We are a confident nation. We’ve restored a moral basis for our foreign policy. The very heart of our identity as a nation is our firm commitment to human rights.
We stand for human rights because we believe that government has as a purpose to promote the well-being of its citizens. This is true in our domestic policy; it’s also true in our foreign policy. The world must know that in support of human rights, the United States will stand firm.
We expect no quick or easy results, but there has been significant movement toward greater freedom and humanity in several parts of the world.
Thousands of political prisoners have been freed. The leaders of the world, even our ideological adversaries, now see that their attitude toward fundamental human rights affects their standing in the international community, and it affects their relations with the United States.
To serve the interests of every American, our foreign policy has three major goals.
The first and prime concern is and will remain the security of our country.
Security is based on our national will, and security is based on the strength of our Armed Forces. We have the will, and militarily we are very strong.
Security also comes through the strength of our alliances. We have reconfirmed our commitment to the defense of Europe, and this year we will demonstrate that commitment by further modernizing and strengthening our military capabilities there.
Security can also be enhanced by agreements with potential adversaries which reduce the threat of nuclear disaster while maintaining our own relative strategic capability.
In areas of peaceful competition with the Soviet Union, we will continue to more than hold our own.