General James L. Jones, USMC (Ret.) - North American Forum - U.S. Chamber of Commerce
6/16/08
Remarks by General James L. Jones
4th Annual North American Forum
Monday, June 16, 2008
Today, energy presents the United States and the entire world with an unprecedented economic and national security challenge. Traditional energy supplies are increasingly strained by dramatic growth in global demand, and foreign energy supplies are increasingly vulnerable to the actions of unfriendly governments and non-state actors.
The United States recognizes that, our energy future is very much intertwined with that of Canada and Mexico -- our two largest energy suppliers. I believe there are many opportunities that exist in our country, and in Canada and Mexico, to help us address our collective energy challenges and to help achieve a stronger economic future for our citizens.
The solutions to these challenges require a larger focus, which brings us to a moment in time in our history where we stand squarely at the crossroads of two very different centuries. I believe the 21st century announced itself as a century that is dramatically different. We are at a defining moment when it comes to our energy and national security -- which are evermore intertwined.
I believe the 21st century will be a time in which the very concept of security will have a much more expanded notion, perhaps greater than we can imagine. In many ways, our approach to energy and national security reflect the realities of the last century. The evolution of the world from the bipolar 20th century to the very brief unipolar period to, more recently, what obviously will be a long-term multipolar world is a fact of life we have to deal with and whose implications we have to analyze very carefully. I believe it is essential to understand the characteristics of this multipolar world and their implications for what constitutes security, both national and international security, and energy is a key component of security.
Looking at our own nation and at what we know of other nations, it seems that multipolarity is having a profound impact on the very institutions, both national and international, that are charged with maintaining and preserving our concept of what we think of as security — that impact might make some wish for the simpler, more ordered, and more predictable times during the 20th century. It was certainly easier to categorize things especially when you look at the diversity and the difficulties and the greater number of issues that comprise our concept of a secure globe or a secure nation today.
We are now in a complex new century of asymmetrical threats. Some nations pose little military threat to us, in a conventional sense, but they use energy as a political and economic weapon. Terrorist organizations have set their sights on disrupting the world’s energy flows as a matter of policy, and we must take seriously the extremists’ statement that they will do all they can to harm the economic well being of a country by attacking and disrupting their energy flows. Against an ideology that despises our way of life, we must ensure reliable, diverse, and clean supplies of energy -- the future economic and political security of nations are at stake.
In an effort to address these challenges, the Institute for 21st Century Energy was formed in association with the Chamber of Commerce of the United States. It was created to lead the necessary effort to educate the public on America's energy needs and create forward-looking policies to increase and diversify the nation's supply of fuel and power from all sources. The main purpose of the Energy Institute is to ensure affordable, diverse, and secure energy for America’s economy, the environment, and our national security.
Over the past year, the Energy Institute has developed a document that will articulate a pragmatic strategy for a national view as well as address U.S. responsibility in the international arena -- it is important that the United States be part of the global energy solution rather than being part of the problem.
We have asked those who sit at our table, both real and virtual, representing the demand sector, the supply sector, and the environmental sector, to put self-interest aside in favor of the common good. Through a sustained effort, through the engagement of many divergent energy stakeholders and considerable resources, energy security and an internationally responsible leadership role on energy issues is an achievable goal. The outcome will be felt at the international, national, and certainly even the family level.
Energy security means ensuring that families, businesses, and our government have reliable access to affordable, abundant, and clean supplies of energy. Energy security does not mean “energy independence,” although this is a popular slogan used by many. We cannot be energy independent, not in thought and not in fact. We operate in a global economy and in an international energy market. Thinking in terms of “energy interdependence” will lead to sounder and more realistic policies.
The energy challenge is broad: it is a matter of national security; it is an issue that impact businesses; and — most importantly — it is an issue that affects our families. Energy prices are at or near record levels, and families are feeling their budgets squeezed by higher prices at the pump and increasingly larger utility bills.
Therefore, international energy security is a viable proposition for us to care about from now on. The question is where do we want to be in the year 2030, 2040, or 2050? The actions we take now, are going to put us on a path that will affect where we will be as a nation 20 to 30 years from now. These are very important times, and there is great evidence that many of the institutions created to deal with a 20th century world are not properly organized and are not effectively dealing with the 21st century world as it is, and as it is becoming.
We need to recognize the environment we are in, and recognize the world as it is, and figure out if we have the right construct in terms of how to operate and to how we compete in this world. Government, industry, the scientific community, and each one of us must step back, look at the bigger picture, and do what’s in the best interest for the global community.
At the Institute for 21st Century Energy, we believe an affordable, diverse, and secure energy supply is fundamental to security and the expansion of economic opportunity and prosperity. We are equally convinced that this energy can be secured while making progress with improving environmental quality and addressing the risk of climate change. The debate is not about energy versus the environment. It’s about how to unleash the promise of technology to get beyond the either/or mindset. Some people say that to answer the energy challenge, we must choose between developing necessary energy supplies and protecting the environment. I believe we can — and must — address both.
At the end of the day, we’re really missing something if we don’t see energy as a tremendous opportunity for leadership in a changing world. We must encourage and require stronger action by individuals, businesses, and governments to use energy more efficiently – in buildings, appliances, consumer products, transportation, and power generation.
Technology is the key to finding solutions. We must focus on the development and application of clean energy technologies both at home and abroad. Not just alternative sources, but technologies that allow us to continue to tap and use, in an environmentally sound manner, the tremendous reserves of oil, coal, and gas that exist around the globe.
Finally, energy security must be viewed in a global context. What happens in China, India, Russia, and other growing economies will have a profound impact on global energy strategies.
Worldwide energy use is increasing twice as fast as energy production -- there is a big challenge ahead. Simply put, energy supplies will fall short of demand, meaning higher prices. We must develop a plan to deal with this gap between demand and supply. This gap can be addressed through technology, efficiency, expansion of existing sources, and developing alternative forms of energy. There is no single solution— we must rely on all possible sources.
It is not viable for the United States to be seen as part of the problem, it must be part of the solution -- to energy access and to the environment. We must work towards solutions that include all major economies. If we deal with our energy problems in isolation, it will not have the effect on the globalized world that it needs to have. We must work cooperatively on a global level, with the major players, all playing an active role to foster a common agreement and to forge a common way ahead.
None of our existing institutions, either national or international can solve this problem alone. We must develop and implement strategies to better inform the public and our policymakers about our energy needs and choices. We have to change the terms of the energy debate — make it more understandable, broaden and deepen it, and elevate it with the facts. We can no longer base critical policy decisions on supposition, contradiction, and ignorance.
We have an exciting opportunity to lead the world to innovative solutions that would spur economic growth and protect the environment. We have the opportunity to be the champion of new technologies that foster greater energy efficiency, cleaner use of traditional energy sources, and the development of viable alternatives. Now is the time for government, industry, the scientific community, and individuals to come together to solve these challenges. By answering the clarion call we face on energy and national security, we can show that we believe that we need to deal with these issues sooner or later, and, in my view, we need to start now, before it is too late.