John McCain: US should lead "League of Democracies"
John McCain is edging away from George Bush's unilateralism
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Thursday, 27, Mar 2008 10:11
Presumptive Republican nominee John McCain has called for a new push to improve the United States' diplomatic relations in a major foreign policy speech.
Speaking at the World Affairs Council in Los Angeles, California, Mr McCain called for the closure of the suspected terrorist detention camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and the establishment of a "new international understanding" on how to deal with terror suspects.
The Republicans suffered humiliating reversals in the 2006 midterm elections over the war on Iraq and current president George Bush's unilateralist foreign policies.
In his speech today Mr McCain stuck to Mr Bush's rhetoric on the terror threat, although the "war on terror" phrase was omitted.
He said the US had "enemies for whom no attack is too cruel" but urged diplomacy based on preferring countries with democracy as the best means of strengthening its standing abroad.
"We cannot build an enduring peace based on freedom by ourselves, and we do not want to," he said.
"We have to strengthen our global alliances as the core of a new global compact - a League of Democracies - that can harness the vast influence of the more than 100 democratic nations around the world to advance our values and defend our shared interests."
As such Brazil and India should be included to expand the G8 to a G10, he added, while Russia should be excluded.
Mr McCain said the international community should not tolerate Russia's "nuclear blackmail or cyber attacks".
Instead he called for the Nato alliance to stand firm "from the Baltic to the Black Sea", adding its doors should "remain open to all democracies committed to the defence of freedom".