http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=5278894Kerry Offers Security Policy Respectful of Allies
Thu May 27, 2004 04:22 PM ET
By Thomas Ferraro
SEATTLE (Reuters) - Democratic White House challenger John Kerry on Thursday proposed a sweeping national security strategy to better combat terror and repair the damage caused by President Bush's go-it-alone bullying.
"There is still a powerful yearning around the world for an America that listens and leads again -- an America that is respected, and not just feared," Kerry declared in what was billed as a major policy address that he also used to step up his criticism of Bush's handling of Iraq. While Kerry vowed to set a different tone than Bush, exactly how his foreign policy would deviate remained unclear. On key issues like Iraq and Israel, they share plenty of common ground.
Kerry outlined a security strategy based on four "principled imperatives:" building a new era of U.S.-led alliances; modernizing the military to meet fresh threats; better use of diplomatic, intelligence and economic power, and freeing America from its "dangerous dependence" on Mideast oil.
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