Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said that “three million people — about a third of Haiti’s population — had been affected” by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Tuesday. International aid groups have estimated the death toll to be in the tens of thousands.

Juan Barreto/Agence France-Presse — Getty Image

Medical supplies have been highlighted as particularly crucial in the effort to save lives in a country which was already severely stretched for medical resources before the earthquake.  Tammam Aloudat, an emergencies specialist at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) Societies in Geneva stated that "[m]any other quakes have shown us very clearly that of people who suffer injuries and die as a result, most deaths occur within the first 72 hours."

President Obama remarked this morning on U.S. efforts to provide aid.  He noted the practical challenges that the aid effort faces, such as, communication difficulties and Haiti’s damaged main port and roads.  Obama said that rescue and relief workers are currently on the ground and a team worked throughout the night “to identify priority areas for assistance, and shared the results of that review throughout the United States government, and with international partners who are also sending support.” He also committed an immediate investment of $100 million to support U.S. relief efforts

Obama stated:  “We will partner with the United Nations and its dedicated personnel and peacekeepers, especially those from Brazil, who are already on the ground due to their outstanding peacekeeping efforts there.  And I want to say that our hearts go out to the United Nations, which has experienced one of the greatest losses in its history.  We have no doubt that we can carry on the work that was done by so many of the U.N. effort that have been lost, and we see that their legacy is Haiti's hope for the future.”  

Obama’s concluding remarks were directed to the people of Haiti: “we say clearly, and with conviction, you will not be forsaken; you will not be forgotten.  In this, your hour of greatest need, America stands with you.  The world stands with you…So today, you must know that help is arriving -- much, much more help is on the way.”

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I was pleased by President Obama's 'aw-shucks' comments on winning the Nobel Peace Prize, saying:

"After I received the news, Malia walked in and said, "Daddy, you won the Nobel Peace Prize, and it is Bo's birthday!" And then Sasha added, "Plus, we have a three-day weekend coming up." So it's good to have kids to keep things in perspective."

But what really impressed me was how he framed his acceptance of it:

I will accept this award as a call to action -- a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century. These challenges can't be met by any one leader or any one nation.... We cannot tolerate a world in which nuclear weapons spread to more nations and in which the terror of a nuclear holocaust endangers more people....We cannot accept the growing threat posed by climate change, which could forever damage the world that we pass on to our children -- sowing conflict and famine; destroying coastlines and emptying cities.

This is a call to action that needs to be answered.  Not only by nations, but by global citizens from across the world.  I believe President Obama understands the need for action. It's up to us to stand up together make this vision a reality.

Congratulations, President Obama!

This morning's announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize is an honor and well-deserved.

The honor is, of course, an honor that American shares. And, while there are naysayers, the award is deserved for the new approach to global policy that President Obama has brought by creating, in the words of the Nobel Committee,  the climate in which "Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play." The Nobel Committee specifically highlights the initiative he has taken to reach out to the Muslim world and to urge nuclear disarmament.

At Citizens for Global Solutions, we work daily with issues of international diplomacy and global institutions, and we can confirm that President Obama's approach has changed the very nature of the discussions that are held and the possibilities that are sought. Consider the following:

1. President Obama embraces a multilateral approach to global issues and shows confidence in global institutions. Putting partisanship aside, many of us agree that this is the best approach to global challenges such as nuclear weapons, climate change and peacekeeping. His support of multilateral diplomacy and global institutions display an understanding that there are universal values that all countries, including the United States, must acknowledge.

2. The award shows that ideas and leadership matter. This morning the initial reaction of some is to say that the award is "too soon." Let's examine that. President Obama has made clear his embrace of a multilateral approach to global problems. He went to Cairo to enunciate a new approach by the United States toward issues facing the Islamic world. He has specifically stated his aspiration that we achieve a world free of nuclear weapons. These are accomplishments. Many people in his position might not have reached these positions or, having reached them, might not have made these positions public. President Obama's actions have widened the range of what is possible in international diplomacy. Ideas and leadership matter, and the Nobel Committee is confirming that.

3. Americans and others who know and understand American history should recognize that the award of this Nobel Prize confirms that American ideas and leadership matter as well. The ideas of multilateral global problem-solving are consistent with the political philosophy that runs from the Enlightenment, through our Founders, and is seen in the accomplishments of Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt. Most global institutions, including most prominently the United Nations, have been established and supported by the U.S. based on political ideas broadly accepted in the U.S. Those who worry about the role of the U.S. in the future of the world should take heart at the Nobel Committee's tacit acknowledgment that U.S. ideas and leadership are valued on the world stage.

