US Unveils New National Security Doctrine

The United States has unveiled a new national security doctrine that would join diplomatic engagement and economic discipline with military power to bolster America's standing in the world. Striking a contrast to the George W. Bush-era emphasis on going it alone, US President Barack Obama's strategy called for expanding partnerships beyond traditional US allies to rising powers like China and India in order to share the international burden.

Economy and Record Deficits
Faced with a struggling economy and record deficits, the administration also acknowledged that boosting economic growth and getting the US fiscal house in order must be core national security priorities. 'At the center of our efforts is a commitment to renew our economy, which serves as the wellspring of the US power,' the wide-ranging policy statement said.

Obama's first official declaration of national security goals, because of be released in full, pointedly omitted predecessor Bush's policy of pre-emptive war that alienated some US allies.

Laying out a vision for keeping the United States safe as it fights wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the document formalized Obama's intent to emphasize multilateral diplomacy over military might as he tries to reshape the world order. The administration even reiterated Obama's determination to try to engage with 'hostile nations,' but warned Iran and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) it possessed 'multiple means' to isolate them if they ignored international norms.

The National Security Strategy, required by law of every president, is often a dry reaffirmation of existing positions but is considered important because it can influence budgets and legislation and is closely watched internationally.

Obama, who took office faced with the worst financial crisis since the 1930s, took a clearer stand than any of his predecessors in drawing the link between the US economic health at home and its stature overseas. 'We must renew the foundation of the US strength,' the document said, asserting that the sustained economic growth hinges on putting the country on a 'fiscally sustainable path' and also urging reduced dependence on foreign oil sources.

Lacking UN Authorization
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States' fiscal problems presented a long-term threat to its diplomatic clout. She said: 'We cannot sustain this level of deficit financing and debt without losing our influence, without being constrained about the tough decisions we have to make,' she said in a speech at the Brookings Institution in Washington.'

Bush used his first policy statement in 2002 to stake out the right to unilateral and pre-emptive military action against countries and terrorist groups deemed threats to the United States in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Obama's plan implicitly distanced his administration from what became known as the Bush Doctrine and underpinned the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, which lacked UN authorization.

While renewing previous presidents' commitment to preserve US conventional military superiority, the doctrine laid out put an official stamp on Obama's break from what Bush's critics called 'cowboy diplomacy.' 'We need to be clear-eyed about the strengths and shortcomings of international institutions,' the document said. But it said Washington did not have the option to 'walk away.'

'Instead, we must focus the US engagement on strengthening international institutions and galvanizing the collective action that can serve common interests such as combating violent extremism, stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and securing nuclear materials, achieving balanced and sustainable economic growth, and forging cooperative solutions to the threat of climate change.'

Nuclear Standoffs
Obama's insistence the United States cannot act alone in the world was also a message to cur rent and emerging powers. Obama already has been widely credited with improving the tone of US foreign policy but still is struggling with two unfinished wars, nuclear standoffs with Iran and North Korea and sluggish Middle East peace efforts.

Critics say some of his efforts at diplomatic outreach show US weakness, and they question whether he jeopardizes the US interests by relying too heavily on 'soft power.'

Curbing Home-Grown Terrorism
Obama's strategy repeated his goal to 'disrupt, dismantle, and defeat' Al-Qa'ida but insisted that in the process the United States must uphold and promote human rights. It also rejected torture as a tool of US national security.

Obama has reached out to the Muslim world, where the US image under Bush was hurt by the Iraq war, the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal and his use of phrases like 'war on terror' and 'Islamo-fascism.'

Curbing the threat of 'home-grown' terrorism was also listed as a top priority. This comes in the aftermath of the failed Christmas Day bombing of a US airliner and the botched Times Square car bombing attempt earlier this month.

Advance in Multilateralism, Socialism

The changes as the world enters the second decade of the 21st century have surprised many people. The global financial crisis in 2008 has created a new international situation. The world of the 21st century is taking a new shape. A new era is beginning.

