Objective: Strengthen and sustain the international effort to fight terrorism. Defeating terrorism is our nation's primary and immediate priority. It is "our calling," as President Bush has said. But it is not our challenge alone. Unlike the Cold War, where two opposing camps led by superpower states vied for power, we are now engaged in a war between the civilized world and those that would destroy it. Success will not come by always acting alone, but through a powerful coalition of nations maintaining a strong, united international front against terrorism.
Working with Willing and Able States: An essential element of our strategy remains working with others to reorient existing partnerships and create new mechanisms for cooperation among the willing and able states around the world. No support will be more important to success than that from the other nations that have the will and resources to combat terrorism with us at the state, regional, and even global level.
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks we have reaped the rewards of the investments made in our major alliances during the past 50 years. These rewards are evident in NATO's unprecedented invocation of Article V of the NATO Treaty, Australia's invocation of Article IV of the ANZUS Treaty, and in the way both our NATO and ANZUS allies have matched words with deeds on every front in the war against terrorism.
Military forces representing a broad coalition of countries from North America, Europe, the Middle East and Oceania have participated in vital operations in Afghanistan. Japan has also provided historic support to the campaign against terrorism. Our Western Hemispheric neighbors invoked the Rio Treaty and have shown a commitment to combat terrorism through a new Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism adopted in June 2002. But these alliances cannot be taken for granted or remain static. We will strive to help them evolve to meet the demands of this new era.
At the same time, through our common efforts against terrorism, we are recasting our relations with Russia, China, Pakistan, and India. The cooperation forged with these countries in the war on terrorism highlights how our future relations need not be constrained by past differences.
Ensuring that the current level of international cooperation is a lasting feature of our world will be a defining challenge of this era.
Enabling Weak States: Some countries are committed to fighting terrorism but lack the capacity to fulfill their sovereign responsibilities. Some governments, for example, lack the legal framework, training, or technical capabilities needed to fight money laundering. Others do not have the law enforcement, intelligence, or military capabilities to assert effective control over their entire territory. After September 11, we redoubled our efforts to develop programs that help them to acquire the necessary capabilities to fight terrorism through a variety of means, including improved legislation, technical assistance, new investigative techniques, intelligence sharing, and law enforcement and military training. For example, we are stepping up our efforts in the Balkans to help governments secure their borders and refocusing our assistance to place increased priority on efforts to promote the rule of law. We are helping the Armed Forces of the Philippines to build their capacity to fight terrorism through a robust training and professional education program.
The United States will continue to develop comprehensive plans to build strong and agile partnerships, particularly in regions that historically have been difficult to engage. We will work together to develop programs to train foreign governments in tactics, techniques, and procedures to combat terrorism. We will review funding for international counterterrorism training and assistance programs and ensure adequate resources are available to strengthen the capabilities of key states.
We will continue to negotiate extradition and Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) and expand the international coalition that supports the war on terrorism. We will conduct an extensive review to determine the viability of establishing new institutions that may help combat terrorism. And at every opportunity we will continue to enhance international counterterrorism cooperation through the further expansion and sharing of intelligence and law enforcement information. While focusing on terrorism, this effort will strengthen our strategic alignments and transform the international environment.
Persuading Reluctant States: In waging the campaign against terrorism, the United States will also confront difficult cases involving countries that, although capable, prove reluctant to comply with their responsibilities in the fight against terror. Some countries will cooperate on some fronts but not others. This unwillingness can spring from many sources, such as external threats, internal schisms that enable one faction to use the state to extend tacit or active support to terrorists, or cultural or political differences that lead to disagreements over what constitutes "terrorist" or criminal activity.