Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have laid out their most complete visions yet for U.S. foreign policy in the latest Foreign Affairs. Not surprisingly, they offer sharply different views on Iraq, with Obama calling for a phased withdrawal of combat forces by March 2008 and Romney writing that such a move poses “grave risks to the United States and the world.”

But their world views are notable for areas of convergence. Both hearken back to U.S. leadership during the World War II era and call for reinvigorated U.S. engagement in the world. There is criticism, whether direct or implicit, of Bush administration moves since 9/11.

Obama writes:

“The Bush administration responded to the unconventional attacks of 9/11 with conventional thinking of the past, largely viewing problems as state-based and principally amenable to military solutions.”

Romney writes:

“Our president led a dramatic response to the events of that day and has taken action to protect the U.S. homeland. Yet if one looks at our tools of national power, what is surprising is not how much has changed since then but how little.”

Both the freshman Democratic senator from Illinois and the Republican governor of Massachusetts call for bolstering the military with nearly 100,000 forces, revitalizing alliances, establishing new initiatives to reach out to moderates in the Arab world, and investing in clean and efficient energy technologies.

There are certainly differences in emphasis and inflection but in their world views plenty of common ground.