New Beginning
1. Multilateralism is taking the increasingly decisive position in international affairs. At the 64th session of the UN General Assembly in Sept 2009 with the theme "Effective responses to global crises, strengthening multilateralism and dialogue among civilizations for international peace, security and development," more than 120 heads of state from around the world discussed a number of other important issues such as a nuclear-free world, the effort against terrorism, and solutions for the an increase in poverty that is a consequence of the financial crisis.

Even America, the leading power, has had to ask for help from other countries to solve problems that previously they had solved unilaterally. Multilateral cooperation on the regional and global scale is moving forward. Countries are studying and applying the trend to form regional associations like the European Union (EU). Africa and more recently East Asia and ASEAN are moving in that direction.

In politics and international security, like it or not, the global power game is still controlled by powerful countries. The political turf battle among the superpowers continues. NATO and the United States have gradually encroached into areas close to Russia, forcing Russia to stay on the alert. Newly-emerging countries are reaching into Africa, Latin America, and even Asian to find materials to fuel their development.

2. One remembers that at the end of 2008, the American National Intelligence Council (NIC) issued a report "Global Trends 2025" which forecast that the leading status of America would gradually decrease and the world would take on an increasingly multi-polar form.

In fact, the situation forecasted for the coming 15 years is happening right now. Global power transfer is accelerating. The new multi-polar world order that people have been talking about for a while is moving faster as American power declines. In 2009, China rose up to become the world's second largest economy after the US, surpassing Japan and Germany, and became a real power on the international political chessboard. And Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC), the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China, have affirmed their role in the world instead of waiting for the two decades that had been forecast by the NIC. Even the G20 has risen to surpass the status of the G7-G8.

3. The present financial crisis and economic recession show that the modern capitalist model is facing serious challenges, and its innate defects are exposed. As they deal with the crisis, many countries have adopted the primary methods of socialism, such as strengthening state intervention in economic and social management which have become a topic for many researchers.

The development of Latin American left wing movements with the aim of establishing socialist countries in 21st century shows that the road to socialism did not completely disappear after the collapse of Soviet Union and system change in Eastern Europe, as some people thought. Nostalgia for a stable, peaceful, and secure society is a notable ideological current in Russia and Eastern Europe.

4. With the end of the cold war, and with no confrontations in the bipolar world, people had the illusion that international affairs would demilitarize. But the brief period of a mono-polar world led into a worldwide arms race. America is the leading country, accounting for more than a half of global military expenses. The American military budget continues to break records; in 2010 it will be more than $600 billion. The possibility of the spread of nuclear weapons is on the horizon. Crises on nuclear issues in Iran and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) continue to run hot and cold in unpredictable ways.

No western country approved the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, nuclear deterrence has reappeared, and more countries have nuclear weapons. These developments make the nuclear disarmament process more urgent than ever.

5. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, bloody conflicts in the Middle East, Southern Asia, and Africa have not stopped. Peace in Middle East is still a dream of the Arabs and the Jews, but inexplicably they have not found a common voice. The final peace agreement between Palestine and Israel is still far away. The dark continent is still in a state of confusion, with numerous conflicts and consequences of civil wars. Somalia and Congo are still sunk in violence. The fight against terrorism continues. Extremism and breakaway movements are dark forces that cause trauma for many countries.

6. Economic, communications, environmental, and food security are getting more attention from the world. The climate change summit in Copenhagen in December 2009 expressed the concern and aspiration of the whole world for a more secure and peaceful living environment.

7. In the coming years, America will still be determined to protect its superpower status in the challenging context, and it will not be easy. The EU, China, Russia, Japan, India, and others do not hide their ambitions, and do not hesitate to take actions for a share of power in the world. People think that by 2020, three of the four largest economies in the world will be in Asia including China, India and Japan. The Asia-Pacific century is taking shape more clearly than ever.

Current International System
The transfer of wealth and power from west to east will take place on an unprecedented scale and speed that will determine the direction of modern history.

These great changes will not completely break the current international system, but the re-shaping process of the 21st century is happening now. New races will start on different levels and scales, with new risks and challenges.