4. Finally, let's acknowledge that the ideas that President Obama espouses and his actions that are being recognized, are fundamentally good for America. Let's be clear Americans are better off in a world in which peace and justice are assured through reliance on rule of law and universally accepted principles than in a world in which "might makes right." No nation has the power alone to enforce world peace. We see the limits of American military power, even as the as the U.S. devotes as much or more resources to defense than the rest of the world combined. But nations working together, resolving differences through diplomacy, and respecting principles supported by consensus can make a difference. It may be that the U.S. cannot continue forever to spend what it spends in maintaining world peace. If all the nations of the world shoulder this responsibility together, perhaps the burden can be more easily borne and perhaps more resources can then be devoted to education, health and welfare for everyone.

Robert A. Enholm
Executive Vice President
Citizens for Global Solutions

Today at the Brookings Institute Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke about the past year's economic collapse. He spoke about the events in the United States and of the similar experiences across the world. In his statements he discussed the steps that regulators and the Federal Reserve took to slow the rate of decline and mitigate the effects of the downturn. However, he stressed the importance of the global response. He empathized how quickly the G7 finance ministers were able to reach a consensus on response principles. These principles included support for international financial institutions, inject public capital if needed, and securing deposits. He added that the global response was strong and-in his words-unprecedented. Chairman Bernanke noted that the domestic and international political will and capital was there to ensure that international cooperation was the focus. And this political will reduced the potential impact of the decline. Cooperation not competition will create a more sustainable financial system.

On Friday, July 24, 2009, President Obama will sign the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This is the first United Nations Convention that Obama will sign in his Presidency. It is estimated that there are 650 million people in the world with disabilities. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities seeks to improve the standard of living while increasing employment opportunities and community access for all of them. The Convention also provides legal protection for people with disabilities, which many U.N. member states unfortunately do not have. The Convention is moving quickly; it opened for signatures on March 30, 2007 and there have already been 140 signatories. On its opening day there were 82 signatories to the Convention, 44 signatories to the Optional Protocol, and one ratification of the Convention. The Convention entered into force on May 3, 2008. Next, the Convention will go to the Senate to provide advice and consent to the treaty.

Now that Obama has signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, it will be interesting to see what U.N. Convention he will move forward on next.

The United States Mission to the United Nations released its Progress Report last week, giving a positive outlook on future US-UN relations and US engagement on international issues. The biggest thing to take from the Progress Report is that the current administration has acknowledged that and promoted the idea that international engagement is required to meet modern threats.

"We are showing the world that a new era of engagement has begun. For we know that America cannot meet the threats of this century alone, but the world cannot meet them without America." -President Barack H. Obama, Feb. 24, 2009

More importantly, the administration has put forth the idea that America should be leading the world in international affairs and in its engagement with the UN. As the largest contributor (and host country) to the United Nations, the US should be engaging the UN in a productive way to ensure that the organization moves in a direction that will benefit all nations. The antagonistic stance taken by the previous administration towards the UN has tarnished our reputation internationally, but the Obama administration has already taken great strides to reaffirm our commitment to multilateralism.

The current United States Mission to the UN has already been focused on many issues important to Citizens for Global Solutions. Ambassador Rice has been deeply involved in efforts to resolve the conflict in Darfur and praised the ICC indictment of Sudanese President Bashir. On global climate change, President Obama announced the launching of a Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, holding the first preparatory session in Washington on April 27-28. These talks are crucial to success at the Copenhagen conference in December. Lastly, the administrations dedication to human rights was shown in running for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, an important step to reforming the organization to effectively combat human rights abuses globally.

About 30 international students from North Carolina State University hustled themselves out of bed on a Saturday morning to talk about what it means to be a Global Citizen. CEO Don Kraus met with the students at the CGS office in Washington, D.C., where he emphasized the need to be engaged with the rest of the world by learning, lobbying and traveling.

He demonstrated those points by showing the group the winning videos and animations from our 2008 Multimedia contest.

He also rolled out the first video in our new campaign, "What does it mean to be a Global Citizen?" The massive effort features video of people from all ages and professions, explaining in their own words, the need for global engagement, and the reasons they have decided to become more involved with world issues. The initial video features people ranging from original United World Federalist member Ed Rawson who lives in a Washington, D.C. suburb, to a college student who grew up on an isolated island off the northwestern coast of Washington state.

Don also read the group a quote by Thomas Jefferson that
is engraved on the Jefferson Memorial here in Washington, D.C.:

"as new discoveries are made, new truths disclosed, and manners and opinions change with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also, and keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the same coat which fitted him when a boy, as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors."

