Robert Gates: foreign policy re Iraq

Well, given that, do you assume, just for planning purposes that the administration that follows you will pursue roughly the same policy in Iraq?

Well, first I would say I don't do politics – [chuckles] – and I certainly will not be here after Jan. 20, 2009. But I was heartened in the debate among the Democratic candidates a few weeks ago, that when asked if they would commit to having all U.S. troops out of Iraq by the end of their first term, the leading candidates all declined to make that commitment.

And my goal is to try and put the situation in Iraq in the best possible place for the next president so that we can have a sustained policy in Iraq. My whole experience is shaped by the Cold War where we followed a basic strategy that had bipartisan support through multiple presidencies. Iraq is a long-term problem.

In the same interview there was another quote regarding economics of war v. diplomacy

Isn't there, though, a basic budget choice that someone is going to have to make though? Either you get six more fighter planes, for example, or you get a few thousand extra Foreign Service officers?

Well, the reality is that the cost of increasing your capabilities on the diplomatic, economic side, is really pretty modest. The entire State Department budget is $36 billion. We spend that in the Pentagon on health care.

Would you say it would be worth it to slow down the growth of the Defense Department budget to allow for greater diplomacy and other efforts?

Well, I don't think you'll every find a secretary of defense who will say it's a good idea to cut the Defense Department budget.

These excerpts were from an NPR interview on January 17, 2008.