Jessica Corbett / Common Dreams
A joint letter urges the presidential candidate to oppose regime-change interventions and broad-based sanctions, engage with Iran and North Korea, and support a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
(May 11, 2020) — In a letter Monday to former Vice President Joe Biden, over 50 groups urged the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for president to embrace “a principled foreign policy, one that prioritizes diplomacy and multilateralism over militarism.”
“The American people are looking for a leader who will turn the page on 9/11 policies that have resulted in an endless cycle of war, countless lives lost, increased global instability, large-scale refugee flows of the displaced, and the violation of Americans’ civil liberties and human rights,” explains the letter (pdf), first reported by HuffPost.
“Americans… aren’t falling for fear mongering or calls for nation-building abroad at a time when the challenges facing our nation and world need peaceful and cooperative solutions.”
— Erik Sperling, Just Foreign Policy
“It’s time to turn the page on the disastrous war and regime change policies that have only led to destabilization and suffering abroad,” Erik Sperling, executive director of Just Foreign Policy, said in a statement. “Our policymakers must come to terms with the irreversible trend of public opinion away from interventionism.”
“Americans — and particularly millennials — aren’t falling for fear mongering or calls for nation-building abroad at a time when the challenges facing our nation and world need peaceful and cooperative solutions,” added Sperling, whose group signed on to the letter.
“It is time to end our endless wars and adopt a new approach to international relations, one in which the US abides by international law, encourages others to do the same, and utilizes our military solely for the defense of the people of our country,” the letter says. “We hope that in the months ahead you will engage with the American people and groups like ours in a broad discussion on what a more just and progressive US foreign policy should look like.”
Biden spent over three decades as a US senator — a career which included stints as chair of the upper chamber’s Foreign Relations Committee — before serving as former President Barack Obama’s vice president for two terms. Throughout the 2020 primary process, the presumptive Democratic nominee has faced intense criticism from progressives for his long record on international issues, including his support for the Iraq War.
“We can no longer afford to militarize our approach to foreign policy problems — and we have seen first hand how these misguided national security spending priorities have left us ill-equipped to deal with the crisis we now face.”
— Dan Kalik, MoveOn
Signatories of the letter to Biden include the Center for Economic and Policy Research, CodePink, Greenpeace US, Indivisible, International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN), Jewish Voice for Peace Action, MoveOn, Our Revolution, Peace Action, the Quincy Institute, RootsAction.org, and Win Without War.
“The United States is in dire need of a fundamental reorientation of its foreign policy, away from the goal of dominating the globe militarily, which has mired America in endless wars, and towards a national security strategy centered on diplomatic engagement and military restraint,” said Trita Parsi of the Quincy Institute. “The Covid pandemic has made it abundantly clear that our excessive focus on foreign military threats — real and imagined — have left us naked and vulnerable for the real challenges of this century — pandemics and climate chaos.”
Dan Kalik, senior political adviser at MoveOn, concurred. “The coronavirus has changed everything, and our foreign policy priorities must change to reflect the fundamentally new world that we are living in,” he said. “We can no longer afford to militarize our approach to foreign policy problems — and we have seen first hand how these misguided national security spending priorities have left us ill-equipped to deal with the crisis we now face.”
The letter was reportedly spearheaded by Demand Progress. Yasmine Taeb, the civil liberties group’s senior policy counsel, told HuffPost that if Biden “wants to be successful in November and wants to galvanize and energize the grassroots, then we need to get better clarity and stronger commitments from Vice President Biden on many of these progressive foreign policy issues that the left cares about.”
In addition to the broad call for “extraordinarily bold leadership” to “aggressively” reform US foreign policy, the letter includes a list of key measures the groups believe Biden should support:
- Repealing the 2001 AUMF and respecting congressional war powers;
- Reducing the Pentagon budget;
- Engaging with Iran;
- Engaging with North Korea;
- Supporting a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict;
- Opposing regime-change interventions and broad-based sanctions;
- Rejecting discriminatory immigration policies and supporting refugees;
- Closing the detention center at the US Guantánamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba;
- Ending support for governments that violate human rights; and
- Prioritizing diplomacy and avoid militarizing our relations with other powers such as Russia and China.
