The firm, sustained use of American might and diplomacy helped win the greatest victory for freedom in this half of the century -- the end of the Cold War. But to meet the challenges of this new era of promise and peril, America needed leadership that was able to see the contours of the new world -- and willing to act with steadiness, strength, and flexibility in the face of change to make the most of it.
President Clinton and Vice President Gore have seized the opportunities of the post Cold War era. Over the past four years, their leadership has made America safer, more prosperous, and more engaged in solving the challenges of a new era.
Four years ago, thousands of Russian nuclear weapons were aimed at American cities. Today, not a single Russian missile points at our children, and through the START treaties, we will cut American and Russian nuclear arsenals by two-thirds from their Cold War height.
Four years ago, the forces of reform in the former Soviet Union were embattled. Today, U.S. initiatives are helping democracy and free markets take root throughout the region, Russian troops are out of the Baltics, and democracy has triumphed in Russia's elections.
Four years ago, the Middle East process had not moved beyond a set of principles, and there were no signs of peace in Northern Ireland. Today, in the Middle East we have seen real agreements toward peace, and handshakes of history, and the people of Northern Ireland have seen a 17 month cease-fire and historic negotiations among the parties.
Four years ago, the North Koreans were operating a dangerous nuclear program. Today, that program is frozen, under international inspection, and slated to be dismantled.
Four years ago, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization -- the bulwark of Western security during the Cold War -- was losing direction and support. Today, NATO is keeping the peace in Bosnia with its Partnership for Peace allies and, as a result of American leadership, preparing to welcome new members from Central Europe.
Four years ago, America stood aloof as war and genocide spread through the former Yugoslavia. Today, thanks to NATO airstrikes, American diplomacy and the deployment of troops from the U.S. and other nations, the war has stopped and Bosnia has its first real chance for a lasting peace.
Four years ago, dictators ruled in Haiti, abusing human rights and leaving thousands of its citizens desperate to flee to our shores. Today, the dictators are gone, democracy has been restored, and Haiti's mass-exodus has stopped.
Four years ago, South Africa was struggling under political violence associated with apartheid. Now, following the 1994 elections -- which the United States strongly supported -- there is a national unity government and South Africa is free and democratic.
Four years ago, there was good reason to worry that the world was dividing into separate, isolated, regional trading blocks. Today, thanks to Clinton Administration efforts to find new markets for American products and strengthen our existing ties, America's relations with our trading parties around the world are stronger than ever. We applaud efforts like the Summit of the Americas, the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings, and, especially, the extraordinary leadership of Commerce Secretary Ron Brown on behalf of American industry and workers everywhere. Ron Brown will always be remembered with great pride and the deepest gratitude by the Democratic Party and by all Americans.
The Clinton-Gore Administration's record of leadership has deterred America's adversaries and earned respect from our allies and partners. The Dole-Gingrich Congress and the Republican Party have a different approach to America's security. Too often they would force America to go it alone -- or not at all. Their shortsighted approach has cut resources for diplomacy that could strengthen our security, and reflects an inadequate understanding of the threats and opportunities of this new era.
Today's Democratic Party is unwilling to surrender to the voices of retreat and indifference. We believe the only way to ensure America's security and prosperity over the long run is to continue exerting American leadership across a range of military, diplomatic, and humanitarian, challenges around the world. Led by President Clinton and Vice President Gore, today's Democratic Party has set a far reaching agenda to strengthen our security, and promote peace and freedom.
Strengthening our security. The highest imperative for our security is the protection of our people, our territory, and our key interests abroad. While both parties share a commitment to strong security, there is a real difference. The Republican desire to spend more money on defense than the Pentagon requests cannot obscure their inability to recognize the challenges of a new era and build the balanced defenses we need to meet them.
Today's Democratic Party is committed to strengthening our military and adapting it to new challenges; reducing the threat of weapons of mass destruction; and meeting new challenges to our security such as terrorism, international crime, and drug trafficking.
