15 October 2002
Byliner: Condoleezza Rice on Shared Values, Interests of U.S. and Allies
(Sees "enormous opportunity" for great power cooperation) (900)
(The following bylined article by National Security Advisor Condoleeza
Rice is receiving its initial publication in the Washington File. No
republication restrictions.)
(begin byliner)
The Shared Values and Interests of the U.S. and its Allies
By Condoleezza Rice
(Condoleezza Rice is Assistant to the President for National Security
Affairs)
There is an old argument between the so-called "realistic" school of
foreign affairs and the "idealistic" school. To oversimplify, realists
downplay the importance of values while emphasizing the balance of
power as the key to stability and peace. Idealists emphasize the
primacy of values and the character of societies as crucial to states'
behavior toward other nations.
While this may make for interesting academic debate, in real life,
power and values are inextricably linked. Great powers can influence
millions of lives and change history. And the values of great powers
matter. If the Soviet Union had won the Cold War, the world would be a
very different place today.
The United States and our allies around the world all share many
common values -- a broad commitment to democracy, the rule of law, a
market-based economy, and open trade. In addition, since September
11th, the world's great powers are increasingly allied against the
forces of terror and chaos. We believe, moreover, that time is on the
side of these values.
This confluence of common values and common interests creates a moment
of enormous opportunity. Instead of repeating the historic pattern of
destructive great power rivalry, we can seek to marshal great power
cooperation to move forward on problems that require multilateral
solutions -- from terror to the environment.
Security must rest also on military strength, but not on that alone.
To continue to build what President Bush calls a balance of power that
favors freedom, we must extend as broadly as possible the benefits of
liberty and prosperity that we in the developed world enjoy. We have a
responsibility to build a world that is not only safer, but better.
The United States will, with our international partners, fight
poverty, disease, and oppression because it is the right thing -- and
the smart thing -- to do. We have seen how poor states can become weak
or even failed states, vulnerable to hijacking by terrorist networks
-- with potentially catastrophic consequences.
We will lead efforts to build a global trading system that is growing
and more free. Expanding trade is essential to the development efforts
of poor nations and to the economic health of all nations.
We will continue to lead the world in efforts to combat HIV/AIDS -- a
pandemic which challenges our humanity and threatens whole societies.
We will seek to bring every nation into an expanding circle of
development. Earlier this year President Bush proposed a 50 percent
increase in U.S. development assistance. But he also made clear that
new money means new terms. The new resources will only be available to
countries that work to govern justly, invest in the health and
education of their people, and encourage economic liberty.
At the core of our common efforts must be a resolve to stand on the
side of men and women in every nation who stand for what President
Bush has called the "non-negotiable demands of human dignity" -- free
speech, equal justice, respect for women, religious tolerance, and
limits on the power of the state.
In our development aid, our diplomacy, our international broadcasting,
and in our educational assistance, the freedom-loving nations of the
world must promote moderation, tolerance, and human rights.
We must reject the condescending view that freedom will not grow in
the soil of the Middle East -- or that Muslims somehow do not share in
the desire to be free. The celebrations we saw on the streets of Kabul
last year proved otherwise. And in a recent UN report, a panel of 30
Arab intellectuals recognized that for their nations to join, fully,
in the progress of our times will require greater political and
economic freedom, the empowerment of women, and better, more modern
education.
We do not seek to impose democracy on others, we seek only to help
create conditions in which people can claim a freer future for
themselves. We recognize as well that there is no "one size fits all"
answer. Germany, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, South Africa,
South Korea, Poland, Taiwan, and Turkey show that freedom manifests
itself differently around the globe -- and that new liberties can find
an honored place amidst ancient traditions.
In countries such as Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, and Qatar, reform is
under way, taking shape according to different local circumstances.
And in Afghanistan this year, a traditional Loya Jirga assembly was
the vehicle for creating the most broadly representative government in
Afghan history.
Because of our own history, the United States knows we must be patient
-- and humble. Change -- even if it is for the better -- is often
difficult. And progress is sometimes slow. America has not always
lived up to our own high standards. Two hundred twenty six years after
winning our own freedom, we are still practicing each day to get it
right.
Together, the freedom-loving nations of the world have the ability to
forge a 21st century that lives up to our hopes and not down to our
fears -- but only if we are persistent and patient in exercising our
influence in the service of our ideals, and not just ourselves.
(end byliner)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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