Foreign Aid And American Purpose
The author argues that American foreign aid should, without apology, "augment American political power throughout the world . . . (and) support the postwar liberal international economic order." He is critical of aid funnelled through the United Nations, and of linking development and security assistance.
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US budgetary pressures caused by the Gramm-Rudman deficit reduction legislation necessitate serious analysis of how US interests in developing countries can be advanced when resources are scarce. The recent growth in security and military assistance, at the expense of economic, has created an un-affordable imbalance. Aid programmes need to be re-focused in order to concentrate on global growth, the alleviation of poverty, and the promotion of social equity.
The turmoil caused by weak and failing states gravely threatens U.S. security, yet Washington is doing little to respond. The United States needs a new, comprehensive development strategy combining crisis prevention, rapid response, centralized decision-making, and international cooperation.
Iran is the one sore spot in an otherwise highly cooperative German-American relationship. The United States has sought to punish the Islamic state for sponsoring terrorism. Germany has tried to maintain a "critical dialogue" of limited diplomacy and commerce, much as its Ostpolitik tried to engage Soviet bloc nations during the Cold War. U.S. officials decry Germany's shady dealings and billions of dollars in loans and credits to Iran. When challenged, German officials charge the United States with hypocrisy. Lurking behind the dispute is an uncomfortable fact: in a world without the Cold War, "rogue states" are not threatening enough to force accord among Western nations.