Strengthening our military. Over the past four years, the Administration has undertaken the most successful restructuring of our military forces in history. Even as the size of our forces has decreased, their capabilities, readiness and qualitative edge have increased. The Administration has ensured that America is prepared to fight alongside others when we can, and alone when we must. We have defeated attempts to cut our defense budget irresponsibly. Three times in three years, President Clinton has increased our defense spending plans -- a total of almost $50 billion -- for readiness, force modernization, and quality of life improvements. We will continue our work to ensure that the men and women who wear American uniforms receive adequate pay and support, including: childcare, education, housing, access to quality health care for themselves and their families, and protection against sexual harassment. The Administration defense plan reverses the downward trend in procurement with a 40% real increase for weapons modernization by 2001. At the same time, as part of its reinventing government program, the Administration has fundamentally reformed government procurement rules in order to get the most for our money. We should also work to increase our efforts to convert unnecessary or obsolete military facilities to serve important economic needs of local communities and, while maintaining military readiness, to continue our initiatives to make our defense industrial base and products applicable to domestic commercial markets.
Repeatedly during the past four years -- from the Persian Gulf to Bosnia -- our men and women in uniform have proven they are the best trained, best equipped, best prepared fighting force in the world. The Democratic Party is committed to build on this record by fully funding the Pentagon's 5-year defense plan; undertaking a second fundamental review of our defense structure; finding new ways for our service branches to work jointly to increase our war fighting capabilities; and ensuring that our troops can dominate the battlefield of the future.
We honor America's veterans; they put their lives on the line to protect our way of life and promote our values around the world. Today's Democratic Party will stand by America's duty to our veterans. President Clinton and Vice President Gore have fought hard to protect veterans' benefits; to expand disability benefits for Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange; aggressively responding to veterans of the Persian Gulf War suffering from undiagnosed illnesses; promoting veterans employment; and improving and strengthening the medical system of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Reducing the threat of weapons of mass destruction. Strengthening our security also requires an aggressive effort against weapons of mass destruction -- nuclear, chemical, and biological -- and their means of delivery. From the nuclear weapons programs in Iraq and North Korea to the Sarin gas attack in the Tokyo subway, our nation has seen that this threat is clear and present. To meet it, we must seize the opportunities presented by the end of the Cold War to cut weapons of mass destruction stockpiles while working to prevent lethal weapons and materials from falling into the wrong hands.
President Clinton and Vice President Gore have pursued the most far reaching arms control and non-proliferation agenda in history. They negotiated an agreement to end the targeting of Russian nuclear missiles on American cities and citizens. They secured ratification of START II which, along with START I, will reduce Russian and American arsenals by two-thirds. They prevented the breakup of the Soviet Union from yielding three new nuclear weapons states, by convincing Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan to give up the nuclear weapons left on their territories when the Soviet Union collapsed. They secured the indefinite and unconditional extension of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. They acted to freeze North Korea's nuclear program.
The Democratic Party supports efforts to sign a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty this year and to bring it into force as soon as possible. We support immediate ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention -- delayed too long by the Dole Senate. We support full funding of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program to eliminate former Soviet nuclear and chemical weapons and support funds to ensure that nuclear materials in the former Soviet Union are secure and do not fall into the wrong hands. We support vigilant efforts, in cooperation with the Republic of Korea, Japan, and others, to ensure North Korea fully abides by its agreements to dismantle its nuclear program, and we support the Administration's vigorous efforts to prevent Iraq, Iran, and other dangerous states from acquiring or developing weapons of mass destruction.
The Democratic Party is committed to a strong and balanced National Missile Defense (NMD) program. The Administration is spending $3 billion a year on six different systems to protect our troops in the field and our allies from short and medium range missiles. To prepare for the possibility of a long range missile attack on American soil by a rogue state, the Clinton Administration is committed to developing by the year 2000 a defensive system that could be deployed by 2003, well before the threat becomes real. The Democratic Party opposes the Republican NMD plan -- spending up to $60 billion on a revival of the Star Wars program that would force us to choose a costly system today that could be obsolete tomorrow. The Republican plan would waste money, weaken America's defenses and violate existing arms control agreements that make us more secure. It is the wrong way to defend America.
Meeting new challenges. Today's Democratic Party knows that stronger security requires vigorous efforts to address the new dangers of this era. Chief among these are the interwoven threats of terrorism, drug trafficking, and international crime. We have seen the terrible toll they have exacted -- the murder of American soldiers in their barracks in Saudi Arabia and of innocent civilians on buses in Israel; corruption and crime from the former Soviet Union to Latin America. We know these vicious criminals may come from within or without and pay no heed to borders; we have seen firsthand the awful, evil work of the forces of terror at the World Trade Center and in Oklahoma City. And we know all too well the havoc drugs wreak when they cross our borders and flow through our neighborhoods.
