Over the past year, I was honored to serve as President Donald J. Trump’s National Security Advisor. I am immensely proud of the vital role that the National Security Council (NSC) played in restoring America’s strategic confidence. We helped the President set forth a strategic direction for the United States to protect the American people, promote American prosperity, preserve peace through strength, and advance American influence.
Examples include a new approach to North Korea, through maximum pressure on Pyongyang and close coordination with our allies and partners, including China. Our realistic approach toward China recognizes that we must compete to counter China’s economic aggression as we promote a free and open Indo-Pacific region. The United States and our allies are imposing costs on Russia for its destabilizing actions, while leaving the door open for future cooperation. We are taking a firm stand against Iran’s nearly 40-year proxy war against America, as well as its support for terrorist groups and its perpetuation of violence across the Middle East. The United States led the defeat of ISIS’s so-called “caliphate,” while reinvigorating our Middle Eastern alliances. In South Asia, we are fighting terrorists in Afghanistan, while holding Pakistan accountable. In Europe, our NATO allies are doing more for our common security—showing that they’ve heeded the President’s challenge.
These are just a few of the many foreign and security policy accomplishments of President Trump’s first, eventful year in office.
I will always be especially proud of the dedicated men and women of the NSC staff who have helped make all this possible. Thanks to their hard work, President Trump’s NSC has consistently done what it was designed to do: identify challenges and opportunities, develop integrated strategies, and present clear options and complete information to the President.
I look forward to many more years of accomplishment from this Administration. I wish the very best to my successor, Ambassador John Bolton. And I thank President Trump for the opportunity to serve our Nation as National Security Advisor.
