John Kerry comments on Foreign Policy...
johnkerry.com
“Americans deserve a principled diplomacy...backed by undoubted military might...based on enlightened self-interest, not the zero-sum logic of power politics...a diplomacy that commits America to lead the world toward liberty and prosperity. A bold progressive internationalism that focuses not just on the immediate and imminent, but insidious dangers that can mount over the next years and decade, dangers that span the spectrum from the denial of democracy, to destructive weapons, endemic poverty and epidemic disease. These are not just issues of international order, but vital issues of our own national security.”
-John Kerry
"Making America Secure Again"
John Kerry addressed the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City on Wednesday, December 3rd. In his speech, Senator Kerry laid out a roadmap to reverse the damage to U.S. security and leadership caused by President Bush’s flawed policies of unilateralism and preemptive war, and to create a new era of alliances that will meet the challenge of global terrorism.
Listen to this talk at...
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Supporting Arms Control and Non-Proliferation Measures
“The central challenge for the United States is to undertake to lead the most global, comprehensive effort in history to deal with proliferation and nuclear weapons lost or loose in a dangerous world.”
Senator Kerry has been an outspoken proponent of arms control and non-proliferation measures in the Senate. He fought against withdrawal from the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which he viewed as a step backwards in our efforts to promote an international non-proliferation regime. “U.S. rejection of the Treaty would undermine the credibility of U.S. leadership on non-proliferation,” he said in a floor statement, “which will jeopardize U.S. work to prevent North Korea from developing nuclear weapons…and to block the sale of sensitive technologies that could contribute to proliferation.” When the Administration sought ratification of a nuclear arms reduction agreement with Russia that lacked verification procedures, Kerry proposed an amendment requiring annual monitoring reports. “The Treaty runs the risk of increasing the danger of nuclear theft by stockpiling thousands of warheads,” he said, “if we are to make America safer, and we must, it will take more than cosmetic treaties that leave Russia's nuclear arsenal in place.”
In order to address the threat to our national security posed by unsecured weapons of mass destruction, Senator Kerry supported legislation providing American expertise and funding to the nations of the former Soviet Union to help secure nuclear stockpiles, a program that he now supports extending to other countries, and he has recently called for a major new international initiative to confront this problem. “It is time for the most determined, all-out effort ever initiated to secure the world’s nuclear materials and weapons of mass destruction” he said, “the only answer the clear imperative is a multi-lateral framework implementing global consensus that weapons of mass destruction under the control of terrorists represents the most serious threat to international security today, and warrants an urgent and global response.”
Increasing America’s Energy Security
“Setting a national goal of reducing our reliance on Middle East oil within this next decade is critical to the long-term national security of the United States. No foreign government can embargo clean, domestic, renewable sources of energy and no terrorist can seize control of them.”
Senator Kerry recently proposed a major new initiative designed to increase America’s security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil. “Our national security is at stake and we have to act today, not wait for decades while new crises threaten or strike,” he said. By increasing energy efficiency and promoting use of alternative energy sources, Kerry’s plan would free America from reliance on oil from Middle Eastern nations that can be unstable and hostile to our interests, while preserving our natural resources and creating thousands of new jobs for Americans. “Today we have an energy policy of big oil, by big oil, and for big oil,” he said. “It may work for their profits, but it will never work for America.” |
