Free Press Releases
******************************************************************Members of Diplomats and Military
Commanders for Change, a group of retired career
ambassadors and senior military officers, will
release a statement and discuss the need for
change in U.S. Foreign and Defense Policy.
http://www.diplomatsforchange.com/index.html
An unprecedented bipartisan
coalition of 27 career chiefs of mission and
retired four-star military leaders will launch a
nationwide campaign to press for the need for
change in U.S. foreign and defense policy because
they are deeply concerned by the damage the Bush
Administration has caused to our national and
international interests.
The undersigned have held
positions of responsibility for the planning and
execution of American foreign and defense policy.
Collectively, we have served every president
since Harry S. Truman. Some of us are Democrats,
some are Republicans or Independents, many voted
for George W. Bush. But we all believe that
current Administration policies have failed in
the primary responsibilities of preserving
national security and providing world leadership.
Serious issues are at stake. We need a change.
From the outset, President
George W. Bush adopted an overbearing approach to
America’s role in the world, relying upon
military might and righteousness, insensitive to
the concerns of traditional friends and allies,
and disdainful of the United Nations. Instead of
building upon America’s great economic and
moral strength to lead other nations in a
coordinated campaign to address the causes of
terrorism and to stifle its resources, the
Administration, motivated more by ideology than
by reasoned analysis, struck out on its own. It
led the United States into an ill-planned and
costly war from which exit is uncertain. It
justified the invasion of Iraq by manipulation of
uncertain intelligence about weapons of mass
destruction, and by a cynical campaign to
persuade the public that Saddam Hussein was
linked to Al Qaeda and the attacks of September
11. The evidence did not support this argument.
Our security has been weakened.
While American airmen and women, marines,
soldiers and sailors have performed gallantly,
our armed forces were not prepared for military
occupation and nation building. Public opinion
polls throughout the world report hostility
toward us. Muslim youth are turning to
anti-American terrorism. Never in the two and a
quarter centuries of our history has the United
States been so isolated among the nations, so
broadly feared and distrusted. No loyal American
would question our ultimate right to act alone in
our national interest; but responsible leadership
would not turn to unilateral military action
before diplomacy had been thoroughly explored.
The United States suffers from
close identification with autocratic regimes in
the Muslim world, and from the perception of
unquestioning support for the policies and
actions of the present Israeli Government. To
enhance credibility with Islamic peoples we must
pursue courageous, energetic and balanced efforts
to establish peace between Israelis and
Palestinians, and policies that encourage
responsible democratic reforms.
We face profound challenges in
the 21st Century: proliferation of weapons of
mass destruction, unequal distribution of wealth
and the fruits of globalization, terrorism,
environmental degradation, population growth in
the developing world, HIV/AIDS, ethnic and
religious confrontations. Such problems can not
be resolved by military force, nor by the sole
remaining superpower alone; they demand patient,
coordinated global effort under the leadership of
the United States.
The Bush Administration has
shown that it does not grasp these circumstances
of the new era, and is not able to rise to the
responsibilities of world leadership in either
style or substance. It is time for a change.
The Honorable Avis T. Bohlen
Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control,
1999
Ambassador to Bulgaria, 1996
District of Columbia
Admiral William J. Crowe, USN, Ret.
Chairman, President’s Foreign Intelligence
Advisory Committee, 1993
Ambassador to the Court of Saint James, 1993
Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1985
Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Command
Oklahoma
The Honorable Jeffrey S. Davidow
Ambassador to Mexico, 1998
Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American
Affairs, 1996
Ambassador to Venezuela, 1993
Ambassador to Zambia, 1988
Virginia
The Honorable William A. DePree
Ambassador to Bangladesh, 1987
Director of State Department Management
Operations, 1983
Ambassador to Mozambique, 1976
Michigan
The Honorable Donald B. Easum
Ambassador to Nigeria, 1975
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs,
1974
Ambassador to Upper Volta, 1971
Virginia
The Honorable Charles W. Freeman, Jr.
