Hillary Rodham Clinton
Redefining American Diplomacy and Development
Today's world is a crucible of challenges testing American leadership. Global problems, from violent extremism to worldwide recession to climate change to poverty, demand collective solutions, even as power in the world becomes more diffuse. They require effective international cooperation, even as that becomes harder to achieve. And they cannot be solved unless a nation is willing to accept the responsibility of mobilizing action.
I began my tenure as U.S. Secretary of State by stressing the need to elevate diplomacy and development alongside defense -- a "smart power" approach to solving global problems. To make that approach succeed, however, U.S. civilian power must be strengthened and amplified. It must, as U.S. Secretary of Defense
This effort is under way.
But we must do more. We must not only rebuild -- but also rethink, reform, and recalibrate. During my years on the
The QDDR is not simply a review. It defines how to make diplomacy and development coordinated, complementary, and mutually reinforcing. It assesses what has worked in the past and what has not. And it forecasts future strategic choices and resource needs.
Although the
Diplomatic objectives are often secured by gains in development. The resumption of direct talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians over the summer was the handiwork of talented and persistent diplomacy. But progress at the negotiating table will be directly linked to progress in building strong and stable institutions for a Palestinian state and providing
The two Ds in the QDDR reflect the world as the
Diplomacy has long been the backbone of U.S. foreign policy. It remains so today. The vast majority of my work at the
In annual strategic dialogues with a range of key partners -- including
Although traditional diplomacy will always be critical to advancing
The original Foreign Service, as its name implies, consisted of people trained to manage U.S. relations with foreign states, principally through consultations with their counterparts in government. This has been the main function of U.S. ambassadors and embassies, as well as the staff at the
Consider the U.S. embassy in
Back in
Foreign Service officers, Civil Service personnel, and local staff at the
Engagement must go far beyond government-to-government interactions. In this information age, public opinion takes on added importance even in authoritarian states and as nonstate actors are more able to influence current events. Today, a U.S. ambassador creates ties not only with the host nation's government but also with its people. The QDDR endorses a new public diplomacy strategy that makes public engagement every diplomat's duty, through town-hall meetings and interviews with the media, organized outreach, events in provincial towns and smaller communities, student exchange programs, and virtual connections that bring together citizens and civic organizations. Indeed, in the twenty-first century, a diplomat is as likely to meet with a tribal elder in a rural village as a counterpart in a foreign ministry, and is as likely to wear cargo pants as a pinstriped suit.
Public diplomacy must start at the top. In
In
We can also leverage civilian power by connecting businesses, philanthropists, and citizens' groups with partner governments to perform tasks that governments alone cannot. Technology, in particular, provides new tools of engagement. One great success this year was a partnership forged almost overnight among U.S. and Haitian cell-phone companies, the
Foreign trips by delegations of Americans with expertise in technology have also produced promising avenues for innovative partnerships in fields such as agriculture and health. One such visit to
Looking down the road to the forces that will shape global politics tomorrow, it becomes clear how the material conditions of people's lives can affect U.S. national security objectives. While USAID leads U.S. development work overseas,
This comprehensive approach is essential to U.S. engagement in many regions. In
When the diverse elements of U.S. civilian power work cohesively -- as in many embassies around the world, and on the best days in
I am sometimes asked why development matters to U.S. foreign policy and why
At the same time, it is important to acknowledge that although the world's problems are vast,
The QDDR embraces development as a process of assisted self-help in the furtherance of American interests and values. A developing country must be in charge and set its own goals for meeting the needs of its people. The U.S. government comes to the table as a partner, not a patron, lending resources and expertise and, eventually, putting itself out of business when a host country is self-sustaining.
Today, the Obama administration is putting that partnership model into practice in two signature initiatives that it announced over the past year: the Global Health Initiative and Feed the Future, part of the administration's broader global food-security initiative.
The Global Health Initiative recognizes that the landscape for health in many developing countries has improved over the years, due in part to
The fundamental purpose of the Global Health Initiative is to put an end to isolated and sporadic care by tying individual health programs -- PEPFAR; the PMI; and programs regarding maternal and children's health, family planning, neglected tropical diseases, and other critical health areas -- together in an integrated, coordinated, and sustainable system of care, with the affected countries themselves in the lead.
The Feed the Future initiative is based on the same principles. To give one example,
This is what partnership looks like in practice. Partner governments will almost certainly choose to do things differently from how
The QDDR also focuses on the diplomatic side of effective development policy, arguing for building much stronger and more systematic links between the
Diplomacy can support development policy in different ways.
But diplomacy and development can only be mutually reinforcing if the U.S. government also get its own house in order. The first step is to move beyond agency "stovepiping" and use all the talent and expertise within the federal government. The Global Health Initiative, for example, is jointly led by the USAID administrator, the U.S. global AIDS coordinator, and the director of the
The QDDR also recommends specific internal reforms within USAID, some of which have already begun. USAID Administrator
Procurement reform has as its goal the building of local capacities in the countries where
To reform policy, USAID has already created the new
USAID will also rely on the innovations of science and technology to help it work better, cheaper, and faster in the pursuit of high-impact development. Cell phones have already transformed the lives of countless people in sub-Saharan Africa. Imagine what the world would look like if off-grid renewable energy provided illumination to billions of people now living in the dark or if more kinds of drought-resistant seeds existed for farmers in the developing world. The QDDR endorses USAID's creation of
Just recently, USAID funded the trial of a vaginal microbicide that reduces the transmission of HIV/AIDS by 30 percent, a major breakthrough in preventing HIV transmission that will give women more control over their health. USAID and the
As the
American civilians have long operated in conflict zones and fragile states. But now, U.S. diplomats and development experts are being asked to undertake missions of a scale and a scope never seen before.
Given this unprecedented situation, the
These numbers say something important about civilian power and leadership. Properly trained and equipped, civilians are force multipliers. One effective diplomat or development expert can leverage as many as ten local partners, and when local partners build their own capacities and networks, communities become stronger and more resilient.
Civilian leadership in addressing conflict and instability also depends on marshaling and leveraging the varied assets of the U.S. government as a whole. Under the leadership of strong ambassadors and agency representatives, collaboration among American civilians from across the government has reached new levels in
The QDDR also draws on the talents of the
The QDDR recommends building rapid-response diplomatic teams and cultivating specially trained experts who can operate effectively over the longer term amid conflict and instability. Since the end of the Cold War, the
In
Poverty and repression do not automatically engender terrorism, but countries that are impoverished, corrupt, lawless, or mired in recurring cycles of conflict are more prone to becoming havens for terrorists and other criminals. Al Qaeda first operated out of
On the positive side, civilian power has worked effectively with military forces to impede conflict and to contribute to stability. In
The American people must understand that spending taxpayer dollars on diplomacy and development is in their interest, especially when those investments support missions in conflict zones, fragile states, and states that can play a responsible role in their regions and in the world. And
The House and the
An emphasis on civilian power is in keeping with America's history and traditions. The Marshall Plan was a civilian development initiative undertaken with European governments.
The men and women who volunteer for
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON is U.S. Secretary of State.
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