Building Alliances

To meet the global challenges of the 21st century – international terrorism, the spread of weapons of mass destruction, global climate change and pandemic disease – America must once again lead a coalition of allies.

Building and strengthening alliances with other nations means America has more allies to work with us against international threats. Rebuilding these relations requires the sustained, effective use of the full range of America’s assets: diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal and cultural.

“America’s commitment to global security will never waiver. But in a world in which threats are more diffuse, and missions more complex, America cannot act alone.”
- President Obama’s Speech on accepting the Nobel Peace Prize

Read the full speech here.

Building and strengthening alliances with other nations means America has more allies to work with us against international threats.

In the 21st century, the dangers that confront us cross national borders and we need international cooperation to fight them. According to a bipartisan poll for the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, 88% of US military officers surveyed agree that “a strong military alone is not enough to protect America; we also need to improve diplomatic relations and do more to promote stability in the world by improving health, education, and economic opportunity in other countries.”

In evaluating steps the United States could take to achieve our strategic goals and improve national security, officers in our survey rank “strengthening our diplomatic efforts and cooperation with other countries” (83% very/fairly high priority) on par with “increasing counter-insurgency training for our troops” (87%) and “improving our military’s rapid response capabilities” (81%).

Eighty-six percent (86%) of the highest-ranking officers (O-4 and higher) also agree that, “even though we are the world’s only super power, we can’t do everything on our own; expanding our commitment to diplomacy and increasing foreign assistance is a cost-effective way to improve America’s image and win more friends and allies”

Resources

Human Rights

• For more about human rights, read Secretary Clinton’s Remarks on the Human Rights Agenda for the 21st Century.

Military Officers Survey

• Conducted on behalf of the Center for U.S. Global Engagement, the bipartisan polling team of Peter D. Hart Research Associates (D) and Public Opinion Strategies (R) recently conducted a survey among 606 commissioned U.S. military officers, including 499 active duty officers and 107 officers who retired after the 9/11/2001 attacks. View the survey here.