Albright Talks About New NATO Strategy

By Laura Smith, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service

Former Secretary of the State Madeleine Albright appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Thursday, saying that she has recently participated in the first of four planned seminars as part of a broader process to collect a range of views about NATO's strategy and operations. She said the treaty-organization plans to provide their conclusions and recommendations to the Secretary General by next May.

She said that after consulting with member governments, the Secretary General will draft the strategic concept for consideration at the Lisbon Summit, and when it is approved, it will serve as a guide for the alliance in the coming decade.

“NATO was created in response to the Soviet threat, but not only in response to that threat. It was also designed to reign in the many national rivalries that had ripped Europe apart,” Albright said.

Secretaries of state address the challenges the next president will face

Although the administrations they served held clear differences in their views on foreign policy, five former secretaries of state seemed to arrive at a unified conclusion: the next president will need to take innovative steps in order to restore the reputation of the United States abroad.

Speaking at a George Washington University forum on the challenges of the next president, former secretaries of state Madeline Albright, James Baker, Warren Christopher, Henry Kissinger, and Colin Powell touched upon a myriad of topics, including how the U.S. should engage with increasingly hostile regimes, what steps the next president should take to combat climate change, and what should be done about the current brood of humanitarian crises.

Iraq played an important role in the hour-and-a-half discussion and brought forth a disagreement between Albright and Kissinger. When faced with the question of whether or not the U.S. should adopt a timetable for troop withdrawal, Kissinger remarked that it gave every opponent the opportunity to hold out for a deadline. Albright replied,

"There's a difference from saying that we have to remove our troops by 16 months and saying we need to bring them out at x minute."

The five secretaries also backed future support of NATO, despite recent aggression from Russia.

"The Russian Federation is not going to be the Soviet Union. That movie failed at the box office," said Powell.

Domestic issues were also addressed. Baker, who also served as the Secretary of Treasury from 1985–1988 commented that the recent collapse of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Lehman Brothers was one of the worst economic disasters in the century and agreed with the recent decision to not bail out any more banks.

The election was discussed in the closing segment of the forum. Baker mentioned that he endorsed McCain, Albright said that she was supporting Barack Obama, and Powell continued to withhold his endorsement, saying that he will wait until the debates. When asked by moderator Frank Sesno if he was having a hard time deciding since Powell was the first black Secretary of State and Obama stands to be the first black President, Powell simply announced that he was an American first and foremost and would not let either his friendship with McCain or his similarity in race with Obama influence his decision.

While Kissinger did not mention whether or not he would endorse a candidate he did give his opinion on the superfluous nature of the presidential race.

"I think the 24 hour news cycle and constant demands produce a necessity on the candidate to pretend they have an answer to every question."

OAS works to empower the poor

The Organization of American States (OAS), led by its Secretary General José Miguel Insulza, held their Ninth Policy Roundtable and Report Launch: a discussion on “Making the Law Work for Everyone.” Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State of the United States, began the discussion. She said that the majority of the world’s people are unable to use the law correctly; there are approximately four billion people worldwide that are outside the system in which law can work for them. Because of this, Albright explained that a vicious cycle is created that makes it even harder for poor people to escape poverty.

The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor is an independent commission hosted by the United Nations Development Programme and has many influential members such as Albright, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court Anthony Kennedy, and Ambassador Roberto Alvarez. All three agreed upon the need to form a law which helps and protects everyone without discrimination. They also stressed that the commission needs to broaden its scope, focusing on four pillars: access to justice and the rule of law, property rights, labour rights, and business rights.

Kennedy explained how countries need to bond together as a region and take a common interest in fixing the law. He said that those in poverty view the law as a foe rather than a friend, and if the law does not accommodate their needs, they will go around it to make ends meet. Kennedy said that this view needs to be changed and that a legal system which is not corrupt needs to be created.

Alvarez agreed with Kennedy and said that corruption is the key obstacle when looking at poverty. He explained that the commission’s historical mission cannot be living in freedom with hunger, without education, and without healthcare. More possibilities need to be considered, education must be stressed, and more resources for the poor need to be created.