Ensuring Peace and Security For All

When violence erupts in places like Darfur and Somalia, we want the international community to act quickly to end the bloodshed and establish a peacekeeping presence on the ground. But what if the international community responded before conflict or mass atrocities broke out? What if there was a way we could ensure lasting peace and security in post-conflict societies?

We live in an interconnected world where conflicts and issues such as fragile states, mass atrocities, proliferation of weapons, and terrorism affect all citizens, not just the victims of such horrors. The United States has a strong tradition of working with the international community to help foster global peace and security and can help strengthen multilateral cooperation to address the world?s most pressing challenges.

As a world leader, the United States has a unique opportunity to encourage innovative and multilateral approaches to building a safer world. A smart and effective U.S. foreign policy must engage a range of actors and processes in the international community to prevent crises from occurring, to respond in a coordinated and timely manner, and to help strengthen and rebuild societies affected by man-made and natural disasters.