Under each priority listed, the letter details current conditions and what Biden should do if he officially becomes the nominee and wins the election in November. The groups also take aim at some policies implemented by President Donald Trump and his predecessors.
“The military and political campaigns aimed at regime change have borne disaster in Iraq, Libya, Syria, and elsewhere in the past two decades,” says the section on interventions and sanctions. “Meanwhile, broad-based sanctions against countries like Iran and Venezuela have served to impoverish the population at large while not having positive political outcomes — and at times empowering ruling elites.”
“The pandemic has shown as clearly as possible that so many of our country’s security priorities and investments over the past two decades have been not just wrong but counterproductive, and it’s time for a major shift.”
— Matt Duss, Sanders adviser
“The US should stop seeking to transform other countries through destructive policies,” the letter says, “and instead work through the United Nations Security Council and other multilateral fora to build global consensus and international legal backing for peaceful, diplomatic solutions to internal and international conflicts.”
Biden’s campaign has recently had “encouraging” talks about foreign policy with supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who suspended his presidential campaign last month, according to Foreign Policy, which cited Sanders adviser Matt Duss.
“Progressives just need to keep organizing and mobilizing behind the goal of ending the forever wars and strengthening nonmilitary elements of our foreign policy,” Duss told the outlet. “I think we already had a strong case, but the pandemic has shown as clearly as possible that so many of our country’s security priorities and investments over the past two decades have been not just wrong but counterproductive, and it’s time for a major shift.
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The Kind of Leadership We Need to See
A Letter to Joe Biden / CODEPINK
(May 12, 2020) — Instead of feeling helpless in the midst of a pandemic, we are using this time to organize. Rather than accepting poor choices and endless militarism, we have joined together — over 50 national organizations, representing millions of Americans — to urge presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to adopt and run on a principled, peaceful foreign policy platform.
Along with Demand Progress, Win Without War, Indivisible, American Friends Service Committee, and many, many more, we are calling on Biden to:
• Repeal the 2001 AUMF and respecting congressional war powers
• Reduce the Pentagon budget
• Engage diplomatically with Iran and North Korea
• Support a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
• Oppose all regime-change interventions and broad-based sanctions
• Rejecting discriminatory immigration policies and support refugees
• Close Guantanamo
• Ending support for governments, such as Saudi Arabia, Israel, Egypt, and the Philippines that violate human rights
• Prioritizing diplomacy and avoid militarizing our relations with other powers such as Russia and China
ACTION: Add your name to this Letter to Joe Biden. After we reach 10,000 signatures, we will deliver it to Biden.
As the letter makes clear:
“Our country and many others are woefully unprepared for the crisis that we now face. Without extraordinarily bold leadership, this is likely to be the beginning of a period of profound instability for the entire planet… For decades, US foreign policy has been overly focused on confrontation with perceived adversaries and the global projection of US military power.
“Doing so has militarized our response to global challenges, distorted our national security spending priorities, toxified our political discourse, and left us woefully ill-prepared to confront the growing transnational threats to human security we face today that do not have military solutions.”
Every four years, we at CODEPINK launch a President for Peace campaign to call on all candidates to adopt a peace platform to move our country from militarism to human needs, like healthcare, education, and green jobs.
Many of us feel despair when we hear Biden’s bad positions, such as keeping the US embassy in Jerusalem or supporting sanctions on Cuba and regime change in Venezuela. Rather than tuning-out though, we are mobilizing with the demands of the people: A PRINCIPLED PEACEFUL FOREIGN POLICY PLATFORM! (You can download our 10-points full-page flyer here.)
