Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says now that the war in Iraq is over for the U.S. military and the war in Afghanistan is winding down, America is seeking to promote its economic interests around the world.
The country's top diplomat, speaking Saturday in Singapore, sought to dispel concern over a looming so-called "fiscal cliff" of tax hikes and budget cuts in the U.S. pitting President Barack Obama against Republican opponents in Congress. Republicans and Democrats emerged from a meeting with the president Friday pledging to find common ground to avert a financial catastrophe.
Clinton, who is headed to an Asia-Pacific summit in Cambodia to be attended by Obama, said that the "full faith and credit of the United States should never be in question."
Clinton said responding to threats will always be central to American foreign policy, but it cannot be Washington's only foreign policy.
Secretary Clinton said Washington is seeking "a rebalancing of the global economy so Americans export more, Asians import more, and we avoid financial crises and build middle classes."