too complex. Too many players are competing for influence, from rising powers to corporations to criminal cartels; from NGOs to al-Qaida; from state-controlled media to individuals using Twitter. Second, most nations worry about the same global threats... So these two facts demand a different global architecture – one in which states have clear incentives to cooperate and live up to their responsibilities, as well as strong disincentives to sit on the sidelines or sow discord and division.” 

She laid out this approach overall and then applied it to the hotly-contested problem of Iran:   “Our first approach is to build these stronger mechanisms of cooperation with our historic allies, with emerging powers, and with multilateral institutions, and to pursue that cooperation in, as I said, a pragmatic and principled way. We don’t see those as in opposition, but as complementary.” The secretary reconfirmed the administration’s stance toward Iran: “We know that refusing to deal with the Islamic Republic has not succeeded... Neither the President nor I have any illusions that dialogue with the Islamic Republic will guarantee success of any kind, and the prospects have certainly shifted in the weeks following the election. But we also understand the importance of offering to engage Iran and giving its leaders a clear choice: whether to join the international community as a responsible member or to continue down a path to further isolation. Direct talks provide the best vehicle for presenting and explaining that choice.”   [Hillary Clinton, 7/15/09]

Clinton elevates the need to fix broken tools of diplomacy; puts personal prestige behind the effort.  Spencer Ackerman writes, “Over the last several days, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has quietly begun institutionalizing the Obama administration’s pledge to rebalance civilian and military elements of national security.”  As the secretary herself said, “a personal priority for me as Secretary, is to elevate and integrate development as a core pillar of American power. We advance our security, our prosperity, and our values by improving the material conditions of people’s lives around the world. These efforts also lay the groundwork for greater global cooperation, by building the capacity of new partners and tackling shared problems from the ground up.”  One of the biggest structural changes to foreign policy has been to achieve this goal, in creating the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR).  As the secretary explains, “A central purpose of the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review that I announced last week is to explore how to effectively design, fund, and implement development and foreign assistance as part of a broader foreign policy. Let’s face it. We have devoted a smaller percentage of our government budget to development than almost any other advanced country.”  In her speech, Secretary Clinton also expressed the importance of working with unconventional partners.  She said, “We also will reach out beyond governments, because we believe partnerships with people play a critical role in our 21st century statecraft. President Obama’s Cairo speech is a powerful example of communicating directly with people from the bottom up. And we are following up with a comprehensive agenda of educational exchanges, outreach, and entrepreneurial ventures. In every country I visit, I look for opportunities to bolster civil society and engage with citizens, whether at a town hall in Baghdad – a first in that country; or appearing on local popular television shows that reach a wide and young audience; or meeting with democracy activists, war widows, or students.” [Washington Independent, 7/15/09. Hillary Clinton, 7/15/09]

What We’re Reading

U.S. Marines pushing deeper into Taliban territory in Afghanistan’s Helmand River Valley are short of basic equipment and supplies ranging from radios and vehicles to uniforms. Similar issues face British soldiers in Afghanistan, with reports of a limited number of helicopters being used, fueling the criticism that the government is trying to conduct the war in Afghanistan without adequate financing.

Alleged 9-11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others have boycotted a hearing at a US military court in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The Canadian arctic will see its second straight “open water” summer, with another opening of the ice-free northern passage, threatening wildlife and underlying the negative impact of climate change.

Chechnya's most outspoken human rights activist was found shot to death hours after being kidnapped Wednesday, provoking international outrage and calls for renewed scrutiny of Russia's violent policies in the Caucasus.

Iran's opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi will attend Friday prayers this week in his first official public appearance since last month's disputed election, a statement on his website said.

A six month investigation resulted in the capture of a man suspected of being one of western Mexico’s top drug bosses. But retaliation came swiftly, as his lieutenants struck repeatedly in the two days after his arrest. The recent violence has already claimed the life of the mayor of a small town in the state of Chihuahua.

Former Liberian President Charles Taylor is the first African head of state to go on trial for war crimes before the international tribunal. In a hearing on Tuesday he expressed his incredulity at the testimony against him saying "there is no way" he is guilty of any of the charges.

Pakistan and India have pledged to work together to fight terrorism - "the main threat to both countries".

Commentary of the Day

Daniel Byman discusses America’s reliance on drone strikes and its effects.

In an op-ed published by the New York Times, a Cambodian refugee questions the recent move by the UN to place elderly Khmer Rouge leaders on trial.

John Yoo explains why he authorized warrantless wiretaps after 9-11. Spencer Ackerman is not convinced.

A column in the Guardian discusses why Americans do not believe they are safer from terrorist attacks.