Mitt Romney: Foreign Policy Profile
Mitt Romney (R-MA)
Mitt Romney was a successful businessman before becoming the CEO of the Salt Lake Olympics Organizing Committee. He then unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Massachusetts in 1994, but won the Governorship in 2002. Romney’s religion (the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints) has been both a positive and negative issue in his campaigns.
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Click here for a clear statement of Mitt Romney’s FP goals.
'Rising to a new Generation of Global Challenges' in Foreign Affairs, Jul/Aug 2007
Iraq
Mitt Romney famously asserted in a GOP candidates debate that weapons inspectors had not been allowed into Iraq pre-2003. He also disagreed with the proposals made by the Iraq Study Group to talk to Iraq’s regional neighbours Iran and Syria. He has distanced himself from President Bush, by criticizing the various mistakes made in the conduct of the war, though he does support the surge.
China
The former governor of Massachusetts believes that while we should continue to work with China on the North Korean nuclear crisis, we should not give up pressing them to change in the area of human rights norms.
Afghanistan
Mitt Romney visited US troops in Afghanistan and supports their efforts. He sees the campaign there in terms of a larger struggle between Jihadism and is committed to remaining there until stability is restored.Â
Israel/Palestine
The former governor has visited Israel, and supports the US-Israel relationship. He also supports the security fence in Israel and believes that it is helping prevent bloodshed and terror and violence. Again, Israel is in the front line in the war against Jihadism.
The UN
Mitt Romney believes that the UN is in urgent need of reform, pointing to the UN Human Rights Council, which has condemned Israel nine times while remaining silent on the serial human rights abuses of Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, and Sudan. Despite this, he belies that US strength is amplified when it is combined with the strength of other nations. In the changing world we face, our alliances and engagement must change, too. He is more supportive of bolstering alliances such as NATO.
Non-Proliferation
The views of Mitt Romney on proliferation again come back to Jihadism and the war on civilization being waged by Al-Queda. He has strong views on Iran, but they are linked to the existential threat towards Israel rather than views on nuclear arms per se.
Terrorism
Former governor Romney supports a vigorous war against Jihadism and believes that Guantanamo should be doubled. Please click here for more information on his views.