TEXANS IDENTIFY WORLD HOT-SPOT PRIORITIES
The former Soviet Union and Europe should remain the primary focus of America's foreign policy, according to those readers who replied to my annual questionnaires, which your newspaper published this past December and January.
The question I asked you was, "The U.S. is the world's last remaining superpower. We are capable of deploying troops to almost every crisis in the world. But if we are not careful, we could over-extend our troops and weaken our ability to respond to the big crises that demand a superpower's attention. Please rank the importance of the following regions, with ‘10' being the most important and ‘1' being the least important region:
EUROPE - Our 50-year involvement in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and our historic ties to Western Europe.
ASIA - Our long-standing treaties with allies Japan and South Korea, our special commitment to Taiwan and the rise of a more powerful China.
RUSSIA - Helping Russia's transition from communism to democracy and a free market and trying to contain the proliferation of its nuclear arsenal.
LATIN AMERICA - Anti-drug assistance to Mexico and Columbia and ensuring security of the Panama Canal.
MIDDLE EAST - Our long-time commitment to Arab-Israeli peace and our protection of Persian Gulf oil supplies."
Your answers were definitive, with 34 percent of you identifying Russia as your most important foreign policy concern, followed by Europe, 19 percent, Asia, 17 percent, Latin America 16 percent and the Middle East, 14 percent. Here are some of your comments:
From Bryan - "We have to keep an eye on Russia but work to make sure it becomes a firm member of Europe, not an enemy."
McKinney - "The jury is still out on whether Russia is truly stable, and if China is willing to stay inside its own borders."
Wadsworth - "I am concerned that Russia has become more sympathetic to China and the Middle East countries that opposed us."
Angleton - "The stability of Russia ought to be a top concern."
Greenville - "This is a no-brainer. China is building up its military, shooting rockets at Japan, and Russia still has nuclear missiles. Until this changes, it is our major challenge."
Austin - "Whatever we do, we have to cooperate with Western Europe. For all our differences, their values are the closest to ours."
Perrin - "China is far and away the most dangerous and daring."
Corpus Christi - "Our trading with China and letting them into the White House was wrong, and we will eventually pay a price."
Childress - "We should pay less attention to the Middle East, and concentrate on developing our own oil supply."
San Antonio - "I'm still worried about Iraq. I don't think we've heard the last from Saddam Hussein."
Yorktown - "We need to build our relationships with Europe, England and Japan, but on an equal partnership basis with them."
Kerrville - "My main worry is small-time dictators with long-range nuclear weapons."
A significant number of you also raised concerns about the Chinese government's activities in the Panama Canal zone. We must watch that situation very closely and be ready to respond -- with military force if necessary -- to make sure the world knows that it is a vital security interest of the United States that the Panama Canal remain open to the world's shipping.
Your responses show that Texans understand our superpower commitment to maintain stability in many important spots on the globe. My priority in the Senate has been to focus our foreign policy and defense resources on those areas where our direct involvement is critical -- in Asia, where the Chinese must understand our resolve; in NATO, our strongest defense alliance; in Russia to establish relations and prevent nuclear proliferation; to be a stabilizing force in the Mideast; and to try to establish trade within our hemisphere. It's good knowing, as I press this message in Congress, that the people of Texas see it about the same way.
February 24, 2000