Statement on the National Security Strategy Report

Today I signed and forwarded to Congress the National Security Strategy Report for 1994, as required by Section 603 of the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Department Reorganization Act of 1986. The report outlines the national security strategy of engagement and enlargement my administration has developed to meet the challenges and opportunities of the new era.

Protecting our Nation's security—our people, our territory, and our way of life—is my administration's foremost mission and constitutional duty. The central security challenge of the past half century, the threat of communist expansion, is gone. The dangers we face today are more diverse. At the same time, we have unparalleled opportunities to make our Nation safer and more prosperous. Never has American leadership been more essential.

The new national security strategy elaborated in this report charts a course for American leadership that has already begun to produce tangible results with respect to our security requirements, as shown on the attached fact sheet. Our foreign policy rests on 3 pillars:

—Security. Our security depends upon our willingness to play a leadership role in world affairs, but we cannot sustain our leadership role without maintaining a defense capability strong enough to underwrite our commitments credibly.

—Economics. For America to be strong abroad it must be strong economically at home; at the same time, domestic economic renewal depends on the growth and integration of the global economy.

—Democracy. The best way to advance America's interests worldwide is to enlarge the community of democracies and free markets throughout the world.

These goals are mutually supportive. Democratic states are less likely to threaten our interests and more likely to cooperate with us to meet security threats and promote sustainable development. Secure nations are more likely to maintain democratic structures and to support free trade. And even with the cold war over, our Nation's security depends upon the maintenance of military forces that are sufficient to deter diverse threats and, when necessary, fight and win against our adversaries. While many factors ultimately contribute to our Nation's safety and well-being, no single component is more important than the men and women who bear America's uniform and stand sentry over our security.

Our national security requires the patient application of American will and resources. We can only sustain that necessary investment with the broad, bipartisan support of the American people and their representatives in Congress. The cold war may be over, but the need for American leadership abroad remains as strong as ever. I am committed to building a new public consensus to sustain our active engagement abroad. This document is part of that commitment.