Transcript
SECRETARY BROWNE: We all have a responsibility for the sake of our own security to ensure that we are working together across government departments and between government departments to build up responsible states that govern effectively, and in our globalized era we have no choice but to engage with the world in its most challenging places. It has already been observed that the 20th century measured strength by what states could destroy. The 21st century will measure strength by what states can build. Helping others build stable, legitimate states that properly serve their people requires international partnerships. These partnerships will require international credibility, international resources, and International range. Surely that's an environment where the United States will need partners who have real hard and soft deployable capabilities that are interoperable. In short, partners like the United Kingdom.
So we arrive at one undeniable truth, the U.K. and the U.S. will continue to be faced with complex defense issues both overseas and domestically. In the light of this, how we best move [is] forward together, whatever the election results here in November result in. You may have noticed that I have so far avoided using the phrase special relationship not because I don't think it is special, but because I wanted to focus on why it is special. I think one of the key sources of America's enduring strength is the deeply seeded alliances and relationships that you have built around the world. The United Kingdom is proud to be counted amongst your allies. Ironically, the extremely close and interconnected nature of U.S. and U.K. ties can lead politicians and populations in both of our countries to take this relationship for granted and to forget why we benefit mutually from it. But the fact remains that the U.K.'s vision for peace, for security and stability in the world, is practically identical to that of the United States. Our assessment of the true nature of the challenges to the U.K. national security and to the security of the international system mirrors that of the United States. We are allies with America in our thinking, but we are also allies in our doing.
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