[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 68 (Monday, April 28, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3434-S3435]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       REMARKS OF RUPERT MURDOCK

  Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, last Monday evening I had the honor of 
attending a dinner of the Atlantic Council. At that dinner several 
distinguished individuals were honored: former British Prime Minister 
Tony Blair, News Corporation chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch, and 
Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for 
Distinguished International, Business and Military Leadership 
respectively.
  During the evening, there was much discussion about the health of the 
transatlantic relationship. I was impressed with Rupert Murdock's 
comments as to how the alliance must change to meet future threats. He 
went on to say ``We must face up to a painful truth: Europe no longer 
has either the political will or social culture to support military 
engagements in defense of itself and its allies. However strong NATO 
may be on paper, this fact makes NATO weak in practice. And it means 
that reform will not come from within.
  Those who want a reformed NATO must look to the outside. In other 
words, we need to transform this Alliance from a community formed 
around a map to a community based on common values and a willingness to 
take joint action in defense of these values.
  Those who want a reformed NATO must look to the outside. In other 
words, we need to transform this Alliance from a community formed 
around a map to a community based on common values and a willingness to 
take joint action in defense of these values.''
  I ask unanimous consent to have Mr. Murdock's entire remarks printed 
in the Congressional Record.

 Mr. Rupert Murdoch's Prepared Remarks for the Atlantic Council's 2008 
                          Annual Awards Dinner

       Good evening. Thank you, Henry, for that kind introduction. 
     Your words remind me of the definition of a diplomat: A man 
     who always remembers his wife's birthday--but never remembers 
     her age.
       I also want to thank the Atlantic Council for this fine 
     award. By honoring me, you honor the work that News 
     Corporation's 61,000 employees are doing to connect people 
     across oceans, borders, and cultures. And you underscore the 
     importance of a strong private sector for a free society.
       Few organizations have done more for the preservation of 
     our freedom than this Council. Tonight I want to commend Fred 
     Kempe

[[Page S3435]]

     . . . General Jim Jones . . . the Council Board . . . and all 
     the Council members for the important work you are doing. 
     This Council was founded in the years following World War II. 
     Statesmen on both sides of the Atlantic recognized that the 
     defense of freedom would require the active engagement of a 
     new generation of leaders. By working to keep that Alliance 
     strong, you have helped the West prevail against Soviet 
     communism--and ensure the advance of democracy from the 
     Atlantic to the Urals.
       Today we can be tempted to bask in our achievements--and 
     wax nostalgic about all we have been through.
       But this is no time for nostalgia. At this moment in our 
     history, the Alliance that has been built up over decades now 
     finds itself threatened on several fronts:
       First, by the growing appeal of protectionism on both sides 
     of the Atlantic . . .
       Second, by the terrorists who target civilians in all our 
     countries . . . and finally, by the crisis of confidence in a 
     Europe that is losing its faith in the values and 
     institutions that have kept us free.
       We see this crisis of confidence in many areas. Yet nowhere 
     is it more apparent than in the failure of nerve we are 
     seeing in Afghanistan. After the attacks of September the 
     11th, 2001, it was clear that America and its allies needed 
     to deprive al Qaeda of its safe haven. It was clear that we 
     needed to help the Afghan people replace the Taliban with a 
     free government that would build a more hopeful future for 
     its citizens.
       Unfortunately, far from reflecting our unity, Nato's entry 
     into Afghanistan has exposed its divisions. Instead of 
     standing together as full and equal partners, a handful of 
     Alliance members are bearing the brunt of the fighting. 
     Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said that the lack of 
     equal burden sharing threatens the future of the Alliance. 
     And he is right.
       We must face up to a painful truth: Europe no longer has 
     either the political will or social culture to support 
     military engagements in defense of itself and its allies. 
     However strong NATO may be on paper, this fact makes NATO 
     weak in practice. And it means that reform will not come from 
     within.
       Those who want a reformed NATO must look to the outside. In 
     other words, we need to transform this Alliance from a 
     community formed around a map to a community based on common 
     values and a willingness to take joint action in defense of 
     these values.
       In short, a strong and successful Atlantic Alliance will 
     have to ground itself more on shared principles rather than 
     accident of geography. And we need to show we are serious 
     about defending those principles by standing with those who 
     are standing up for them.
       NATO's agreement to invite Albania and Croatia to become 
     members is a welcome start. So is the somewhat weaker 
     commitment that Ukraine and Georgia will become members of 
     NATO at some point in the future.
       But we need to go much further. As a rule, when an 
     organization expands, the expansion dilutes its principles. 
     For today's NATO, it is just the opposite. Expansion is the 
     only hope of invigorating an Alliance weighed down by those 
     who are no longer willing to commit themselves to defend its 
     founding principles.
       Around the world, there is no shortage of nations who share 
     our values, and are willing to defend them. I am thinking of 
     countries like Australia, which sent troops to Iraq . . . 
     Israel, which has been fighting Islamic terrorism almost 
     since its founding . . . and Japan, which generally follows a 
     more ``Western'' policy than most of Western Europe.
       Other countries have not reached the level of development 
     these countries enjoy. But some are working hard to get 
     there, and would be strong partners down the road. At the 
     very least, the United States needs to support them as they 
     struggle against the dark forces trying to pull them down.
       Right now the United States has a test in our own backyard. 
     Colombia is a nation that is fighting poverty, battling the 
     drug lords, and taking on terrorists backed by foreign 
     governments. Its citizens have suffered tremendously from 
     violence, and who want peace and opportunity. And it is being 
     led by a brave and innovative President, who is bringing the 
     rule of law to people who have not known it.
       What does this brave President ask of us? He asks that we 
     ratify the trade agreement we have negotiated with his 
     nation.
       By ratifying this agreement, we would open an important 
     market for American goods. We would demonstrate to millions 
     in our hemisphere that the path to prosperity lies in freedom 
     and democracy. And we would give strong moral support to a 
     leader struggling to bring hope and opportunity to his 
     people in an important part of the world.
       Everyone knows this. Even the New York Times says the 
     Democratic Congress should ratify this trade deal. Instead, 
     Speaker Pelosi has effectively put off the bill by not 
     scheduling a vote. We need to make clear to the leadership in 
     Congress needs to know what killing this trade deal would 
     mean.
       Throughout Colombia, a defeat for the trade deal would be 
     confirmation that the United States is not an ally you could 
     count on.
       Throughout Latin America, a defeat for the trade deal would 
     be exploited by thugs like Hugo Chavez, who would tell the 
     people, ``See, the Americans will never accept you as equals 
     and partners.''
       And throughout the world, a defeat for the trade deal would 
     be taken as another sign that the U.S. will not stand by its 
     friends when the going gets tough.
       The Mexican ambassador to the United States puts it this 
     way: ``The most important geopolitical mistake the United 
     States could do today . . . is not ratifying that treaty.''
       The world is watching. The same values that we are trying 
     to uphold in the Atlantic Alliance are at stake now in 
     Colombia. And if we fail to support them in Colombia, it will 
     be harder to revive them in the Alliance.
       Let me conclude with a little story. I was born in 
     Australia . . . I received my university education in Britain 
     . . . and I have made my home in America. Over a long and I 
     hope productive life, I have learned that shared values are 
     more important than shared borders.
       If we continue to define ``the West'' or ``the Alliance'' 
     as a strictly geographical concept, the Alliance will 
     continue to erode. But if we define the West as a community 
     of values, institutions, and a willingness to act jointly, we 
     will revive an important bastion of freedom--and make it as 
     pivotal in our own century as it was in the last.
       Thank you for having me. And thank you again for this fine 
     award.

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