Contact: Anne Korin of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security (IAGS), 866-713-7527

What: National Security Think Tanks Call for Ending Dependence on Oil

When: Monday, Sept. 27, 1-2 p.m.

Where: The National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW, Washington, D.C.

Until now, the alternative fuel message has been the territory of environmentalists.

Now, a coalition of national security/policy think tanks is coming together to promote a shift away from oil, as the best guarantor of global security, prosperity and freedom.

Since September 11, it has become increasingly evident that many of America's security and economic problems stem from its dependence on oil imported from unstable parts of the world. The U.S. is facing today a "perfect storm" of strategic, energy, economic and environmental conditions that demand a dramatic reduction in the quantities of imported oil. This will no doubt be a daunting task facing the next President over the next four years and beyond.

On Monday September 27, 2004, representatives of prominent Washington think tanks and public policy organizations will release an Open Letter to Americans and an accompanying Blueprint for energy security called "Set America Free." The document spells out practical steps which can be undertaken over the next four years and beyond to dramatically improve America's energy security. Members of the group call upon America's leaders to pledge to adopt the plan, with a view to rapidly expanding fuel choice in the U.S. transportation sector beyond petroleum while exploiting currently available technologies and infrastructures. If the plan is carried out in full, U.S. oil imports would drop by as much as 50 percent.

Representatives of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security (IAGS), the Center for Security Policy, the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, the Hudson Institute, The Committee on the Present Danger, National Defense Council Foundation and others who have endorsed the plan agree that, with appropriate vision and leadership, the next President can make major strides to greatly diminish the U.S. transportation sector's consumption of oil.

Please join us Monday, Sept. 27, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. at the National Press Club, Washington, D.C. Copies of the Open Letter and the Blueprint will be available at the event. If you would like an advance embargoed copy please contact Anne Korin.