US Relations with the Rest of the World Should Be Based on Respect, Cooperation, and Diplomacy — Not War
We are asking presidential candidates to agree to:
1. Reduce Military Spending, Invest at Home
Instead of over $700 billion dollars to the Pentagon, invest in sustainable energy projects, infrastructure, care for veterans, education, housing, tax cuts for the lowest incomes, humanitarian aid, and payment of the federal debt. Create a transition program for workers to move from military to peace-based jobs.
2. End Wars, Use Diplomacy and International Law
Invoke the War Powers Act to end US involvement in the Saudi and UAE-led war on Yemen. Cease the practice of launching wars not authorized by Congress or the United Nations. End US sanctions against Iran, Venezuela, Cuba and instead use peace-making efforts and diplomatic solutions. Abolish the presidential kill list and stop using weaponized drones.
3. Work for a Nuclear-Free World
Abide by obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to cut the US nuclear arsenal. Remove the missile defense systems from Europe. End NATO expansion on its borders.
4. End Weapons Sales to Human Rights Violators
Stop the practice of giving or selling weapons to countries that violate human rights, such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, and Israel.
5. Close Overseas Military Bases
Close the nearly 800 US military bases located in more than 70 countries and territories abroad.
6. Grow a Green Local Peace Economy
Work towards a peace economy that respects people and planet — a feminist economy of giving and sharing that’s local and relational. Enact the Green New Deal and develop and enact a New Peace Deal.
7. End Support for Israel’s War on Palestinians
The US government should hold Israel accountable for its violations of international law and Palestinian human rights. Commit to ending financial, military, and diplomatic support for Israel’s policies of occupation and apartheid.
8. Promote Women in Peacemaking
Uphold U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325 that calls for the full involvement of women in preventing, resolving, and recovering from conflict.
9. Stop Militarization of the Border and Police
End the militarization of our borders and attacks on migrants and refugees. End the policy of transferring military-grade weaponry and surveillance equipment from the military to local police departments, which only serves to further criminalize communities of color.
10. No Campaign Donations from Weapons Companies
Refuse to take any contributions from weapons companies that make billions on spreading death and destruction including, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, Boeing, and Elbit Systems.
We know that another world is possible. Let’s join together to make it happen.
Towards a more peaceful world: Medea, Jodie, Ariel, Ann, Asia, Carley, Caty, Cody, Emily, Kelsey, Leila, Leonardo, Makena, Mary, Michelle, Nancy, Paki, Teri, and Yousef
Dear Vice President Biden,
We write to you as a broad coalition of organizations representing millions of Americans who care about a principled foreign policy, one that prioritizes diplomacy and multilateralism over militarism.
As the Coronavirus pandemic reveals, our country and many others are woefully unprepared for the crisis that we now face. Without extraordinarily bold leadership, this is likely to be the beginning of a period of profound instability for the entire planet, given the intensifying climate crisis that is also now underway.
We believe that there is room to act aggressively to reform our foreign policy, with the support of the majority of the people of this country across the ideological spectrum. Just as the domestic policy debate has shifted significantly in recent years, the current global context demands that we act boldly to redefine the role of the US in the world.
For decades, US foreign policy has been overly focused on confrontation with perceived adversaries and the global projection of US military power. Doing so has militarized our response to global challenges, distorted our national security spending priorities, toxified our political discourse, and left us woefully ill-prepared to confront the growing transnational threats to human security we face today that do not have military solutions.
Meanwhile, the US currently has more than 240,000 active-duty and reserve troops in at least 172 countries and territories. The cost of the US federal government’s post-9/11 wars is more than $6.4 trillion. The American people are looking for a leader who will turn the page on 9/11 policies that have resulted in an endless cycle of war, countless lives lost, increased global instability, large-scale refugee flows of the displaced, and the violation of Americans’ civil liberties and human rights.
