honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Sunday, August 18, 2002

COMMENTARY
Terrorism a symptom of deeper world problems

By John Griffin

There were plenty of friendly references to "American arrogance, unilateralism, and Cold War mindset" voiced by the 25 senior U.S. and Asia-Pacific policy-makers and academic experts gathered recent for the East-West Center's annual Senior Policy Seminar.

A couple of well-connected speakers talked about "a struggle for the soul" of American foreign policy under way in Washington. A possible U.S. attack on Iraq was questioned, even if the main emphasis was on our Asia policy.

Yet I came away from the three days of not-for-attribution meetings feeling more positive about our position in the world as the countdown continues to the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

For one thing, our situation in Asia has improved, despite the headlined problems. Relations with China, Japan and Russia are better, if only because old issues are subjugated or at least off the radar, replaced by a common struggle against terrorism.

Washington also has rediscovered a neglected Southeast Asia, and the recent U.S. agreement with the 10-nation ASEAN is seen as needed attention and a success. Done right, our dealings with Southeast Asia's more moderate and modernized Muslim nations could set a positive pattern and influence relations in the Middle East.

In South Asia, Afghanistan is viewed as a military success, Pakistan as a shaky ally of convenience, and vast, democratic India as an increasingly friendly plus. The United States is again seeing South Asia and its problems on the region's own terms.

President Bush may still be seen as having narrow vision, but U.S. foreign policy on security has broadened over the past year beyond just fighting terrorism — which, after all, is a tactic, not an ideology.

Clearly, we are in a new period in the world, yet one with echoes of the past. Some likened it to the late 1940s post-World War II years when the Cold War was dawning and the United States responded with the Marshall Plan and the rebuilding of Japan. Again, the call is for both leadership and cooperation at a time when, as in the Cold War, we have some strange and dubious but strategic bedfellows.

Several leading officials acknowledged that the rest of the world is not as engaged by the post-9/11 war on terrorism as is the United States. Bush may say "you are for us or against us," but some nations are both, and we have to live with that.

No one from Asia or America questioned that the United States is now the world's predominant military power and may stay that way for decades. "Hegemon" and "unipolar" were frequently used terms at the seminar. Some called us the ultimate nation state. Other more critical quotes: "The eagle has crash-landed." "The Russian bear has moved to Washington."

And yet it was also noted that the United States is a reluctant, inexperienced and limited imperialist, a "unique hegemon" which must see the difference between naked power and influence won through reason and understanding.

So, coming to the first anniversary of 9/11, we are in what most at the seminar seemed to see as a long, troublesome and evolving challenge to both deal with world terrorism yet also see it as a symptom of even deeper world problems.

And that's the good news. Here's a few of the other down sides to the present situation:

• No war is expected at this point, but the Koreas, Taiwan and Kashmir are potential flashpoints that call for international attention. Fragile Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim county, remains of serious concern.

• Economics, which didn't get much attention at this security-focused seminar, is clearly a major consideration with enormous political and security implications. There, the news is mixed.

• Globalism came across as at least a growing fact of life and a plus in Asia development. But several speakers noted its "dark side," which includes AIDS, inequalities and transnational crimes such as drug dealing, people smuggling and money laundering that can contribute to terrorism.

• Human rights and even the environment get more lip service from the Bush administration than they did in the unilateral days before 9/11. But an image of uncaring arrogance persists.

• If the former go-it-alone and hands-off Bush administration has gotten dragged toward more multilateralism by world realities, there are still questions about how much the president (and some in his government) "gets it."

That's where the debate over our foreign policy soul is focused. Some speakers suggested American hawks were always looking for a new enemy — that we suffer from EDD, or Enemy Deficit Disorder.

• If the rest of the world isn't as fully engaged in our anti-terrorism war, so are many Americans more out of it as 9/11 images fade. And without more education about the outside world, you have to wonder how much they will see its complexities. Hawai'i, at least, should become more aware.

With 36 pages of notes, I could go on about this meeting of a group of men (and only one woman, alas) whom I respect for their insights and outlooks. But anyone reading this far should have the idea.

Some of our problem may be Bush's simplistic style over the policy substance that has become more nuanced in the face of reality. But we also need to stress that human security for all people — not just anti-terrorism against enemies — is paramount. We have to seek a status quo all can live with, which may be the hardest thing in the world to do.

Finally, we have to see that the United States itself is often a flawed democracy and falls short of its own high ideals. Arrogance is not the same as confidence.

The challenge, as one speaker said, is to take the anger and pride stirred by Sept. 11 and use it to reach out to our complex world.

John Griffin, former editor of The Advertiser's editorial pages, is a frequent contributor.