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Romney Says U.S. Should Be More Assertive On World Stage

October 08, 2012
by RFE/RL

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has said the risk of conflict in the Middle East has grown under President Barack Obama's leadership.

In a speech at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington on October 8, Romney called for a "change of course" in the region.

The Republican candidate pledged to "roll back" Obama's defense cuts, which he called "arbitrary."

"I will deepen our critical cooperation with our partners in the Gulf," he said. "And I will roll back President Obama's deep and arbitrary cuts to our national defense that would devastate our military. I will make the critical defense investments that we need to remain secure."

Romney also indicated that, if elected, he would take a tougher stance on Iran.

"I will put the leaders of Iran on notice that the United States and our friends and allies will prevent them from acquiring nuclear weapons capability," he said. "I will not hesitate to impose new sanctions on Iran and will tighten the sanctions we currently have."

Romney also called for Washington to adopt a more assertive position on Syria and pledged to arm rebels who were compatible with American ideals.

"In Syria, I will work with our partners to identify and organize those members of the opposition who share our values and then ensure they obtain the arms they need to defeat [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad's tanks, and helicopters, and fighter jets," he said.

Mitt Romney maintained that in Afghanistan, he would pursue "a real and successful transition to Afghan security forces by the end of 2014" and pledged not to abandon Afghans to the influence of extremists.

"President Obama would have you believe that anyone who disagrees with his decisions in Afghanistan is arguing for endless war," he said. "But the route to more war – and to potential attacks here at home – is a politically timed retreat that abandons the Afghan people to the same extremists who ravaged their country and used it to launch the attacks of 9/11."

No 'Flexibility' On Missile Defense

Referring to the extensive use by the Obama administration of drones against militants and terrorists, Romnney said they are "no substitute for a national security strategy for the Middle East."

The Republican contender also said he would show no "flexibility" over the U.S. missile defense shield when talking to Russia, which he promised to implement "to protect against threats."

Romney was alluding to Obama's remark to then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, caught on an open microphone earlier this year, that he would have greater flexibility to negotiate on missile defense if he was reelected in November.

Romney made some foreign-policy blunders during his campaign this summer. In London, he suggested that Britain was not adequately prepared for the Olympics.

In Israel, he implied that Palestinians were culturally inferior to Israelis because of their poverty without mentioning Israel's decades-long economic blockade against the Palestinian territories.

With reporting by AP, dpa, and Reuters

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/romney-says-us-should -be-more-assertive-on-world-stage/24733057.html

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