It is time to end our endless wars and adopt a new approach to international relations, one in which the US abides by international law, encourages others to do the same, and utilizes our military solely for the defense of the people of our country.
We hope that in the months ahead you will engage with the American people and groups like ours in a broad discussion on what a more just and progressive US foreign policy should look like.
In the meantime, we call on you to show your support for the following key measures that we, and many advocates around the country, have been fighting for:
Repealing the 2001 AUMF and Respecting Congressional War Powers
Absent a direct and imminent threat to the United States, the President needs to consult Congress and receive authorization for use of military force, as required by the US Constitution and the War Powers Act of 1973. The 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) has been expanded to apply to situations and groups never envisioned by Congress.
This has resulted in the United States waging endless war in 80 countries, including lethal strikes in 7 countries and direct combat in 14 countries. We ask that you consult with, and receive required authorization from, Congress prior to engaging the US military abroad and commit to supporting a repeal of the 2001 AUMF and ending all uses of US military force that have not been authorized by Congress in previous Administrations, including putting an end to unconstitutional participation in the Saudi-led war on Yemen.
We also urge you to commit to ending any military action upon a majority vote in Congress under the War Powers Act of 1973, as well as commit to signing war powers reform legislation that would appropriately strengthen Congress’ role in authorizing and overseeing the use of force.
Reducing the Pentagon Budget
We call on you to commit to ending wasteful military spending and reducing Pentagon spending by at least $200 billion annually. The US military budget is well over $700 billion a year currently — with private contractors reaping much of the benefit — and even higher when accounting for nuclear weapons spending at the Department of Energy. The unnecessary nuclear modernization plan is expected to cost $1.7 trillion over the next 30 years.
Meanwhile, funding has shrunk for the US Department of State and critical social safety nets at home. We call on you to reduce the outsized influence of private contractors at the Pentagon, end the production of new nuclear weapons, cancel ‘space force’, and to prioritize the federal budget towards meeting the basic needs of Americans at home.
Engaging with Iran
The majority of Americans support finding diplomatic solutions to disputes with Iran. We call on you to end the ongoing failed “maximum pressure” campaign, and return to the “Iran Deal” (JCPOA) in exchange for Iran returning to full compliance with the accord, and seek to build on the deal with further negotiations. After returning to the deal, we encourage you to pursue follow-on negotiations with Iran, Saudi Arabia, and other regional actors aimed at resolving conflicts across the region.
Engaging with North Korea
The strategic patience approach to North Korea’s nuclear weapons program has failed. While recent diplomacy with North Korea has failed to meet its stated goal of denuclearization, the diplomatic progress should be built upon and pushed further to prioritize both peace and the denuclearization on the Korean peninsula.
We urge you to reject pursuing a maximalist approach to the security challenge posed by North Korea and instead focus on confidence-building measures that can move towards normalizing relations, concluding a peace treaty to end the conflict, and eventually freezing and rolling back North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.
Supporting a Just Resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
The US should work to build a future in which all Palestinians and Israelis live under full equality by upholding a foreign policy that centers human rights and dignity for all people. We call on you to use a combination of pressure and incentives, including leveraging the annual $3.8 billion in US military funding to Israel, to get all parties to come to an agreement that upholds U.N. Security Council Resolutions and international law, including non-exhaustively: ending Israel’s military occupation; disbanding Israel’s illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem; ending the Israeli military blockade of Gaza; and ending all attacks on civilians, be they Israeli or Palestinian.
Opposing Regime-change Interventions and Broad-based Sanctions
The military and political campaigns aimed at regime change have borne disaster in Iraq, Libya, Syria, and elsewhere in the past two decades. Meanwhile, broad-based sanctions against countries like Iran and Venezuela have served to impoverish the population at large while not having positive political outcomes -— and at times empowering ruling elites. The US should stop seeking to transform other countries through destructive policies and instead work through the United Nations Security Council and other multilateral fora to build global consensus and international legal backing for peaceful, diplomatic solutions to internal and international conflicts.