Don pointed out that the world is at a major crossroads and the key challenge of the next decade that the students will face is how to how to address "the most dangerous deficit facing humanity;" the gap between the need for effective collective action at the global level and the ability of the international community to satisfy that need.

The U.S. government has now taken some major steps towards that goal: recently, the Obama administration announced that the U.S. will run for a seat on the U.N. Human Rights Council; the Administration began the process of reducing our nuclear weapons stockpile to the lowest level since 1955; and the U.S.Senate voted to increase funding for the International Affairs Budget.

These are major achievements that resulted from decades of hard work
by armies of supporters. By speaking to groups of students like these, Don is helping to ensure that the work will continue in the decades to come.

We are in a rare, open moment of history.

Consider this. During the last week:

• President Obama has begun the process of reducing nuclear warheads to the lowest number since 1955.
• Secretary of State Clinton and U.N. Ambassador Rice have announced that the U.S. will run for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council.
• The Senate has agreed to accept a $4 billion amendment to restore President Obama's full International Affairs Budget request.

As I write, world leaders at the G20 are discussing fundamental changes to our international institutions. It's not a question of if they will change, but rather of how and when.

I never recall having this much good news at one time. Yes, I know we face daunting economic and security challenge. But this a moment to savor the wins. We are building momentum to advance the creation and empowerment of international institutions and laws more than at any point since the founding of the U.N. This is very good.

Now back to work ...

"We must scrupulously guard the civil rights and civil liberties of all citizens, whatever their background. We must remember that any oppression, any injustice, any hatred, is a wedge designed to attack our civilization." -- Franklin Roosevelt

More than 60 years ago, President Roosevelt reminded us that protecting the human rights of others is the only way to protect our own human rights. Here in the United States, human rights is an issue that has been overshadowed by other concerns during the past few years, but now we are beginning to see our way clear to making this, once again, a cornerstone of U.S. policy. One of the first actions of the Obama administration was to announce the end to policies that allowed for the torture of anyone in U.S. custody. One of their next actions was to announce plans to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center. Now, the Administration has taken yet another step and announced that the U.S. will run for election on the U.N. Human Rights Council.

This action sends a strong signal to the international community that the Obama administration is committed to defending human rights for all global citizens, and it moves the U.S. one step closer to returning it to its previous role as a leader in the defense of human rights around the world.

As a member of the Council, the U.S. will be able to provide a voice for the voiceless, and to ensure that those who violate human rights will be held accountable for their crimes, anywhere in the world.

The Human Rights Council is the only international body through which promotes human rights and addresses pervasive human rights violations. The Council will only be able reach its potential with the help of strong leadership from the United States. It is also a key platform through which to empower those who are discriminated against the most, including women and girls.

The decision by the Obama administration to seek a seat on the Council demonstrates its commitment to work more closely with our allies around the world, a move that can only make Americans safer, in every way.

According to the New York Times and other media sources indicted Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir has visited with Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. Bashir has not been deterred by the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court. He visited Eritrea on Monday and is expected to attend an Arab League summit meeting in Qatar next week.

Neither the State Department nor the Whitehouse has commented on Bashir's travels and defiance of the Court's jurisdiction, other than to say that he is not welcomed in the United States. State Department spokesperson Robert Wood, when asked if the U.S. is encouraging other nations to arrest Bashir dodged a clear response and said:

"Well, first and foremost, we're not a party, as you know, to the Rome Statute. There are countries that are parties to the Rome Statute, and they have obligations, international obligations under that statute."

In fact other than a supportive statement by U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, the White House has basically withheld comment on the ICC until it completes a review of U.S. policy regarding the Court. The administration should finish this policy review quickly. It should call for extensive and thorough U.S. cooperation with the Court and support for its prosecutions and trials. It should support U.S. participation in the Court's meetings. And it should make clear that U.S. relations with the Court are in an entirely new era. The historic ICC arrest warrant for Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir makes these steps especially urgent.

In FY09 the U.S. will supply Egypt with $1.3 billion in military financing. Ideally, Congress should condition this funding to ensure Egyptian cooperation with the apprehension of war criminals like Bashir. At the very least the U.S. should quickly state its desire for Cairo and other Arab League nations to cooperate with the Court.

The United States is now in the odd and unsustainable position of strongly endorsing the most important action that the ICC has ever taken while evading any commitment to support or participate in it as an institution. While Secretary of State Clinton has been hindered by the slow confirmation process to bring on new political staff, she should not allow the United States to stand mute on the sidelines while allowing a mastermind of systematic mass-murder and rapes to freely roam the world and flaunt the jurisdiction of the Court and the U.N. Security Council which authorized the Court's actions in Sudan.