EMAIL TO RIC WELLS FROM THE PRESIDENT

March 24, 2011 Dear Friend: Thank you for writing.  I have heard from many Americans about our Nation's foreign policy, and I appreciate your perspective. As President, my highest priority is the safety of the American people.  My Administration is using every element of our national power to keep our country secure, prosperous, and free.  We have renewed our leadership in the world by strengthening old alliances and forging new partnerships to meet common challenges such as preventing terrorist attacks, reversing the global economic crisis, responding to pandemic disease, and confronting climate change. Still, much remains to be done.  My Administration is working every day to defeat and destroy al-Qa'ida and its extremist affiliates in Afghanistan and beyond.  We ended our combat mission in Iraq on August 31, 2010, and we are on track to have all our troops out of Iraq by the end of 2011.  We are working to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and keep them out of terrorists' hands, and we are in the midst of a four-year effort to secure all vulnerable materials worldwide to prevent nuclear terrorism at its source.  Looking forward, we will continue to partner with other nations to fulfill our shared aspirations:  to support our families, to have the freedom to choose leaders and worship as we please, and to live in peace and security. I will advance these interests in my work with other governments.  However, meeting these common challenges will also require active, engaged citizens.  Real progress does not just come from governments and international institutions.  Lasting change comes from those who are willing to speak up for the future we desire.  Thank you again for writing, and I invite you to learn more about our foreign policy at: www.WhiteHouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy.  Sincerely, Barack Obama