[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1994, Book I)]
[July 21, 1994]
[Page 1297]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Statement on the National Security Strategy Report
July 21, 1994

    Today I signed and forwarded to Congress the National Security 
Strategy Report for 1994, as required by Section 603 of the Goldwater-
Nichols Defense Department Reorganization Act of 1986. The report 
outlines the national security strategy of engagement and enlargement my 
administration has developed to meet the challenges and opportunities of 
the new era.
    Protecting our Nation's security--our people, our territory, and our 
way of life--is my administration's foremost mission and constitutional 
duty. The central security challenge of the past half century, the 
threat of communist expansion, is gone. The dangers we face today are 
more diverse. At the same time, we have unparalleled opportunities to 
make our Nation safer and more prosperous. Never has American leadership 
been more essential.
    The new national security strategy elaborated in this report charts 
a course for American leadership that has already begun to produce 
tangible results with respect to our security requirements, as shown on 
the attached fact sheet. Our foreign policy rests on 3 pillars:
    --Security. Our security depends upon our willingness to play a 
        leadership role in world affairs, but we cannot sustain our 
        leadership role without maintaining a defense capability strong 
        enough to underwrite our commitments credibly.
    --Economics. For America to be strong abroad it must be strong 
        economically at home; at the same time, domestic economic 
        renewal depends on the growth and integration of the global 
        economy.
    --Democracy. The best way to advance America's interests worldwide 
        is to enlarge the community of democracies and free markets 
        throughout the world.
    These goals are mutually supportive. Democratic states are less 
likely to threaten our interests and more likely to cooperate with us to 
meet security threats and promote sustainable development. Secure 
nations are more likely to maintain democratic structures and to support 
free trade. And even with the cold war over, our Nation's security 
depends upon the maintenance of military forces that are sufficient to 
deter diverse threats and, when necessary, fight and win against our 
adversaries. While many factors ultimately contribute to our Nation's 
safety and well-being, no single component is more important than the 
men and women who bear America's uniform and stand sentry over our 
security.
    Our national security requires the patient application of American 
will and resources. We can only sustain that necessary investment with 
the broad, bipartisan support of the American people and their 
representatives in Congress. The cold war may be over, but the need for 
American leadership abroad remains as strong as ever. I am committed to 
building a new public consensus to sustain our active engagement abroad. 
This document is part of that commitment.

Note: The report and a fact sheet on the national security strategy were 
attached to the statement.