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Harry Browne on Foreign Policy
Non-interference should be basis principle
- America’s foreign policy should rest on four principles:
- Non-interference:Our government should express good will and a desire for peace toward all-threatening no foreign country, arming or aiding no foreign governments, and giving terrorists no motivation to influence our government.
- No foreign aid or military assistance:Little of the money reaches the average citizen in the target country. Most of it enriches the rulers-and it helps them stay in power and continue the policies that keep their countries poor.
- Security against attack: America should have a protection against missile attacks, since that is the means by which an invader would conquer America.
- Target the aggressors, not the innocent: Suppose that, even with a missile defense, America truly were threatened by a foreign ruler. A Libertarian President would target the ruler himself. He wouldn’t order bombers to kill the ruler’s innocent subjects.
Israel: stop arming their neighbors, but end foreign aid too
Many Americans understandably worry about Israel’s security, fearing that without American aid Israel will be overrun by its neighbors. But the most effective thing our government could do to help Israel would be to stop arming Israel’s neighbors.
Our government’s eagerness to take sides in Middle East disputes has put billions of dollars of weapons in the hands of Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, and Iran. Small wonder that it seems necessary to rush to Israel’s defense when hostile governments can use American weapons to intimidate Israel.
Every American should be free to send money or weapons to Israel or any other government in the world. But our government has no business taxing you for the benefit of any foreign government.
The politicians no longer try to justify giving your money to foreign governments. They just do it.
End foreign aid to individual countries as well as agencies
- Browne would eliminate foreign aid to the following countries and agencies:
- Colombia
- Egypt
- Israel
- Kosovo province
- Mexico
- North Korea
- Russia
- Turkey
- African Development Fund
- Agency for International Development(AID)
- International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- NATO Peace Keeping Missions
- UN Crisis and Humanitarian Aid
- UN Peace Keeping Missions
- World Bank
Mideast: End meddling with embargoes & peace negotiations
- Browne supports the following principles concerning the Middle East:
- The US should end the economic embargo against Iraq.
- The US should not continue to play a prominent leadership role in the peace process between Israel and the Palestine Authority.
- Browne says, “The US has no business meddling in the affairs of other countries.”
Exit UN; extend diplomatic relations to all countries
- Browne supports the following principles concerning the UN & diplomatic relations:
- The US should not commit military troops to UN peacekeeping missions
- The US should withdraw completely from the UN
- The US should have full diplomatic relations with Cuba
- The US should have full diplomatic relations with China
- The US should recognize and extend full diplomatic relations to Taiwan
- The US should have full diplomatic relations with nations with documented human rights abuses.
Bring US troops home from 100 countries overseas
Q: What would you do as President on Day One?- On day one, they would all be cancellations of Executive Orders.
- Pardon every non-violent drug offender, non-violent gun offender, and non-violent tax evader
- Take steps to bring home troops from overseas, in 100 countries around the world.
Military involvement often fails even when US “wins”.
North Korea remains an apparent threat almost 50 years after Truman’s involving America there. North Vietnam today controls all of Vietnam- despite the death and destruction unleashed by Johnson & Nixon. And in spite of America’s great “victory” in Iraq,
Saddam remains on the throne. So what did all those interventions achieve? And what will the destruction of Yugoslavia achieve? Peace is always promised, but never arrives, no matter how much killing is justified by the search for peace.
Illegal war actions set precedents for more future wars
NATO has violated its own charter by waging war when none of its member nations has been attacked. How will this war set a precedent for future wars? When Truman illegally committed American troops to fight the Korean War, that made it easier for Johnson
to illegally commit troops to Vietnam -- which made it easier yet for Nixon to illegally bomb Cambodia.These precedents removed all possible restraints on Clinton. How easy it will be now for the next president to bomb presumed drug fields in Mexico?
Moral responsibility implies constant war.
If we have a moral responsibility to fight every evil in the world, you’d better kiss your children goodbye and prepare for wars in Rwanda, Zaire, China, Russia, Croatia, Northern Ireland, South Africa, Turkey, the Sudan, Algeria, Kashmir, Angola, Sierra
Leone and many other countries. Our volunteer military can’t handle them all, encouraging a return of the draft -- and your children and your grandchildren probably won’t be exempt next time.
Russia: No aid; no meddling; just free trade.
Browne does not support increasing nor continuing economic aid to Russia & the former Republics. Browne would offer “no government aid whatsoever. We can do more for Russia by providing free trade, by refusing to meddle in Russian affairs, and by
providing the example of a free country.”
Replace all government aid with free trade
Browne does not support foreign aid to close allies; to countries which support US security interests; nor under extraordinary circumstances or disasters. Browne supports “no government aid to any country,” instead “providing free trade.”
Avoid arms trade; promote peace by free trade
We can do more for world peace by providing free trade, by refusing to meddle in other countries’ affairs, and by not arming the participants in disputes. And if we reduce our federal government dramatically, the resulting prosperity will inspire other
countries to do the same -- and the smaller their governments, the less likely that they will threaten world peace.
Govt’s role is to discourage attacks; not police the world
Government’s role isn’t to win wars, to assure that the right people run foreign countries, or to make the world safe for democracy - or even a safer place at all. If government has a role, it can be only to keep us out of wars. The only reason for
military power is to discourage attackers, and - if they come anyway - to repel them at our borders. Such things as stationing troops in far-off lands, meddling in foreign disputes, and sending “peacekeepers” only encourage war.
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