peace in the hostile Middle-East region. Carter’s promotion of regionalism within his policies developed from human rights in the attempt to address issues on their merit and not within a Cold War sphere. Issues would be dealt with for the people of the region, and not for American gain. The Carter administration entered a new stage in American ideals when it began to challenge allied countries over human rights. Previous administrations had been willing to turn a blind eye to pro-American leaders who committed atrocities. However, Carter began to impose himself on countries that he believed were violating the principles that he set out in his quest to make the United States a morally just country. Carter ensured this was made known to the world in his inaugural address, proclaiming: ‘because we are free, we can never be indifferent to the fate of freedom elsewhere. Our moral sense dictates a clear-cut preference for those societies which share with us an abiding respect for individual human rights.’ 148 He further attests in his memoirs ‘when our own friends committed serious violations of Human Rights, their abuses would have to be acknowledged, and they would have to be encouraged to change their policies.’ 149 Countries including Ethiopia, Uruguay, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and South Africa suffered ‘major setback’ as a result of Carter’s
148 Jimmy Carter: "Inaugural Address," January 20, 1977. 149 Jimmy Carter, Keeping Faith: Memoirs of a President (University of Arkansas Press: Arkansas, 1995), p.148.
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