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       SENATOR JIM DeMINT (R-SC) SPEAKS AT THE AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY      COUNCIL'S 2010 "MISSILE DEFENSES AND  AMERICAN SECURITY" CONFERENCE

May 21, 2010 - Washington, DC - On May 20th, the American Foreign Policy Council hosted the latest installment of its annual Capitol Hill conference series on “Missile Defenses and American Security.” The event, held in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, featured a keynote address by Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a key Congressional leader on national security and defense issues.

In his remarks, Senator Jim DeMint criticized the new START treaty just concluded between Moscow and Washington. The agreement, DeMint said, was emblematic of the Obama administration’s view of the world, and a concrete demonstration of its willingness to restrict America’s ability to defend itself as a confidence-building measure toward foreign nations.

Seeking nuclear parity with Russia is foolhardy, DeMint continued, insofar as it connotes a false equivalence between the two countries. The United States, however, is the protector of many and a threat to none, while Russia is the opposite.

The new START treaty, DeMint said, contains not insignificant limitations on U.S. missile defense capabilities. Statements from the White House arguing that it does not sheds light on the fact that the Administration believes that missile defense has nothing to do with Russia, despite the ballistic missile threat to the United States still potentially posed by Moscow.

DeMint likewise emphasized that the new START agreement is likely to have the opposite of the administration’s intended result of reducing the global danger of nuclear weapons. If America’s adversaries think the United States is incapable or unwilling to defend itself, they are likely to make greater investments in their own capabilities as a way to secure a strategic advantage over the United States.


About the American Foreign Policy Council

For more than two-and-a-half decades, the American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC) has played an important role in the U.S. foreign policy debate. Founded in 1982, AFPC is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing information to those who make or influence the foreign policy of the United States. AFPC is widely recognized as a source of timely, insightful analysis on issues of foreign policy, and works closely with members of Congress, the Executive Branch and the policymaking community. It is staffed by noted specialists in foreign and defense policy, and serves as a valuable resource to officials in the highest levels of government.

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