Secretary of State Colin L. Powell

The days of his secretariat have been fast-paced as the nation experienced both tragedy and triumph. The events of September 11 marked the greatest tragedy on American soil since World War II. But the creation of a global fund to combat HIV/AIDS, the destruction of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and the wrecking of al-Qaeda's terrorist network in that country, and the return of a precarious stability and a degree of freedom to the people of Afghanistan are all highpoints of triumph. As Secretary Powell said in remarks [at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation dinner in October] about Afghanistan, "Boys and girls have returned to school. Women who one year ago were virtual prisoners in their homes are pursuing their professions.... For the first time in over two decades, the men and women of Afghanistan look to the future with hope."

Also included in the "triumph" have been the creation of a new strategic relationship with Russia, improved relations with China, and a new and promising opening to Central and South Asia. There is much left to do, not least of which is dealing with Iraq, where a tyrant still torments his own people, the region, and the world, and at the other end of the world, a North Korea bent on possessing weapons nuclear weapons and proliferating them to rogue nations and terrorists.  

In testimony in September, Secretary Powell told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that no matter what methods we advance for dealing with Iraq, we will not be deterred from our main purpose to extend democracy, prosperity, and freedom to all the remaining dark corners of the world. Iraq is just a step in this process--a process, that as President Bush has said, will establish a balance of power that favors freedom across the globe.  Likewise, encouraging the powers in Northeast Asia, those most affected by North Korea's actions, to bring pressure to bear on Pyongyang, is the centerpiece of our diplomacy in that region.