Rejecting Discriminatory Immigration Policies and Supporting Refugees
We call on you to repeal the Muslim, African, refugee, and asylum bans, restore access to asylum, and support a robust refugee resettlement program. This includes a commitment to admit at least 125,000 refugees in your first year in office, increasing refugee admissions every year, and investing in infrastructure needed to rebuild our refugee resettlement program and restore US leadership on refugee protection given that we are now facing the worst global displacement crisis in history. As we urge other countries to admit and protect refugees, the US must also ensure all asylum seekers have a meaningful opportunity to be heard before a judge and utilize community-based alternatives to immigration detention.
Closing Guantanamo
The Guantanamo Bay Detention Center has been a stain on our nation’s conscience and the most effective recruitment tool used by violent extremists. We call on you to commit to using any and all options within existing authority to seek lawful disposition for the remaining individuals at the detention center and close Guantanamo once and for all. The long-defunct CIA detention and interrogation program, and at minimum the Senate Intelligence Committee report on CIA torture, needs to be declassified, promulgated internally to reaffirm torture’s illegality, and made publicly available.
Ending Support for Governments that Violate Human Rights
We urge you to prioritize human rights in our foreign policy, with a particular focus on countries with which the US has both leverage and a moral responsibility due to our provision of military or economic aid. Allies of the US should adhere to international law and fundamental human rights norms. The US should stop providing security aid and arms to authoritarian or repressive governments that systematically violate human rights. The US should similarly reassess and downgrade relationships with other governments engaging in widespread systematic repression.
Prioritize Diplomacy and Avoid Militarizing Our Relations with Other Powers such as Russia and China
As Russia and China become increasingly assertive on the world stage, it is critical that you promote diplomatic engagement and avoid further militarization of our relationship with these major powers. Overhyping the threat these countries pose to the United States intensifies fear, racism, and hate domestically. Militarization of our disputes with these nations exacerbate tensions that put the world at risk, while leading to arms races that siphon funds needed for each nation’s domestic priorities.
As President Reagan said, military conflicts that lead to nuclear war “cannot be won and must never be fought.” We urge you to rejoin —- and go beyond -— nuclear arms reduction agreements that were abandoned. We also urge you to address threats of cyberwarfare and espionage by following the model of the 2015 agreement with China that resulted in an estimated 90 percent drop in Chinese-backed cyber theft of American trade secrets. Instead of reinforcing military confrontation with these rising global powers, we urge you to prioritize investment in the industries of the future to ensure that we remain a global leader in innovation in an increasingly competitive global economy.
Sincerely,
SIGNATORIES
- Action Corps
- American Friends Service Committee
- Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
- Asian American Advocacy Fund
- Beyond the Bomb
- Cameroon American Council
- Center for Economic and Policy Research
- Center for International Policy
- CODEPINK
- Common Defense
- Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, U.S. Provinces
- Demand Progress
- Environmentalists Against War
- Equality Labs
- The Feminist Foreign Policy Project
- Franciscan Action Network
- Freedom Forward
- The Gravel Institute
- Greenpeace US
- Historians for Peace and Democracy
- IfNotNow
- Indivisible
- Institute for Policy Studies, National Priorities Project
- Institute for Policy Studies, New Internationalism Project
- International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN)
- Islamophobia Studies Center
- Jetpac
- Jewish Voice for Peace Action
- Just Foreign Policy
- MoveOn
- MPower Change
- Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC)
- National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
- National Iranian American Council Action
- National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance
- Other98
- Our Revolution
- Pax Christi USA
- Peace Action
- People’s Policy Project
- Progress America
- Progressive Democrats of America
- Project Blueprint
- The Quincy Institute
- Rethinking Foreign Policy
- RootsAction.org
- September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows
- United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries
- Win Without War
- Women’s Action for New Directions (WAND)
- Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation
- Yemeni Alliance Committee
