Secretary Powell has requested me to inform you of your appointment to a Task Force of the Department of State. The Task Force will evaluate foreign policy making processes and policies presently in effect. You are asked to make recommendations about how America can achieve its legitimate international objectives with greater precision and consistency. Your endeavor has highest priority, since the foreign and national security policies of the Bush administration seem increasingly stagnant and unresolved problems have the potential to seriously disrupt the post-cold war status quo.
Succession crises loom in Russia and China.
Peace making efforts in Bosnia, Haiti, Northern Ireland and the Middle-East show signs of unraveling. North Korea and Iraq remain dangerous adversaries waiting opportunities to assert their power. Turkey and Saudi Arabia are less secure and reliable allies than before. Iran, Syria, and Libya remain aligned with elements alleged to engage in terrorism. States in Africa and other parts of the Third World are riven with ethnic strife and on the verge of economic collapse.