Los Banos Rotary Club History
Cobey Sees Little Change In Policy In Korean War

Citing the present war in Korea as an example of how short a road the world has traveled in the endeavors to settle differences and maintain peace without bloodshed, James a. Cobey, Merced attorney, Tuesday noon outlined to members of the Los Banos Rotary Club the basic principles of American foreign policy, and gave his interpretation of the problems with which this nation is faced today.

Classifying foreign policy as the country's endeavor to provide external security for the nation, he termed the State Department as our first line of defense, followed by our Department of Defense. As such, he said, our foreign policy as it is now constituted will not be materially changed by the new national administration.

Tracing the development and trend of our foreign policy down through history, Cobey pointed out the now famous Monroe Doctrine, in 1823, was made possible only through our alliance with the then powerful Great Britain; and that in the civil war, the North's diplomatic service achieved a major triumph by keeping Britain neutral and from furnishing supplies to the southern states.
Today, he said, our foreign policy is directed toward holding Russia and her satellites on check a necessarily long range program in which the State Department must play a vital role, with economic, military and political alliances, acting as a deterrent to Russia's aims and ambitions.

To achieve this Cobey stressed the importance of raciel equality, recognition on a national basis of the Asiatic countries, and a continuing program of cooperation and comprise that is a combination of realism and idealism.
The Rotary program Tuesday concluded the services of Mike Dambrosio as program chairman. For the coming month the weekly programs will be under direction of C. W. Bates.

January 2, 1953

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