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Obama: US Must Resist 'Overreaching' Abroad

by VOA News February 06, 2015

President Barack Obama says the U.S. 'must always resist the urge to overreach' when it comes to getting involved in global crises.

'America leads from a position of strength,' Obama said as he released a new document outlining his national security strategy. 'As powerful as we are and will remain, our resources and influence are not infinite. And in a complex world, many of the security problems we face do not lend themselves to quick and easy fixes.'

The 35-page document released Friday makes no major policy changes, but it clarifies the U.S. approach to a number of challenges, from the fight against Islamic State militants, to Russian actions in Ukraine, to the rise of China.

In his introduction to the strategy, President Obama said the U.S. should not rely solely on military power, and emphasized that the country is 'stronger when we mobilize collective action.' In the fight against terrorism, he said, the U.S. has moved away from large-scale ground wars to targeted counterterroism operations and joint action with global partners. He says the threat of 'catastrophic' terrorist attacks against the United States has 'diminished but still persists.'

Several top Obama administration officials released statements in support of the new security policy as it was released. .

'It's ambitious and achievable,' said Secretary of State John Kerry. 'It's a vision of an America that galvanizes alliances and partnerships and puts our credibility and our capacity on the line to get things done.'

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel also weighed in, calling the 2015 National Security Strategy 'clear-eyed about our nation's challenges as well as our strategic opportunities.'

Some Republican lawmakers have criticized Obama for what they feel is an inadequate response to global threats, including those posed by Islamic State group and the Ukraine conflict.

Under a 1986 law, the president is required to submit a National Security Strategy to Congress every year, though in practice this is usually only done periodically.

The president last submitted a detailed security strategy in 2010. Since then, he has pulled U.S. troops from Iraq and begun to wind down the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan.

Obama now faces the question of how to deal with Islamic State extremists, who have taken over large parts of Iraq and Syria and committed mass atrocities there.

In Ukraine, White House officials are considering providing weapons to the Kyiv government to help in its fight against separatists in eastern Ukraine and their Russian supporters.

Such concerns have overshadowed President Obama's attempt to focus U.S. diplomatic, security and economic attention on Asia, where the rise of China has rattled many U.S. allies.

White House National Security Adviser Susan Rice is due to deliver a speech in Washington Friday that would lay out the president's foreign-policy plans for his final two years in office.