Assistant Secretary of Defense, International
Security Affairs, 1993
Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 1989
Rhode Island
Ambassador Charles W. (Chas)
Freeman
Ambassador Freeman was Assistant Secretary of
Defense for International Security Affairs from
1993 to 1994, earning the highest public service
awards of the Department of Defense for his role
in designing a NATO-centered, post-Cold War
European security system and in reestablishing
defense and military relations with China. He
served as U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia during
Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
Ambassador Freeman has also served in the
American embassies in Thailand, China, and India.
In 1972, Freeman was the principal interpreter
for the late President Nixon’s visit to
China.
The Honorable William C. Harrop
Ambassador to Israel, 1991
Ambassador to Zaire, 1987
Inspector General of the State Department and
Foreign Service, 1983
Ambassador to Kenya and Seychelles, 1980
Ambassador to Guinea, 1975
New Jersey
Ambassador William C. Harrop
During his 39-year career as a Foreign Service
Officer, Harrop served as U.S. Ambassador to
Israel, Zaire, Kenya and Seychelles, and Guinea.
He was Inspector General of the State Department
and Foreign Service, Deputy Assistant Secretary
of State for Africa, a member of the State
Department’s policy Planning and
Coordination Staff, and Deputy Chief of Mission
to Australia. He also served in Italy and
Belgium. Ambassador Harrop retired from
government service in 1993.
The Honorable Arthur A. Hartman
Ambassador to the Soviet Union, 1981
Ambassador to France, 1977
Assistant Secretary of State for European
Affairs, 1973
New Jersey
General Joseph P. Hoar, USMC, Ret.
Commander in Chief, United States Central
Command, 1991
Deputy Chief of Staff, Marine Corps, 1990
Commanding General, Marine Corps Recruit Depot,
Parris Island, 1987
Massachusetts
The Honorable H. Allen Holmes
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special
Operations, 1993
Ambassador at Large for Burdensharing, 1989
Assistant Secretary of State for
Politico-Military Affairs, 1986
Ambassador to Portugal, 1982
Kansas
Ambassador H. Allen Holmes
Ambassador Holmes joined the Foreign Service in
1957. He served as U.S. Ambassador to Portugal,
and also in the American embassies in Cameroon,
Italy, and France. During his career, Ambassador
Holmes has held high-level positions within the
U.S. Department of State, including Ambassador at
Large for Burdensharing and Assistant Secretary
of State for Politico-Military Affairs. From 1993
to 1999, Holmes served a Assistant Secretary of
Defense for Special Operations.
The Honorable Robert V. Keeley
Ambassador to Greece, 1985
Ambassador to Zimbabwe, 1980
Ambassador to Mauritius, 1976
Florida
The Honorable Samuel W. Lewis
Director of State Department Policy and Planning,
1993
Ambassador to Israel, 1977
Assistant Secretary of State for International
Organization Affairs, 1975
Texas
The Honorable Princeton N. Lyman
Assistant Secretary of State for International
Organization Affairs, 1997
Ambassador to South Africa, 1992
Director, Bureau of Refugee Programs, 1989
Ambassador to Nigeria, 1986
Maryland
Ambassador Princeton N. Lyman
Ambassador Lyman served for more than three
decades in the U.S. Department of State and the
U.S. Agency for International Development,
completing his government service as Assistant
Secretary of State for International Organization
Affairs. He previously served as U.S. Ambassador
to South Africa and Nigeria, and Director of the
State Department’s Bureau of Refugee
Programs. Lyman also served as Director of the
U.S. Aid Mission to Ethiopia at USAID. He was a
Senior Fellow at the United States Institute of
Peace from 1999 to 2000. Lyman was Executive
Director of the Global Interdependence Initiative
of the Aspen Institute until July 2003.
The Honorable Jack F. Matlock,
Jr.
Ambassador to the Soviet Union, 1987
Director for European and Soviet Affairs,
National Security Council, 1983
Ambassador to Czechoslovakia, 1981
Florida
The Honorable Donald F. McHenry
Ambassador and U.S. Permanent Representative to
the United Nations, 1979
Illinois
General Merrill A. (Tony) McPeak, USAF, Ret.
