DAVOS, Switzerland – Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell spoke to a packed audience at the World Economic Forum that convened last Thursday in Davos, Switzerland. During the ’90s boom years, the faces of the powerful barons of industry reflected arrogance. However, this year, their faces instead reflected a subdued anxiety.
The reasons for their concerns range from the actions of the United States and its war with Iraq to its disregard for the human rights of Muslims in America – which many say is a turn from the values and promises found in the Constitution. Couple these issues with the serious global economic downturn and there is no joy to be found in the stunning beauty of the Swiss Alps.
In introducing Secretary Powell, World Economic Forum Founder Klaus Schwab said, “You command respect because your voice, actions and message have resonated in all countries since you assumed responsibilities. You represent the philosophy of the World Economic Forum.”
Secretary Powell said at the beginning of his speech that he had been told of the sentiments of conference participants. He reassured them that America can be trusted to use its enormous political, economic and, above all, military power wisely and fairly. In this regard, he recalled how Americans and Europeans built the greatest political-military alliance in history with NATO to keep peace in Europe. He reaffirmed the recent expansion of the European Union by saying that they also want to be part of a “body that links the United States and Canada to Europe. To be part of a trans-Atlantic community.”
Furthermore he told the eager audience that America’s difference of opinion should not be equated with unilateralism but that, if we feel strongly, “We will act even if others are not prepared to join us.”
Secretary Powell spent most of his time on Iraq, explaining how the U.S. had sought United Nations agreement that was given when the Security Council passed Resolution 1441. He pointed out how all of the members of the Security Council – including China and Russia – had unanimously voted for Iraq to not only disarm peacefully, but also to provide accurate, full and complete information on its weapons of mass destruction.
In looking to put the world’s business leaders at ease, Secretary Powell enumerated how the international community still needs to know the answers to key questions such as, “Where is the evidence that Iraq has destroyed the tens of thousands of litres of anthrax we know it had before it expelled the previous inspectors? What happened to its nearly 30,000 munitions capable of carrying chemical agents? The inspectors can only account for 16 of them. What happened to the three metric tons of growth material that Iraq imported which can be used for producing deadly biological agents?” Iraq has not provided any answers. Powell declared, “Saddam should tell the truth – now!”
He pointed out that unlike the disarmament of Kazakhstan, Ukraine and South Africa, there have been no signs of it in Iraq. He said that “Multilateralism cannot become an excuse for inaction,” while the “United States is in no rush to go to war, [w]e continue to reserve our sovereign right to take military action against Iraq alone or in a coalition of the willing.”
Joan Veon is a certified financial planner and is president of Veon Financial Services, Inc., an investment advisory firm. Visit her website, WomensGroup.org.
