Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice thinks that tensions in North Korea have developed into a very dangerous situation, that the U.S. ten-strike in Syria was well timed, and that the comments current Secretary of State Rex Tillerson have made about Russia were a stroke of genius.
Rice's thinks came in a wide-ranging interview Rice completed with Fox News Bill Hemmer on Facebook Live on Friday morning.
Rices latest volume, Democracy: Tales from the Long Road to Freedom, will reach bookshelves on May 9.
The great thing about republic is that it has shock absorber, she said. I want people to understand that as messy as it is, you simply keep pushing every day to a better democracy. Theres no human or woman or child on the face of the earth who has to live in tyranny.
Speaking on her related experience with Iraq, Rice noted the success of republics worldwide while advocating for patience with countries still working toward the goal.
Democracy promotion is not Iraq and Afghanistan, she said. We didnt go to Iraq to bring republic. We went to Iraq to defeat Saddam Hussein, who was a security menace. Even though Iraq has ongoing difficulties, she said, its still worth supporting the countrys democratic efforts.
It takes a really long time but we cant give up on people who are still trying to construct that journey, she said.
As for countries like North Korea, Rice said, the time for patience has passed. Its a very dangerous situation, she said. Theyve get more capable with their nuclear program.
The time is genuinely up. The time for strategic patience has really passed, she stated.
Its already the most sanctioned country in the world. We need to look at further sanctions, by all means, she told. But subsistence from countries like Japan, China and South Korea will also be helpful.
Were going to need the help from those who are giving the Northern korean a lifeline, Rice said.
Rice also delved into the war in Syria and said a strike by the U.S. in response to a chemical assault in the country was well timed. Rice: I believed the ten-strike in Syria was well timed from a number of perspectives. It was measured. It enforces a red line thats been out there.
As for related tensions between the U.S. and Russia, Rice said that there could be hope. If the context is right, she told, I think theres a lot we can agree with on Russia. But an inevitable meeting between President Donald Trump and President vladimir putin will have to occur.
When it comes down to it, eventually, the two men will have to go into a room, she said.
Rice used to say she Tillersons comments regarding Russian supervision of Syrian chemical weapons have proven to be a stroke of genius.
Clearly Russia has failed in its responsibility to deliver on that commitment, Tillerson said last month. Either Russia has been complicit or simply incompetent on delivering its end of that agreement.
I may not have said it but it was absolutely true, Rice said in response. With the Russians these days, regrettably, the realm of our overlapping interest is small.
Rice, who reiterated that she has no plans to join the Trump administration or to run for president in the future, is the current Denning Professor in Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
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