Obama to Set Out US Foreign Policy Strategy, ‘US Role in the World’

Local Editor

US President Barack Obama is preparing to set out his vision for America's role in the world through a series of speeches to defend his foreign policy, in a commencement address to the US military academy at West Point on Wednesday.

The White House said in a statement that Obama will "lay out his broad vision for US foreign policy and our role in the world," the White House said. "There's a lot at stake and now is the right time for this speech."

It added that the speech will outline why the right foreign policy "is one that is both interventionist and internationalist, but not isolationist or unilateral."
 
The White House said that "as we reach the end of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, it's a natural point to describe how we see our strategy moving out of this period of war, both in terms of ‘counter-terrorism', and also in terms of our broader priorities around the world."
Obama will provide a series of speeches that include remarks during an upcoming trip to Europe in June, where he will visit Poland, Belgium, and France.
In his West Point remarks, Obama also plans to discuss how the "terrorism" threat has changed. The White House said that in addition to the al-Qaeda terrorist group, the US must confront de-centralized "terrorist" groups that pose threats across the world.

The goal is to "use all the tools in our arsenal without over-reaching," the White House said.
Foreign policy also covers a variety of economic issues, including maritime rights and free trade.
Obama's aides will be following up Wednesday's remarks with foreign policy speeches in the weeks ahead, including US Secretary of State John Kerry, War Secretary Chuck Hagel, and National Security Adviser Susan Rice.
Critics have accused Obama of foreign policy weakness in dealing with the unrest between Russia and Ukraine, the crisis in Syria, and the geo-political challenges of China.

Even some supporters have accused Obama of being overly aggressive when it comes to "counter-terrorism," particularly with drone strikes and National Security Agency [NSA] surveillance policies.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team