National Committee on American Foreign Policy
| This article does not cite any references or sources. (January 2011) |
| National Committee on American Foreign Policy | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | NCAFP |
| Formation | 1974 (by Hans Morgenthau) |
| Type | Non-profit, nonpartisan activist organization |
| Headquarters | 320 Park Avenue New York City, New York United States |
| President | George D. Schwab |
| Website | ncafp.org |
The National Committee on American Foreign Policy (NCAFP) is an American nonprofit, nonpartisan activist organization dedicated to the resolution of conflicts that threaten United States interests.
Founded in 1974 by Hans Morgenthau, the organization works to identify, articulate, and advance U.S. foreign-policy interests within the framework of political realism.
Mission
Its U.S. foreign-policy interests include:
- Preserving and strengthening national security
- Supporting countries committed to the values and practice of political, religious, and cultural pluralism
- Improving U.S. relations with the developed and developing worlds
- Advancing human rights
- Encouraging realist arms-control agreements
- Curbing the proliferation of nuclear and other unconventional weapons
- Promoting an open and global economy
The organization believes that an informed public is vital to a democratic society. To promote this, it offers educational programs that address security challenges facing the U.S. and publishes a variety of publications, including the bimonthly journal, American Foreign Policy Interests.
Task forces
Its long-term task forces bring together U.S. and foreign scholars, foreign-policy practitioners, and others to off-the-record and sometimes closed-door forums where adversaries can, over a period of years, air their views unencumbered by official rhetoric.
Shorter-term task forces deal with immediate foreign policy challenges facing the U.S.
Meetings
The organization's Meetings Program offers members and guests the opportunity to share their thoughts on U.S. foreign policy with influential policymakers, diplomats, renowned scholars, and foreign policy specialists. Each year, the organization convenes a series of programs, including single speaker events, panels and round tables addressing immediate and long-term issues of national security.
Special initiatives
In May 2004, it launched its Forum on Northeast Asian Security. Projects chaired by Henry Kissinger and Paul Volcker include exploring the potential for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula; a Northeast Asian Security Forum, composed of the U.S., Japan, China, Russia, South Korea and North Korea; and breaking the impasse between China and Taiwan.
Publications
A distinguishing activity of the organization is the publication and dissemination of firm, reasoned positions designed to help formulate American foreign policy. When, after study and discussion, the organization or one of its task forces reaches a consensus on an aspect of foreign policy that affects American national interests, it makes that judgment known to the Administration, the U.S. Congress, the media and the general public.
American Foreign Policy Interests
A cornerstone of the organization's publication series is its bimonthly journal, American Foreign Policy Interests. The journal presents authoritative and provocative articles on critical questions of foreign policy written by leading scholars and policy experts.
Books and booklets
The organization publishes hardcover, book-length analyses of foreign policy issues that affect the national interests of the U.S. as National Committee on American Foreign Policy Studies.
It also publishes short booklets of policy reports and recommendations. Additionally, the organization publishes speeches and summaries of discussions that have been the hallmarks of its foreign policy briefings, lecture series, and award ceremonies.
Awards
The organization presents five awards:
Hans J. Morgenthau Award
The award was established in 1981 to commemorate Morgenthau's seminal contributions to the theory and the practice of American foreign policy. It is awarded to an individual whose intellectual attainments and/or practical contributions to U.S. foreign policy have been judged so exemplary in the tradition of Professor Morgenthau as to merit this singular award. Recipients include:[clarification needed]
George F. Kennan Award for Distinguished Public Service
The award was established in 1994 in honor of George F. Kennan, scholar, diplomat and statesman. It honors an American who has served the U.S. in an exemplary way and has made a seminal contribution to defining and illuminating the national interests of the U.S. Recipients include:[clarification needed]
William J. Flynn Initiative for Peace Award
The award was established 1997 as the Initiative for Peace Award in honor of William J. Flynn, NCAFP chairman, for his decisive leadership and daring diplomacy in spurring two cease-fires and promoting the peace process in Northern Ireland. Renamed in 2001, it is presented to an individual who has worked tirelessly to resolve a conflict that has affected the national interests of the U.S. Recipients include:[clarification needed]
- William J. Flynn
- George J. Mitchell
- Marjorie Mowlam
- Viola Drath
- Hugh Carey
- Gerry Adams
Global Business Leadership Award
The award honors a prominent business leader whose efforts have contributed to setting an unimpeachable standard for globally oriented corporate citizenship promoting the national interests of the U.S.[clarification needed] Recipients include:
21st Century Leader Award
The award was created[when?] to recognize the achievements of individuals under the age of 40 who display a serious commitment to furthering the U.S.'s strategic policy interests in accord with the principles of political realism. Through their professional or personal pursuits, they make important contributions to the international dialogue and demonstrate a promising future in the realm of U.S. foreign policy. Recipients include:[clarification needed]
- Nancy Walbridge Collins
- Abraham Denmark
- Marisa Porges
- Nathaniel Fick
- John Delury
- Joshua Cooper Ramo
- Nicholas Thompson
