Commander, U.S. Southern Command, Admiral James G. Stavridis, addresses the Brigade of Midshipmen at the Forrestal Lecture Nov. 14. USNA photo by Gin Kai.

Stavridis, Class of 76’, assumed command of USSOUTHCOM in October of 2006. He spoke to the Midshipmen about the history of the region and the United States’ regional goals.

''The western hemisphere is a hemisphere of extraordinary diversity,'' said Stavridis. ''There is Brazil, an emerging great power of the 21st century, 190 million people who speak Portuguese, and Belize, a small country of African decedents who speak English. Can there be two more different countries than Chile, in every sense a first world nation, where they speak Spanish, where their small population of 60 million people has created the most vibrant economy in the southern half of the western hemisphere, and Haiti, the poorest country in this region where 70 percent of the people live on less than a dollar a day?''

Stavridis said one of the major problems with the region is poverty.

''We live in a region where 40 percent of the people, not including the U.S., live on less than two dollars a day,'' said Stavridis. ''That would be equal to everyone west of the Mississippi River living on less than two dollars a day.''

Drug production and trafficking are major challenges the United States faces in the region. According to Stavridis, all the cocaine in the world is produced in the Andes Ridge in northern South America.

''Since 9⁄11, when 3,000 of our own people died in the attack on the Twin Towers, 60,000 citizens of the United States have died as a result of cocaine,'' said Stavridis. ''I am a believer of attacking this problem on the demand side. If we educate our children and educate ourselves it will cut the demand for cocaine down.''

Stavridis explained that Sailors and Marines can have a major impact on the perception of America in other countries.

''The way you all can help fight the challenges we are facing is the launch of ideas,'' explained Stavridis. ''Every time you sail your ship or submarine into my region you are launching ideas. Every time you step foot on land in a port in my region you are launching ideas. Launching ideas in more powerful than launching tomahawk missiles.''

Stavridis explained that Sailors and Marines need to be knowledgeable about the cultures of the nations they visit and interact with to be effective. Stavridis tasked them to read books, watch movies and learn the languages that will help them be ambassadors.

Stavridis, a native of south Florida, commanded the destroyer USS Barry (DDG-52) from 1993 - 1995. USS Barry won the Battenberg Cup as the top ship in the Atlantic Fleet under his command. In 1998, he commanded Destroyer Squadron 21 and deployed to the Arabian Gulf, winning the Navy’s League’s John Paul Jones Award for Inspirational Leadership. From 2002 - 2004, Stavridis commanded USS Enterprise Carrier Strike Group, conducting combat operations in the Arabian Gulf in support of both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.