Barack Obama: US Can't Solve All World Problems With Military Intervention

Obama arrives for the commencement ceremony at the United
States Military Academy at West Point, New York

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: US president uses major foreign policy speech to argue for restraint before embarking on military adventures and call for more coordinated approach against terrorism

Barack Obama has sought to re-define the notion of a muscular US foreign policy, warning against “military adventures” and saying that America must lead the world through diplomacy and aid, not war.

Facing down accusations of weakness over his handling of crises in Syria, Ukraine and Iran, the US president said that working multilaterally in concert with allies was a sign of strength, not weakness.

“This is American leadership. This is American strength. In each case, we built coalitions to respond to a specific challenge,” Mr Obama said, addressing cadets at West Point military academy.

Reminding his young audience that they were the first class since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 who would not experience combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, Mr Obama argued that no-one should mistake US withdrawal for American decline.

“America has rarely been stronger relative to the rest of the world. Those who argue otherwise - who suggest that America is in decline, or has seen its global leadership slip away - are either misreading history or engaged in partisan politics,” he said. » | Peter Foster, Washington | Wednesday, May 28, 2014