Explore Candidates → Rudy Giuliani on Iraq and Foreign Policy
Rudy Giuliani on Iraq and Foreign Policy
In a debate at the University of Iowa on August 5, 2006, Rudy Giuliani said unilateral action in Pakistan cannot be ruled out."I would take that option if I thought there was no other way to crush al-Qaida, no other way to crush the Taleban, and no other way to capture [Osama] bin Laden," he said.
Q: "I recently learned that over 400,000 people have died in Darfur....could you commit the US's fair share of the UN aid and peace-keeping forces..?" GIULIANI: "I would commit to not only Americans committing their fair share but committing a bigger role..."
Giuliani has said the United States should proceed diplomatically with Iran, but that "we will use a military option if we have to." At the first Republican presidential debate, Giuliani said a military strike would be "very dangerous" but nuclear arms in the control of "an irrational person" like President Ahmadinejad was more dangerous.
2002 Pro Israeli Washington Rally: "we're all here today for the same purpose--to support America, to support Israel and to support all those who join us in understanding that we have to end terrorism... Israel is an oasis of freedom in a desert of authoritarianism and worse. It is an outpost of democracy where democracy is unique. And in all ways, it's America's good friend."
When asked about keeping the embargo on Cuba, Guiliani responded, "If he were president, he said, he would keep the sanctions and travel restrictions that are in place."
"Foreign aid... does not lead to lasting prosperity because it cannot replace trade. Private direct investment is the best way to promote economic development. The next U.S. president should thus revitalize and streamline all U.S. foreign-aid activities to support -- not substitute for -- private investment in other countries."
"I haven't seen the UN be effective in many things. And... maybe we've got to find another way to do it.... Then you ought to look at the bigger issues. Every big issue that we face, and that we have faced since I can't remember when, maybe the Cuban Missile Crisis, the UN has been irrelevant to."
"The U.N. provides a crucial forum for international debate and cooperation," the Mayor said. Mayor Giuliani described the drive on Capitol Hill to cut back support and funds for the United Nations as "an ill-conceived proposition that would achieve only symbolic savings in the Federal budget, while greatly impeding the operations of the United Nations and hurting the economy of the United Nations' host country, the United States," as well as that of New York City.
"No, I do not think you can talk about reducing our nuclear arsenal when we have Iran and North Korea devloping weapons.."
"When has a nation ever won a war when the constant discussion was: What kind of timetable are we going to set for our retreat? In order to win, you have to set an objective. The objective should be an Iraq that is going to help us in the terrorists' war against us."
Q: You said that congressional Republicans who say they must see progress by September are "fundamentally irresponsible," and they are giving a timetable for retreat to our enemies. GIULIANI: I was talking about the timetable for retreat that the Democrats passed, in which they did something I've never heard of in the history of war, which is to give your enemy a schedule of how a retreating army is going to retreat.
2007 Republican Debate in South Carolina May 15, 2007
Q: But that's military progress. No political progress. You'd continue to support the surge even if there's no political progress? GIULIANI: The reality is that if we can bring stability to Iraq, and we can give them a chance to develop stability, that's what we should be trying to accomplish. This is part of an overall terrorist war against the US. It's a battle in that war.
2007 GOP Iowa Straw Poll debate Aug 5, 2007
Giuliani supported President Bush's plan in January 2007 to temporarily boost U.S. troop levels in Iraq to combat sectarian violence and help Iraqis achieve independence. At the time, he said political and economic solutions should be emphasized and called for weekly assessments on the impact of the higher troop levels. "We have to try," he said on CNN, though he admitted he wasn't confident "that it’s all going to turn around."
Not only has Giuliani refused to outline a plan for Iraq, he has also kept silent on President Bush's most recent plan for Iraq, which according to the AP envisions "a long-term U.S. troop presence in Iraq similar to the one in South Korea where American forces have helped keep an uneasy peace for more than 50 years."
AP, 5/31/07; CNN/WMUR/NH Union Leader Republican debate, 6/5/07