Speech at the 45th Munich Security Conference
Speaker: Biden, Joseph R.
Vice President of the United States
February 7 2009
… we must recognize new forces shaping this young century:
- The spread of mass destruction weapons and dangerous diseases;
- A growing gap between rich and poor;
- Ethnic animosities and failed states;
- A rapidly warming planet and uncertain supplies of energy, food, water;
- The challenge to freedom and security from radical fundamentalism.
In meeting these challenges, the United States will be guided by this basic principle:
There is no conflict between our security and our ideals. They are mutually reinforcing. The force of arms won our independence, and throughout our history, the force of arms has protected our freedom. That will not change. But the very moment we declared our independence, we laid before the world the values behind our revolution and the conviction that our policies must be informed by a “decent respect for the opinions of mankind.” Our Founders understood then and the United States believes now – that the example of our power must be matched by the power of our example. That is why we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. America will vigorously defend our security and our values, and in doing so we will all be more secure. As hard as we try, I know that we are likely to fall short of our ideals in the future, just as we have in the past. But I commit to you now: we will strive, every day, to honor the values that animate America’s democracy …
We will continue to develop missile defenses to counter a growing Iranian capability, provided the technology is proven to work and cost effective. …
We also support the further strengthening of European defense…
Read/hear the speech at
www.securityconference.de/konferenzen/rede.php?menu_2009=&menu_konferenzen=&sprache=en&id=238
