WASHINGTON (Washington Insider Magazine) – With a pandemic sweeping the world and tensions growing between the US and Russia, two US congresswomen are calling for a more collaborative diplomacy that better suits 21st century problems. This month, representatives Pramila Jayapal (WA-D) and Barbara Lee (CA-D) introduced ‘The Foreign Policy for the 21st Century Resolution’, a piece of legislation that seeks to cut defense spending and recenter US foreign policy on global cooperation, conflict resolution, and other non-military diplomatic strategies.
Congresswoman Jayapal explains the resolution thusly: “While President Biden showed incredible leadership by putting an end to America’s longest war that cost the lives of thousands of Americans and countless others over two decades, there is more that we must do to rethink our country’s foreign policy and finally prioritize diplomacy over defense spending. The Foreign Policy for the 21st Century Resolution puts us on the right track and addresses many of the national security challenges that we face by ensuring that we no longer favor militarism and war over diplomacy and peace.”
The resolution offers a multipronged approach to US foreign policy, including a focus on human dignity and social justice efforts like greater inclusion and equity, support for the UN and other international institutions, funding for research into combating climate change, and efforts to inform US foreign policy by “poor people, racial, religious, and ethnic minorities, indigenous people, women, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals and youth.”
Over thirty local, national, and international organizations have endorsed the resolution, including Public Citizen, Win Without War, and Women’s Action for New Directions (WAND).
Describing the resolution, Congresswoman Lee noted, “The post 9/11 wars taught us that perpetual war takes countless lives, wastes trillions of dollars and does not make us any safer. To combat the challenges we face around the globe — like climate change, global health, and poverty — we should be investing our resources away from tanks and drones and towards the needs of people. I’m proud to be joining Rep. Jayapal and advocates from across the country to create a new framework for our foreign policy future.”
While the resolution currently has eighteen co-sponsors, all Democrats, it’s unlikely to pass in the current House of Representatives where Democrats hold only a slim majority.
