State Dept. Unveils Plan to Wipe Out Religious Persecution Around the World - CBN News
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is taking a major role in the push for worldwide religious freedom - one that will include a summit this summer bringing together US allies and countries seen as major offenders in hopes of advancing the cause. "It will not just be a discussion group. It will be about action," Pompeo said Tuesday as he unveiled the State Department's annual report on global religious freedom. The report highlights problems in countries like Russia, Iran, Afghanistan and North Korea.
US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback is helping to push through a law that he created when he served as a US Kansas senator. He released his annual "name-and-shame" report on Tuesday. "We must move religious freedom forward," Brownback urged. "We must defend it from every corner of the globe. That's why the secretary is hosting the first ever ministerial on advancing religious freedom."
Earlier, in an exclusive interview with CBN News, Brownback said he also wants to convince global policymakers that promoting religious freedom can reduce terrorism and boost the economy.
"There is a direct correlation," he said, noting that a key goal for the summit, slated to take place July 25-26, will be to show how countries hurt themselves by not allowing people to freely worship. "You have less terrorism if a country is religiously free because people then can express their faith, instead of fighting you. This is in now all the economic and scientific data," Brownback explained.
Meanwhile, Brownback told CBN News the US is doing all it can to bring American pastor Andrew Brunson home. Brownback is urging Turkey to clear and release Brunson, who has lived in the Muslim-majority country for more than 20 years.
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