Just over a year ago, President Obama inherited an atrophied American diplomacy, hostile global public opinion, and an agenda that had disengaged from the international community.  The last year has seen an American diplomatic resurgence.  This renewed American appetite for sustained diplomatic action has produced modest but real results.  

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This morning brought welcome news of progress in multilateral talks with Iran over its nuclear program – and a comprehensive reminder of how US global engagement to reduce and control the threat nuclear weapons pose can pay off in dealing with Iran, North Korea and other key regional concerns. A diplomatic deal has been struck to send Iran’s uranium to Russia to be processed and sent back to Iran as relatively harmless fuel for civilian nuclear power plants. The deal, which must still be officially confirmed by Friday by all governments, would push back the prospect of Iran developing a nuclear weapon for a number of years. This arrangement is the latest demonstration of diplomacy paying dividends to address immediate flashpoints while also advancing the global non-proliferation agenda. It stands in stark contrast to the Bush administration’s record, which failed to both deal effectively with Iran’s nuclear program and stem the flow of dangerous weapons.

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After a week of intense international engagement, the administration’s top foreign policy officials hit the Sunday morning talk shows to discuss the difficult foreign policy decisions that lie ahead. Fareed Zakaria laid out the stakes for the Administration, taken together: “He wants to demonstrate at home that engagement does not make America weak.” This weekend, the President’s top advisors took on a number of serious issues: Afghanistan, Iran, Russia, the detention center at Guantanamo Bay – and confirmed that the Administration is moving forward with its core strategy of strength through engagement while carefully considering the implications of its policy decisions. On ABC’s ‘This Week’ Bob Woodward drew a contrast with the past: “As we all know from covering George W. Bush, all you had to do was find out what his gut was and then they would have meetings about how to implement what his gut was. In this case, I don’t think Obama has a gut, and he has opened the door very aggressively to other options, and they’re not going to be rushed.”

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Yesterday President Obama unveiled a plan to deploy proven systems that can defend against short and medium range missiles – the missiles Iran actually possesses – as opposed to wasting a decade and billions of dollars developing Bush’s ground based missile defense system that is intended to counter a threat – long range ballistic missiles - that doesn’t exist.Domestically, the fallout from the Obama administration’s decision has been clarifying. This debate has exposed that while President Obama is seeking to deal with 21st century challenges, conservatives remain firmly focused on those of the 20th.

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President Obama announced this morning that he is terminating the Bush administration's failed Eastern European missile defense system: "The best way to responsibly advance our security and the security of our allies is to deploy a missile defense system that best responds to the threats that we face, and that utilizes technology that is both proven and cost effective." Not only do the cancelled missile defense systems have significant technological shortfalls, but they would also fail to protect against Iranian missiles. From a geopolitical perspective, the European missile defense worsened relations with Russia without providing a credible defense against their nuclear arsenal. Because there is no strategic benefit to maintaining the program - either militarily or diplomatically - the Obama administration has wisely has decided to eliminate this program and to develop a more adaptable missile defense system that better protects Europe.

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Upon returning from Moscow, the G-8 summit, and Africa, President Obama – and almost anyone closely following the trip – will be surprised to learn from conservatives that nothing was accomplished. At the G-8, leading economic powers made new commitments on food aid for the world’s poorest and manifested a new unity against Iran’s repression at home and nuclear ambitions abroad – both achievements showcasing US diplomacy and Obama’s personal leadership. The formulaic nature of conservative criticism in response was perhaps best summed up by Oliver North in an op-ed in the Washington Times, which said that “the trip to Chad... produced no serious risks to our future.” Obama’s trip to Chad did produce little – because he never went to Chad.

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After eight years of the U.S. leaving international summits empty handed with no deliverables to speak of, the U.S.-Russian summit that wrapped up in Moscow today stands in stark contrast. President Obama, determined to reset U.S.-Russian relations and place them on a more productive and business-like track, focused on a number of core issues – arms control, Afghanistan, military cooperation, and proliferation threats. On each he achieved important deliverables. After eight years of inept diplomacy, it is refreshing that an American administration is finally able to use diplomacy as a tool to enhance American security. Yet many extreme conservatives seem to be fighting the Cold War all over again.

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Next week President Obama will travel to Moscow to meet with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. From the outset of his Administration, President Obama has sought to reset U.S.-Russian relations. Over the last eight years, U.S. policy rested on maintaining the superficial personal relationship between Bush and Putin, which failed to result in any tangible achievements and led to growing estrangement in U.S.-Russian relations. The Obama administration has sought to eliminate this superficiality and develop a more business-like relationship that is focused on core issues of mutual interest and concern that produces verifiable results.

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