The Orphaned Core Objective of "A National Security Strategy for a New Century"
Abstract
From 1996 to 1997 the National Security Strategy (NSS) developed a curious immunity to promoting democracy. If the function of the NSS exercise, aside from fulfilling a Congressional mandate, is to articulate American interests and tell the Administration's foreign policy story, then downplaying democracy leaves out an important character in the Administration's narrative. However, a reemphasis of democracy can be made to fit well with other key national security priorities. A core objective of 1996's "A National Security Strategy of Engagement and Enlargement" was the promotion of democracy abroad. That document then provided pages of specific incidents and approaches to developing and ensuring democracy throughout the world. While 1997's "A National Security Strategy for a New Century" maintains that promotion of democracy abroad still remains a core objective, it then proceeds to ignore the issue as best it can with barely more than a single page of elaboration in the text. Even in its detailed regional discussions, the 1997 NSS gingerly describes promoting democracy only with the most general language. This downgrading of democracy does not respond to what most Americans would see as a core value (i.e., America's mission in the world as a great example and promoter of the democratic ideal). Instead, a large portion of the NSS focuses on enhancing America's economic prosperity through international trade. Ensuring American access to foreign markets and improving the global economic climate for the United States are important to American prosperity and cannot be ignored. However, ignoring democracy robs the NSS of its power in the retailing of foreign policy. The absence of a strong thrust regarding democracy leaves a rather bloodless strategy that may be less than inspirational to the American public and to Congress, which has to back the Administration's national security strategy and foreign policy with tax dollars.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1998
- Accession Number
- ADA442042
Entities
People
- Joel Shapiro
Organizations
- National War College