Clinton to Engage Iran and Syria Soon

By JAY SOLOMON

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Hillary Clinton said at her confirmation hearing that the new administration would move quickly to engage Iran and Syria directly, making good on an Obama campaign promise to shift U.S. Mideast policy.

Sen. Clinton also told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Tuesday that, if confirmed as secretary of state, she would work to revive key international nuclear-disarmament initiatives that have largely lain dormant in the past eight years.

She specifically cited a renewed U.S. effort to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, as well as to reach accord with Russia on a revised Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which regulates the number of long-range nuclear weapons.

These initiatives, said the former first lady, would be part of the new administration's focus on using diplomacy, economic aid and commerce, or "soft power," to build bridges to allies and adversaries often critical of U.S. foreign policy in recent years.

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Sen. Hillary Clinton testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday.

Sen. Clinton said she would oversee a newly empowered State Department that would play a larger role in projecting U.S. influence overseas. Many U.S. officials, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates, have voiced concerns that the military has been drawn into too many aspects of foreign affairs, including diplomacy and economic development.

"America cannot solve the most pressing problems on our own, and the world cannot solve them without America," Sen. Clinton said in her testimony Tuesday. "The best way to advance America's interest...is to design and implement global solutions."

Sen. Clinton said addressing the Arab-Israeli conflict would be among her first priorities, but she didn't offer any evidence of diverging from Bush administration policy on Israel's attacks in Gaza. She said that for any cease-fire to hold, the Palestinian group Hamas must stop firing missiles into Israel.

Sen. Clinton's nomination is expected to be unanimously approved by the Senate Thursday. Democrats and Republicans praised the New York legislator for her work on international affairs, both in the White House and as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Republican senators stressed, however, that Sen. Clinton's confirmation would be contingent upon a strict accounting procedure being implemented to track former President Bill Clinton's foundation activities and to guard against conflicts of interest with his wife's work. "The core of the problem is that foreign governments and entities may perceive the Clinton Foundation as a means to gain favor with the secretary of state," said Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, the ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations panel.

Sen. Lugar said the best approach to guard against such conflicts might be for the Clinton Foundation to forswear donations from these foreign sources during Sen. Clinton's time at the State Department.

President-elect Barack Obama's pledge to directly engage U.S. adversaries, such as Iran and Syria, was a hot-button issue during last year's presidential campaign. Sen. Clinton at one stage called Mr. Obama "naive" for thinking diplomacy alone could change the practices of despotic governments in Tehran, Damascus and Pyongyang.

Tuesday, however, Sen. Clinton indicated that, as Washington's top diplomat, she would quickly push ahead with Mr. Obama's engagement strategy. Some Iran experts have suggested the new U.S. administration should refrain from reaching out to Tehran until after June presidential elections, fearing it could bolster hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. But Sen. Clinton said in written testimony that Washington might not have the luxury to wait that long, given Iran's rapid expansion of its nuclear program.

"The elections should not prevent us from starting a dialogue if we determine that there is a genuine intent to engage," Sen. Clinton said.

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The Obama administration also views efforts to engage Syria as central to U.S. efforts to stabilize Iraq, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Sen. Clinton acknowledged that the U.S. has continued concerns about Damascus's support of terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah. But she said Washington should test Syria's willingness to break its strategic alliance with Iran and these extremist groups.

"I believe that engaging directly with Syria increases the possibility of making progress in changing Syrian behavior," Sen. Clinton said in her written testimony, noting Washington would directly support Syrian-Israeli peace talks.

Sen. Clinton suggested the Obama administration wouldn't shift too drastically from the Bush administration's policy toward North Korea and the Arab-Israeli conflict. But she echoed comments by Mr. Obama that a softening toward Cuba could be imminent. She said, in particular, the new administration would move to lift restrictions on family visits and cash remittances to the communist country.

Finally, Sen. Clinton said as secretary of state she would work to engage Russia and China and bring them more fully into the international community. She stressed, however, the U.S. would continue to focus on human rights in these countries and their responsibility to abide by global economic and legal norms.

"We want a positive and cooperative relationship with China, one where we deepen and strengthen our ties...and candidly address differences," Sen. Clinton said.

Write to Jay Solomon at jay.solomon@wsj.com