The Clinton-Gore Administration has mounted the most aggressive effort in American history to combat terrorism, drug trafficking, and international crime. We captured and convicted the perpetrators of the World Trade Center bombing. We enacted a strong new anti-terrorism law, in spite of foot dragging by the Republican Congress; now, President Clinton and Democrats are fighting to take further steps to protect American citizens. We convened an historic summit of Mideast leaders at Sharm el-Sheik to coordinate anti-terrorism efforts, and made anti-terrorism a centerpiece of the 1996 G-7 summit. We imposed or maintained strong sanctions against states that sponsor terrorism, including Iran, Iraq, Libya, and Sudan, and made clear to Syria that normal relations depend on concrete steps to end its support for groups involved with terrorism. We opposed irresponsible cuts to U.S. intelligence programs and supported efforts to reorganize and strengthen the full range of intelligence agencies and programs. We opened FBI centers to provide anti-crime and anti-terrorism training. We made Colombia ineligible for most American assistance after that country's leadership failed to cooperate with American anti-narcotics efforts.
Our three front war on terrorism -- abroad, through greater cooperation with our allies; at home, by giving law enforcement the most powerful tools available to fight terrorism; and in our airports and on airplanes, through tough air travel security measures -- is producing results. President Clinton asked the Vice President to chair a commission on the future of air traffic security and safety. We will work to increase the security of our air travel system, the safety of our airplanes, and the safety and security of our air traffic control system.
Today's Democratic Party is determined to keep the war on global terrorism, narcotics, and crime at the center of our security agenda. We will seek increased cooperation from our allies and friends abroad in fighting these threats. We will continue to work aggressively to shut off foreign drug flows, eradicate foreign drug crops, and assist countries that demonstrate active cooperation.
Promoting peace and democracy. Today's Democratic Party knows that peace and democracy are products of decisive strength and active diplomacy. That diplomacy must protect our interests while also projecting our values. The Republican Party too often has neglected diplomatic opportunities, slashed the budgets necessary for diplomatic successes, and overlooked the importance to our own security of democracy and human rights abroad. At its core, the Republican Party is locked in a Cold War mentality, and lacks a coherent strategy to nurture and strengthen the global progress toward peace and democracy.
The Democratic Party believes a key to strengthening peace is stable and peaceful relations among the world's major powers. That has been the driving force behind much of the Clinton-Gore Administration's work, from its peace initiative in Bosnia to new security agreements with Japan. We are committed to promoting democracy in regions and countries important to America's security, and to standing with all those willing to take risks for peace, from the Middle East to Northern Ireland, where President Clinton was the first U.S. president to engage directly in the search for peace, including making an historic visit to Northern Ireland. And we are committed to doing it with all the tools we have: with diplomacy where possible, with force where necessary, and working with others where appropriate -- our allies, willing partners, the U.N. and other security organizations -- to share the risks and costs of our leadership.
Europe and the former Soviet Union. Today's Democratic Party knows that the security of Europe remains a vital American interest, and that we must remain engaged in Europe, a region in which we have fought the two world wars and the Cold War this century. It is our vision to see, one day, a community of free, democratic, and peaceful nations, bound by political, security, cultural, and economic ties, spanning across North America and Europe. We applaud the Clinton-Gore Administration's efforts to foster a peaceful, democratic and undivided Europe -- including expanded support for reform in former communist states; dramatically increased assistance to Ukraine; the Partnership for Peace program of military cooperation with Europe's new democracies; its steady, determined work to add new Central European members to NATO in the near future; and its efforts to resolve regional disputes such as between Greece and Turkey. We support continued efforts to secure a just and lasting peace in Bosnia, Northern Ireland and Cyprus. We are committed to the success of independence in Ukraine and the Baltics. And we support the continuing evolution of a prosperous and peaceful Russia. And as part of our effort to support we will pursue a relationship in which we seek cooperation when we can, and frankly express disagreements where they exist, such as on Chechnya.
