By Nicole Gaouette

Source:

September 8, 2010

The U.S. remains open to negotiations with Iran even as sanctions intended to constrain the country’s nuclear program begin, Secretary of State said today in a speech.

“Sanctions and pressure are not ends in themselves,” Clinton said in remarks prepared for the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington. “They are the building blocks of leverage for a negotiated solution, to which we and our partners remain committed.”

In the speech, Clinton said the Obama administration’s foreign policy is working and that U.S. leadership provides the “best hope in a dangerous world.” She cautioned that “rising debt and crumbling infrastructure” at home pose a threat to U.S. economic power and the country’s long-term ability to project its leadership abroad.

The administration is struggling to end the war in Afghanistan, even as it withdraws troops from Iraq. Along with its allies, the U.S. is also coping with a possible succession of power in nuclear-armed North Korea.

The U.S. is also trying to develop deeper ties with “emerging centers of influence,” including China, India, Brazil, Indonesia and Turkey, Clinton said.

“The world is counting on us,” Clinton said. “For the United States, global leadership is both a responsibility and an unparalleled opportunity.”