The Mac Weekly

Issue date: 9/14/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Aaron Brown Richard Holbrooke, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, spoke to an audience of more than 700 Monday afternoon in Kagin Commons. The career diplomat said the next president would face the "worst world situation ever" upon taking office.

The former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations said Monday afternoon that the next president of the United States would be forced to deal with "the worst world situation ever," but held out faith that the United States' leadership role in the world could be a force for positive change.

In a 45-minute convocation address held in Kagin Commons, Richard Holbrooke, who also served as the U.S. ambassador to Germany during former President Bill Clinton's administration, praised some of his political forebears while taking digs at President George W. Bush's foreign policy. The address attracted over 700 audience members who listened intently and occasionally laughed at the former ambassador's quips.

Citing the four-year-old war in Iraq, a potential war with Iran, challenging diplomatic relations with China and Russia, the continuing presence of Al-Qaeda, and the global spread of AIDS, Holbrooke said the next president would face a unique set of challenges. Despite what he called the United States' diminished standing in the world, Holbrooke said, the U.S. is "still capable of being the world leader," and needs to remain in that role.

"When the U.S. is absent from negotiation, its chances for success are much diminished," said Holbrooke, who has endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential candidacy and aspires to serve as Secretary of State.

The career diplomat, who has also served as a Peace Corps director in Morocco and a managing editor of the journal Foreign Affairs, cited past U.S. successes in negotiating peace deals. The 1978 Camp David Accords that President Jimmy Carter helped to broker between Egypt and Israel were "a classic example of American leadership."

The 1995 Dayton Accords signed between the presidents of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia-Holbrooke headed up the negotiations that led to the deal-are another example of the United States' potential for positive global influence, he said.

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