President-elect George W Bush sketched out his foreign policy agenda in Crawford on Saturday, saying that it would be based on bi-partisanship and close cooperation with allies to promote democracy and peace around the world. Bush outlined his priorities as he announced his choice for Secretary of State, retired General Colin Powell, a former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. If confirmed by the US Senate, Powell will become the first black to head US diplomacy. "America has unique power and unmatched influence, and we will use them in the service of democracy, spreading peace across the world and across the years," Bush noted. It was Bush's first major foreign policy address since he claimed the presidency on Wednesday after his Democratic rival conceded defeat following a 36-day feud over the bitterly contested presidential election. "Foreign policy in the coming years must serve our national interests in the world, while speaking for the highest of America's ideas," the Texas governor said. "In word and deed, we must be clear and consistent and confident that our values are real, and we must be true to our friends." On the Middle East, Bush said that his administration would defend American interests in the Persian Gulf and advance peace in the Middle East based, as any peace must be, on a secure Israel. Bureau Report