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Chapter IV. Work with Others to Defuse Regional Conflicts

 Section B.  Current Context:  Successes and Challenges

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             The world has seen remarkable progress on a number of the most difficult regional

             conflicts that destroyed millions of lives over decades.

                   

             ·  In Sudan, the United States led international negotiations that peacefully resolved the

                   20-year conflict between the Government of Sudan and the Sudanese Peoples

                   Liberation Movement.  

             

             ·  In Liberia, the United States led international efforts to restore peace and bolster

                   stability after vicious internal conflict.

             

             ·  Israeli forces have withdrawn from the Gaza Strip and the northern West Bank,

                   creating the prospect for transforming Israeli-Palestinian relations and underscoring

                   the need for the Palestinian Authority to stand up an effective, responsible

                   government.

             

             ·  Relations between India and Pakistan have improved, with an exchange of high-level

                   visits and a new spirit of cooperation in the dispute over Kashmir ­ a cooperation

                   made more tangible by humanitarian actions undertaken following a destructive

                   earthquake.

             

             ·  The cooperative approach to the relief effort following the tsunami that hit Indonesia

                   resulted in political shifts that helped make possible a peaceful settlement in the bitter

                   separatist conflict in Aceh.

             

             ·  In Northern Ireland, the implementation of key parts of the Good Friday Agreement,

                   including the decommissioning of weapons, marked a substantial milestone in ending

                   that long-standing civil conflict.

             

             Numerous remaining regional challenges demand the world's attention:

                   

 

        National Security Strategy

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        ·  In Darfur, the people of an impoverished region are the victims of genocide arising

             from a civil war that pits a murderous militia, backed by the Sudanese Government,

             against a collection of rebel groups.

         

        ·  In Colombia, a democratic ally is fighting the persistent assaults of Marxist terrorists

             and drug-traffickers.

         

        ·  In Venezuela, a demagogue awash in oil money is undermining democracy and

             seeking to destabilize the region.

         

        ·  In Cuba, an anti-American dictator continues to oppress his people and seeks to

             subvert freedom in the region.  

         

        ·  In Uganda, a barbaric rebel cult ­ the Lord's Resistance Army ­ is exploiting a

             regional conflict and terrorizing a vulnerable population.

         

        ·  In Ethiopia and Eritrea, a festering border dispute threatens to erupt yet again into

             open war.

         

        ·  In Nepal, a vicious Maoist insurgency continues to terrorize the population while the

             government retreats from democracy.  

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