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                   US Defense Chief Highlights Diplomacy Push

   U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is reiterating the Obama
   administration`s plan to shift its foreign policy focus from military
   action to diplomacy.
   Hagel spoke Saturday at the Munich Security Conference, an annual
   meeting of world leaders in Germany. His comments come as the U.S.
   marks the end of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- having withdrawn
   all troops from Iraq in 2011 and preparing to end its combat mission in
   Afghanistan this year.
   "With the United States moving off a 13-year war footing, it`s clear to
   us, it`s very clear to President Obama, that our future requires a new
   and enhanced era of friendship with our friends and allies, especially
   here in Europe."
   In his annual State of the Union address Tuesday, President Barack
   Obama said he will not send U.S. troops to fight unless it is "truly
   necessary."
   Mr. Obama has already avoided getting the country involved in new
   ground-level military action in conflict areas such as Syria and Libya.
   But Hagel pointed out the U.S. is still assisting nations in need,
   highlighting current counterterrorism and humanitarian cooperation with
   European partners in Mali and the Central African Republic.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/us-defense-chief-highlights-diplomacy
   -push/1842401.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/us-defense-chief-highlights-diplomacy-push/1842401.html