Reviews foreign policy issues confronting the USA from a Republican (i.e. generally conservative) angle. Calls for bi-partisanship in support of (1) ABM treaty plus SDI (or some variant thereof) (2) strengthening NATO (3) expanding the Reagan doctrine in the Third World to give political and economic support for market-oriented democracies. Cites the Philippines as a case where promotion of democracy and national security went hand-in-hand.
The next U.S. president will face three key foreign policy challenges: setting a course for victory in the terrorists' war on global order, strengthening the international system the terrorists seek to destroy, and extending the system's benefits. With a stronger defense, a determined diplomacy, and greater U.S. economic and cultural influence, the next president can start to build a lasting, realistic peace.
By stressing unilateralism over cooperation, preemption over prevention, and firepower over staying power, the Bush administration has alienated the United States' natural allies and disengaged from many of the world's most pressing problems. To restore U.S. global standing--which is essential in checking the spread of lethal weapons and winning the war on terrorism--the next Democratic president must recognize the obvious: that means are as important as ends.