Chief of Staff, United States Air Force, 1990
Commander in Chief, Pacific Air Forces, 1988
Commander, 12th Air Force and U.S. Southern
Command Air Forces, 1987
Oregon
The Honorable George E. Moose
Representative, United Nations European Office,
1997
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs,
1993
Ambassador to Senegal, 1988
Director, State Department Bureau of Management
Operations, 1987
Ambassador to Benin, 1983
Colorado
The Honorable David D. Newsom
Secretary of State ad interim, 1981
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs,
1978
Ambassador to the Philippines, 1977
Ambassador to Indonesia, 1973
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs,
1969
Ambassador to Libya, 1965
California
Ambassador David D. Newsom
During his distinguished career as a Foreign
Service Officer, Ambassador Newsom held posts in
numerous countries, including Pakistan, Norway,
Iraq, and the Philippines. He also served as
Secretary of State, ad interim; Under Secretary
of State for Political Affairs; Assistant
Secretary of State for Political Affairs; and as
U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, Indonesia,
and Libya. He is the author of several books on
diplomacy and foreign policy. His most recent
book is The Imperial Mantle: United States,
Decolonization, and the Third World.
The Honorable Phyllis E. Oakley
Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and
Research, 1997
Assistant Secretary of State for Population,
Refugees, and Migration, 1994
Nebraska
Ambassador Robert B. Oakley
Ambassador Oakley retired from the Foreign
Service in 1991, after 34 years. In December
1992, he was named by President Bush as Special
Envoy for Somalia, serving there with Operation
Restore Hope until March 1993. In October 1993,
he was again named as Special Envoy for Somalia
by President Clinton, and served in this capacity
until March 1994. During his career as a Foreign
Service Officer, Oakley served in the American
embassies in Sudan, Ivory Coast, Vietnam, France,
and Lebanon. He served as U.S. Ambassador to
Pakistan, Somalia, and Zaire. In 1984, Oakley was
appointed Director of the State Department Office
of Combating Terrorism. In 1987, he was appointed
Assistant to the President for the Middle East
and South Asia. He also served at the U.S.
Mission to the United Nations and as Senior
Director for Middle East and South Asia on the
staff of the National Security Council. Oakley is
married to Ambassador Phyllis E. Oakley.
The Honorable Robert Oakley
Special Envoy for Somalia, 1992
Ambassador to Pakistan, 1988
Ambassador to Somalia.1982
Ambassador to Zaire, 1979
Louisiana
The Honorable James D. Phillips
Diplomat-in-Residence, the Carter Center of Emory
University, 1994
Ambassador to the Republic of Congo, 1990
Ambassador to Burundi, 1986
Kansas
The Honorable John E. Reinhardt
Director of the United States Information Agency,
1977
Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs,
1975
Ambassador to Nigeria, 1971
Maryland
General William Y. Smith, USAF, Ret.
Chief of Staff for Supreme Headquarters Allied
Powers Europe, 1979
Assistant to the Chairman, Organization of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1975
Director of National Security Affairs, Office of
the Assistant Secretary of Defense for
International Security Affairs, 1974
Arkansas
The Honorable Ronald I. Spiers
Under Secretary General of the United Nations for
Political Affairs, 1989
Under Secretary of State for Management, 1983
Ambassador to Pakistan, 1981
Director, State Department Bureau of Intelligence
and Research, 1980
Ambassador to Turkey, 1977
Ambassador to The Bahamas, 1973
Director, State Department Bureau of
Politico-Military Affairs, 1969
Vermont
The Honorable Michael E. Sterner
Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, 1974
New York
Admiral Stansfield Turner, USN, Ret.
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, 1977
Commander in Chief, Allied Forces Southern Europe
(NATO), 1975
Commander, U.S. Second Fleet, 1974
Illinois
The Honorable Alexander F. Watson
Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American
Affairs, 1993
Ambassador to Brazil, 1992
Deputy Permanent Representative to the United
Nations, 1989
Ambassador to Peru, 1986
Maryland
Donation letter to
support VFP National Bus Tour
Sponsor the Website & Video
Documentary here:
|
