Jimmy Carter, inaugural Robert and Margaret Pastor Lecture in International Affairs, Lafayette College, April 22

What can we do to improve our own lives? Let me go down the list. Let’s talk about peace. That’s one of the major attributes that a human being would have in his life. I would say that the major religions would also have these same kind of things in mind. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a Christian or Jew or a Muslim or Hindu or Buddhist. The major religions advocate peace. They also advocate taking care of the environment. They also advocate helping people who are in need.

Let me talk about a few of those things now. Since World War II, the United States has been at war in Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Grenada, Libya, Panama, Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Iraq, Afghanistan, and many others. Almost constantly since World War II, our nation has been at war. I would like for our country in the future to have a reputation as a champion of peace. I think that’s one of the characteristics of the superpower. My wife and I were on our way to the inauguration in January, and I tried to think of anywhere on earth at this moment where the United States is trying to promote peace. When we got to Washington, John Kerry – then a senator, but he had already been designated as the next secretary of state – and his wife met with me and Rosalynn in the hotel room. I said, “John, can you think of anywhere on earth now that the United States is trying to promote peace?” He said, “No.” But he said, “When I get in office as secretary of state, I’m going to go to the Mideast, and will start again.” So at least in the Mideast now we’re trying that.

Let’s think a moment now about human rights. The United States was in the forefront of developing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the end of the Second World War. Eleanor Roosevelt, the widow of Franklin D. Roosevelt, went there and declared the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. There are 30 paragraphs in the declaration. The United States at this moment is violating 10 of the 30 paragraphs. We now are detaining people in prison, without a trial and without an accusation presented against them, for life. Half the people in Guantánamo Bay, in the prison there, have never been tried and have never been accused of a crime, but will be in prison for the rest of their lives. And the United States is now using drones, as you know, to go into foreign countries with which we are not at war, and committing executions. …

Then the next president came along, whose name I won’t mention, and decided that was a mistake. He declared that North Korea was an “Axis of Evil” and tore up the agreement that had been consummated. And as you now, North Korea now has nuclear weapons. I’ve been there two or three times since, and I can tell you that what North Koreans want is a peace treaty with the United States, and they want the 60-year economic embargo lifted against their people so they can have an equal chance to trade and commerce.

It’s a very paranoid country. They are honestly convinced that the United States wants to attack them and destroy their country, to eliminate the Communist regime. They make a lot of mistakes, but I think if the United States would just talk to the North Koreans, and if the United States would just talk to the Cubans, and if the United States would just talk to the Maoists in Nepal, and if the United States would just talk to the Syrians, and if the United States would just talk to the Palestinians – I believe in those ways we could have peace, and the United States would be a lot better off in the long run. That’s not an easy thing to say, but I think it’s true. …

My wife and I have been to more than 140 countries in the world. The Carter Center has programs in 73 countries right now. I would say that now the United States is looked upon as the most bull-like nation on earth. When I normalized diplomatic relations with China, for instance, the next morning Deng Xiaoping told me that they were going to invade Vietnam. I said, “I hope you won’t do that, because you and I have just agreed to normalize relations between our countries, and the first thing you’re going to do is invade another country.” He said, “Well, we have to punish them.” I said, “Well, do me a favor. Don’t stay in Vietnam very long.” He said, “Okay.” So they invaded Vietnam in 1979 and withdrew in two weeks. China hasn’t been to war since, and neither has Brazil, and neither have many countries that I could mention to you. But the United States has constantly been at war, and I would say that the most critical aspect of other people looking at the United States has been that we are warlike, we tend to resolve every dispute by going to war. We are now threatening to go into Mali, we are threatening to go into Iran, and so forth – I’m not going to go down the list of things. I think that’s the main criticism. …

Read the full article here.