Asia. We know that many of America's most pressing security challenges and most promising commercial opportunities lie in the Asia Pacific region. The Democratic Party applauds the important new security charter with Japan, the Administration's close cooperation with the Republic of Korea toward the goal of a unified and non-nuclear peninsula, and the deployment of an American naval task force to the Taiwan Straits to ensure that China's military exercises did not imperil the security of the region. The Party supports the Administration's policy of steady engagement to encourage a stable, secure, open and prosperous China -- a China that respects human rights throughout its land and in Tibet, that joins international efforts against weapons proliferation, and that plays by the rules of free and fair trade. Today's Democratic Party strongly supports continued American troop presence in East Asia and efforts to promote increased regional security. And we are committed to building long-term relationships with India, Pakistan, and others in South Asia in order to advance America's diverse interests in that region, from democracy and commerce to nuclear non-proliferation.
The Middle East. President Clinton has overseen a remarkable record of achievement toward peace and security in the Middle East -- the Israeli-Palestinian accords; the peace agreement between Israel and Jordan; new regional security and investment summits; Israel's increased acceptance throughout the Middle East and the world; the dual containment of Iraq and Iran. The Democratic Party is committed to help build on this record, knowing that peace and security are indivisible, and supports the efforts by the Clinton-Gore Administration to achieve a comprehensive and lasting peace among Israel and all its neighbors, including Lebanon and Syria. The Democratic Party remains committed to America's long-standing special relationship with Israel, based on shared values, a mutual commitment to democracy and a strategic alliance that benefits both nations. The United States should continue to help Israel maintain its qualitative edge. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and should remain an undivided city accessible to people of all faiths. We are also committed to working with our Arab partners for peace to build a brighter, more secure and prosperous future for all the people of the Middle East. To that end, we seek to further and enhance our close ties with states and peoples in the Arab and Islamic world committed to non-aggression and willing to take risks for peace.
Latin America and the Carribean. The Clinton-Gore Administration forged an historic partnership with the democracies of the Western Hemisphere, as reflected in the 1994 Summit of the Americas. Today, every country in the Hemisphere is a democracy except Cuba. Because democratic stability and prosperity in the countries to our south are in our interest and theirs, President Clinton took bold steps to bolster Mexico's economy when it was threatened by crisis; worked to resolve internal and border conflicts in the Hemisphere; joined with regional partners to combat narcotics trafficking; and tightened the tough sanctions against the repressive Castro regime and those who support that regime, while reaching out to the people of Cuba in their quest for democracy, human rights, and freedom. The Democratic Party is committed to further consolidating democracy, stability, and open markets throughout the hemisphere.
Africa. The Clinton Administration championed South Africa's democratic transition; supported Africa's many emerging democracies and led international efforts to speed the return of democracy in Nigeria; helped save countless lives in Somalia, Rwanda, and elsewhere through conflict resolution, removal of landmines, and humanitarian relief; and took steps to help sub-Saharan Africa's 700 million people develop into strong economies and markets. The Democratic Party believes that continuing to help the people of Africa nurture their continent's extraordinary potential and address its serious problems is both the right thing to do and profoundly in America's interest.
Promoting democracy. America remains a beacon of hope to all who cherish democracy and human rights, and America's security benefits from the enlargement of the community of market democracies. The Clinton-Gore Administration has actively promoted the consolidation and spread of democracy and human rights: in Russia and throughout the former Soviet Union, Central Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa. President Clinton directed Vice President Gore to lead bi-national efforts to establish trading relationships to help promote democracy in three strategic areas: Russia, South Africa, and Egypt. The Democratic Party supports the aspirations of all those who seek to strengthen civil society and accountable governance. To this end, we support the MacBride Principles of equal access to regional employment in Northern Ireland. We are committed to the human rights and well-being of Jewish people and other minorities in the countries of the former Soviet Union. We support continued funding for the National Endowment for Democracy, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Asia Pacific Network, Radio Marti and other efforts to promote democracy and the free flow of ideas. We recognize the Information Age offers new opportunities and responsibilities for our democracy that we must seize and meet.
Resources for diplomacy. There is a price to be paid for America's security and its leadership in world affairs -- and the Republican Party now refuses to pay that price. Even though less than one percent of the federal budget goes to foreign policy spending, the Republican Party has savaged our diplomatic readiness, defaulted on treaty obligations to pay dues to the United Nations, slashed assistance to the poorest and most vulnerable populations on earth, and pushed the United States to dead last among developed nations in the global fight against starvation, infant mortality, natural disasters and environmental degradation and other worldwide problems. The Democratic Party is committed to resist these irresponsible cuts that undermine our security and America's ability to lead. We are committed to strengthen our security and express our values, by strongly supporting the Clinton-Gore Administration's work to ensure adequate resources for American foreign policy.