Foreign Affairs

9/11 changed the world. An America that has a long history of trying to avoid entangled alliances has been forced to engage an enemy in a worldwide struggle in defense of security, freedom, and peaceful coexistence. The United States must engage our allies to promote our national interests. At the same we must be prepared to go it alone if our interests are not shared by friendly nations. We should continue to promote free democratic societies without getting bogged down in long drawn out affairs. When appropriate we should give non-military assistance to democratic forces. Such instruments as Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty played an important role in helping to defeat the Soviet Union. Today, we should invest some resources in encouraging democratic forces in Iran. We agree with President Bush’s belief that the military option should not be unilaterally taken off the table. As a last resort we should be ready and able to use measured military force. In Europe, we should continue to forge strong ties with the new democracies in Eastern Europe and our closest ally Great Britain. In the Pacific, we must stand up to an increasingly belligerent Communist China and establish closer ties to our friends in Australia. And in South America we must confront the challenge posed by the well-financed attacks by the radical government of Venezuela. We should continue to treat Mexico as an ally when it shares our goals and adversary when it does not. But we should inform the Mexican government that we will not tolerate their programs that encourage illegal immigration into the United States. Our top priority must continue to be the protection of our nation and its citizens. This means winning the war on terror through diplomacy, military action, and cooperation.