Foreign policy - Jess Carmichael

Barack Obama struck a sober tone as he delivered his inaugural speech in front of two million people in Washington on Tuesday, acknowledging the scale of the challenge that he now faces.

Here US voters discuss some of the major issues that matter to them personally, and that the new president will have to tackle.

Barack Obama's priorities for 2009

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Jess Carmichael Quality engineer | Independent

In both Iraq and Afghanistan it's important that we stay the course

Age: 30 Lives: Seattle, Washington Occupation: Quality engineer and former marine Political orientation: Independent Last election voted: Didn't vote (supported both candidates) In 10 words or fewer: A leader, former marine and optimistic about the future Voters' Views: main page

"There are two aspects of foreign policy that concern me. We must repair our relationships with countries that we have alienated. We must stay the course in Iraq and Afghanistan.

People across the world have been looking for a change in the US for some time. So now Obama has the advantage of overwhelmingly positive support from governments and peoples.

Now is the time to capitalise on support from across the world and start strengthening our relations. Time will tell if Obama is able to do so.

In both Iraq and Afghanistan it is important that we stay the course. If these countries aren't self sufficient by the time our troop numbers dramatically reduce, they could return to chaos.

Having served in Anbar province in Iraq, I did feel I was making a positive difference while I was there.

We helped to get electricity lines working and brought food parcels to people. We also helped set up polling stations so Iraqis could take part in their first national election.

I can understand when some politicians want to leave as soon as possible. But if we pull out too early it risks losing all the gains that have been made by the military.

Obama's selection of Mr Gates as secretary of defence was an excellent choice to preserve the stability of improvement. A timetable for withdrawal is fine as long as we make a proper assessment of the situation before we leave. If we go at the wrong moment then all the sacrifice of American soldiers will have been in vain."

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Do you agree with Jess Carmichael? You can add your comments and questions on Mark's views using the form below:

Your comments:

Jess, your advice is sound and well thought out. Thank you for providing a perspective based on experiences few Americans have. And thank you most of all for your service.
Andrea , New York, NY

Do I agree with Jess ? Yes! 100% I also note his interesting choice of voting. Well, that's one way to solve that dilemma.
Wes, San Diego, CA

Wes - regarding your "interesting choice of voting' comment"; when I make my decision on seated positions, I look at them as leaders and not by party affiliations. When the candidates were announced at the start of this last presidential race, I selected one from each party: John McCain and Barack Obama. I looked to McCain to provide years of positive leadership within the senate and earlier on in the military. I looked to Obama as being a breath of fresh air for much needed change and hope. It was just pure luck that it came down to them, so either way I was happy with the candidate.
Jess Carmichael, Seattle

Jess' view of the sacrifice of the soldiers is one that needs to be heard more. Like economics, international politics is too much driven by perceptions and though that means much of what affects us is just smoke and mirrors, it also means that Obama has a real chance to do good because he is new and has a positive profile in people's minds. This is where McCain would ironically have had an impossible job: purely because perceptions have such a huge effect.
U, Cape Town South Africa

I would trust the opinion of almost any soldier who has actually spent time in Iraq over the words of American politicians 2000 miles away. I think Jess has it right. What the US military has done in Anbar province via the surge is remarkable.
Tom, Chicago, USA

I'm afraid that Jess's ideas are delusional. You can't "repair relations" whilst waging wars. The US's credibility has been flushed down the pan with wars based on complete lies - like the non-existent WMD in Iraq. Sorry Jess, but you're going to have to fess-up to these wars as being catastrophic Bush-era mistakes that brought monstrous carnage to civilian populations, who hate your guts as a result.
Neil McGowan, Brit resident in Moscow, Russia

Neil - I am sure you're not the only one that feels that way. However, giving up and failing to deal with reality are not really options; remaining optimistic, acknowledging and learning from our mistakes, and building on our strengths as a nation are significant ways to improve. Regarding your comment: "you can't 'repair relations' whilst waging wars". I agree with you to an extent. Ideally there wouldn't be any war, but if that were the case our foreign relations wouldn't be so tainted, would they? Removing ourselves from those areas without the hint of success through the eyes of the Afghani and Iraqi people will do more harm than good. Too many lives have been lost for many countries not to see these two succeed; and I believe we are starting to see legitimate signs of improvement. As a Marine and United States citizen, I do what I can with the situation I am given to make it better for those around me; I would encourage everyone to do the same.
Jess Carmichael, Seattle

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