US-Saudi Relations

Chuck Hagel was a panelist at a recent event sponsored by the New America Foundation. The panel was titled "A Forward Projection of What the Saudi-US Relationship Should Look Like and Needs to Achieve." For more details, see The Washington Note.

Senator Hagel's speech at the Brookings Institution

Today Senator Hagel delivered a speech to The Brookings Institution, an event described as

"a discussion of U.S. foreign policy in the context of the 2008 presidential campaign. Senator Hagel examined the inventory of global challenges that the next president will inherit and the responsibilities of the presidential candidates to address these challenges."

The speech was titled "Memo to the Candidates." You can read the full text here as a pdf.

"Hagel Speech on Iraq/Middle East"

Last Thursday Senator Chuck Hagel gave a speech regarding Iraq and the Middle East to the Johns Hopkins University’s Paul Nitze School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS). It is a remarkable speech and well worth a read. I'd love to post the whole thing here, but it would be too long. Go and read the speech at his Senate website.

Technorati tags: Chuck Hagel, Iraq

Your reasons for a Hagel Presidency (Part 1)

Thank you to those people who responded to last week's question, "Why do you want Chuck Hagel to be our next President?" Please continue to email in your responses to this question. This is the first of the answers I received.

Edward writes:

It took courage for Sen. Hagel to speak out against the "sickening slaughter" in the Middle East. May he continue to demonstrate such clarity of understanding even against great odds and the insidious idiocy that seems to rule the day. Hagel for President!!

Thanks Ed!

"Hagel offers sound advice on Mideast"

The Lincoln Journal Star has a nice editorial today about Senator Hagel's comments.

The Bush administration takes an inordinate amount of pride in paying no attention to its critics. Even fellow Republicans such as Sen. Chuck Hagel are ignored as the administration plows ahead on its own path.

That’s too bad. Over the past few years, the course of events has shown that Hagel’s advice on foreign policy, ranging from Iraq to the rest of the Middle East, could have steered the administration toward greater success in making the world a safer place.

The administration’s weaknesses were on display again this weekend as the White House continued to rebuff suggestions that it apply pressure on Israel to step down its military attacks on Lebanon.

The editorial is worth a read; take a look at the full article.

"Hagel Floor Statement on the Current Situation in the Middle East"

You can read the statement that Senator Hagel gave from the Senate floor today at his Senate website: "Hagel Floor Statement on the Current Situation in the Middle East."

Hagel Press Release on the Middle East

Senator Hagel's office issued this press release yesterday:

Hagel Statement on the Current Situation in the Middle East

July 14th, 2006 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees, released the following statement today regarding the on-going violence between Israel and Hezbollah in the Middle East:

“We are at a moment of crisis in the Middle East. If the current violence spreads beyond Israel and Lebanon, the consequences for the region and the world are enormous. The instability in Iraq, tensions over Iran’s nuclear program, the rise of terrorism and its support by Syria and Iran, and growing domestic pressure on Arab governments have created dangerous instabilities in the Middle East. In this fragile situation, an escalation of violence could produce a region-wide conflict that engulfs United States and the rest of the world, particularly with the world’s dependence on Middle East energy. The United States must quickly and actively help stabilize and work to de-escalate this dangerously volatile situation. Within this moment of crisis is an opportunity for focused and creative diplomacy. Working with the nations of the region and our allies we can concentrate our efforts to build a stronger consensus against those who support terrorism.

“The United States must show leadership and directly engage this crisis. The President should send someone of global stature, credibility and experience, such as General Colin Powell or former Secretary of State James Baker, to the Middle East to act as his personal envoy. The United States is the only country with the ability to lead a coalition to prevent the region from spiraling out of control,” Hagel said.

Technorati tags: Senator Chuck Hagel, Israel, Middle East

Hagel Resolution on Iran

Here is a press release from Senator Hagel's office: " Hagel Resolution Endorsing Administration Policy on Iran and Calling on Iran to Suspend Nuclear Enrichment Activities Passes Senate"

June 15th, 2006 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Joseph Biden (D-DE) sponsored a resolution today endorsing the Bush Administration policy on Iran and calling on Iran to fully and verifiably suspend nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activities. The resolution passed the Senate by a vote of 99-0. Below is text from the resolution:

"Congress (1) endorses the policy of the United States, announced May 31, 2006, to achieve a successful diplomatic outcome, in coordination with leading members of the international community, with respect to the threat posed by the efforts of the Iranian regime to acquire a capability to produce nuclear weapons; (2) calls on Iran to suspend fully and verifiably its enrichment and reprocessing activities, cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency, and enter into negotiations, including with the United States, pursuant to the package presented to Iran by the High Representative of the European Union; and (3) urges the President and Secretary of State to keep Congress fully and currently informed about the progress of this vital diplomatic initiative."

From his official Senate Website

Technorati tags: Senator Chuck Hagel, Iran

"Hagel Statement on the Administration Announcement that the U.S. will Engage in Talks with Iran"

A press release from Chuck Hagel's Senate site:

May 31st, 2006 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement today regarding the announcement by Secretary of State Rice that the U.S. would engage Iran if Iran suspends its nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activity:

“I applaud President Bush and Secretary Rice for the decision to engage Iran through multilateral talks if Iran suspends its nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activity. This is an important development that should strengthen diplomatic efforts to address the Iranian nuclear threat.

“As I have said, our allies will support tough action against Iran only if they are confident that the United States is serious and committed to achieving a negotiated, diplomatic solution. Iran should return to the negotiating table. Ultimately, a lasting solution can only be achieved if the broader interests of the U.S., Iran, the region and world are addressed,” Hagel said.

The Washington Post has the details of the announcement by Bush and Rice.
Technorati tags: Senator Chuck Hagel, Iran, President Bush

Senator Hagel speaks on Iran

Senator Hagel wrote a compelling piece for the Financial Times regarding Iran. The full text can be viewed on his web site or if you have a subscription at FT. It is one of the best pieces I have read on the complex and difficult subject of Iran.

"America’s strategic policy toward Iran must be comprehensive and include a wide-lens view of Iran and the entire Middle East. It is a strategic mistake to believe that the US can successfully pursue a policy that segments Iranian and US interests. Iraq, nuclear capabilities, terrorism, Israel and oil are all part of an Iranian puzzle game that cannot be played one piece at a time. A clear inventory of Middle East realities frame America’s options and policies."

American Footprints had a nice post regarding Chuck Hagel's piece on Iran. Foreign policy is one of Chuck Hagel's strengths and is a critical reason for why we should support him to be the next President.

Update:
The Washington Post has a nice article on Senator Hagel's call for diplomacy with Iran along with others.

Technorati tags: Chuck Hagel, Iran

Two items for Friday

Concern is growing on the prospect of civil war in Iraq. This is something that Senator Hagel has raised questions about since before the invasion. Hopefully civil war will be averted.
Here is a link to a speech that the Senator titled "U.S. Foreign Policy and the Middle East" given at the Council on Foreign Relations in November of last year.

Senator Hagel in one new Blog ranking of potential 2008 candidates