The groundwork for Obamas post-9/11 national security policy

President Obama said the U.S. will work with a "broad coalition" of foreign partners to combat the Islamic State in his public address on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014. (The Associated Press)

September 10 at 11:08 PM

President Obama has made a number of milestone foreign policy statements as he sought to move the nation to a post-9/11 national security policy that draws on American values, international coalitions, and diplomacy more than military operations to protect the country. At the core of his vision has been an end to Americas post-9/11 wars and a turn toward nation-building at home, as he has put it. The excerpts below chart the halting progress he has made toward that goal.

May 21, 2009 | At the National Archives, Washington

} Obama underscores the continued threat from al-Qaeda and the need to protect Americans. He says the country lost its way during the George W. Bush administration and pledged a counterterrorism strategy consistent with American values.

Now this generation faces a great test in the specter of terrorism. And unlike the Civil War or World War II, we cant count on a surrender ceremony to bring this journey to an end. Right now, in distant training camps and in crowded cities, there are people plotting to take American lives. That will be the case a year from now, five years from now, and in all probability 10 years from now.

Dec. 1, 2009 | At the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.

} Announcing an increase in U.S. troops for Afghanistan and an end date for the deployment.

I refuse to set goals that go beyond our responsibility, our means or our interests. And I must weigh all of the challenges that our nation faces. ... I dont have the luxury of committing to just one. Indeed, Im mindful of the words of President Eisenhower, who -- in discussing our national security said, Each proposal must be weighed in the light of a broader consideration: the need to maintain balance in and among national programs. Over the past several years, we have lost that balance. Weve failed to appreciate the connection between our national security and our economy.

Dec. 10, 2009 | Nobel Peace Prize Lecture, Oslo

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The groundwork for Obamas post-9/11 national security policy