Gunshot Diplomacy = Gnawing Deficits
I yield the floor to the following article which lays out the inherent problems of U.S. "gunshot diplomacy", inevitably leading to gnawing budget deficits (got that also, Harper?):
US diplomacy tainted by 'militarization'
By Jim Lobe
While the Pentagon's budget has risen to heights not seen since World War II, United States diplomatic and foreign aid assets have largely wasted away and must be quickly rebuilt by any new administration that takes office in January, said a new report released in Washington this week by former senior foreign service officers.
The report, written by the American Academy of Diplomacy (AAD) and the Henry L Stimson Center, calls for a nearly 50% increase in the number of diplomats and aid and development specialists recruited into the foreign service over the next five years.
This would cost about US$3 billion - approximately what the Pentagon currently spends every 10 days on military operations in Iraq - over current budget estimates.
"Since the fall of the Berlin Wall [in 1989], the diplomatic capacity of the United States has been hollowed out," according to the 26-page report, "A Foreign Affairs Budget for the Future", which said a continuation of the status quo cannot continue without serious damage to the US's "vital interests".
A vacuum created by the lack of diplomatic resources - particularly in comparison to the Pentagon's budget and manpower - has translated into the militarization of US foreign policy, warns the report.
"Today, significant portions of the nation's foreign affairs business simply are not accomplished ... The work migrates by default to the military that does have the necessary people and funding but neither sufficient experience nor knowledge. The 'militarization' of diplomacy exists and is accelerating."
To that end, the report calls for the State Department to take control from the Defense Department (DOD) of nearly $800 million a year budgeted for several security assistance programs, including humanitarian aid. The programs were created in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to help allies prosecute the "global war on terrorism".
"Our view is that the secretary of state has and should have responsibility for assuring that all foreign and security assistance is carried out in accord with US foreign policy, including setting overall policy, approving countries to receive assistance, and setting the budget for such assistance," the report said.
(Keep reading ...)
By Jim Lobe
While the Pentagon's budget has risen to heights not seen since World War II, United States diplomatic and foreign aid assets have largely wasted away and must be quickly rebuilt by any new administration that takes office in January, said a new report released in Washington this week by former senior foreign service officers.
The report, written by the American Academy of Diplomacy (AAD) and the Henry L Stimson Center, calls for a nearly 50% increase in the number of diplomats and aid and development specialists recruited into the foreign service over the next five years.
This would cost about US$3 billion - approximately what the Pentagon currently spends every 10 days on military operations in Iraq - over current budget estimates.
"Since the fall of the Berlin Wall [in 1989], the diplomatic capacity of the United States has been hollowed out," according to the 26-page report, "A Foreign Affairs Budget for the Future", which said a continuation of the status quo cannot continue without serious damage to the US's "vital interests".
A vacuum created by the lack of diplomatic resources - particularly in comparison to the Pentagon's budget and manpower - has translated into the militarization of US foreign policy, warns the report.
"Today, significant portions of the nation's foreign affairs business simply are not accomplished ... The work migrates by default to the military that does have the necessary people and funding but neither sufficient experience nor knowledge. The 'militarization' of diplomacy exists and is accelerating."
To that end, the report calls for the State Department to take control from the Defense Department (DOD) of nearly $800 million a year budgeted for several security assistance programs, including humanitarian aid. The programs were created in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to help allies prosecute the "global war on terrorism".
"Our view is that the secretary of state has and should have responsibility for assuring that all foreign and security assistance is carried out in accord with US foreign policy, including setting overall policy, approving countries to receive assistance, and setting the budget for such assistance," the report said.
(Keep reading ...)
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