Sen. Hillary Clinton poses for pictures with Sens. John Kerry, right, and Dick Lugar, left.

Elise Labott
CNN State Department Producer

In the confirmation hearing today, Clinton said she would work not only with government agencies, but NGOs and the private sector to address world problems because “we all have a lot of work to do.”

“It’s really all hands on deck,” she said.

But Clinton stressed she wanted to boost the resources of the State Department, because there is no replacement for seasoned diplomats. She said that the Defense Department received 10 times more the resources going to the State Department and conducts a lot of work in the field traditionally handled by State, which in effect means the DOD is “recreating the State Department.”

She acknowledged a frustration with the bureaucracy of the State Department – and didn’t want a “pile of paper,” but rather new strategies, ideas and best practices from not only her staff, but also asked for suggestions from the senate committee itself.

On Iran
Clinton said Iran’s nuclear program is “of great concern,” and that there is an ongoing policy review on how to approach it. “Our goal will be to do everything we can through diplomacy and the use of greater sanctions,” she said.

On sanctions, she said “we won’t know what we are capable of achieving until we begin work.” Says they are committed to working with friends and adversaries in the United Nations, making a case to the UN security council that “a nuclear-armed Iran is in no one’s interest.”

Clinton says “its hard to predict how hard it will be,” but promised best efforts. Said leaders in Iran are many and unpredictable – says they are looking for “effective and appropriate pressure” to persuade Iran and prevent it from moving forward.

President-elect said “it is going to be the United States policy to purse diplomacy with all of its tools to do everything we can to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear weapons state. ” Says no option is being left off the table.

Looking at a “range of possibilities”, but Clinton says we will consult with allies and doesn’t want to take them by surprise. She quoted Obama saying, “we are going to try new approaches.” She says Iran’s neighbors in the region, like Israel, have a legitimate concern.

On personal diplomacy with Iran, says she wanted to wait until she was in office and had a chance to consult with others. “it is very clear to me we do not have as full a brief as we need” from other allies.

On an interest section in Tehran and putting the Ambassador back in Syria – she said “these are matters that are part of our policy review” and she will be addressing them as soon as she is in office.

When Kerry pushed she said, “I think I got your drift, Mr. Chairman.”

At another point during the confirmation hearing, Senator Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) talked about Bob Levinson, a former FBI agent missing in Iran – and said the U.S. believes he is in a secret prison. (CNN has reported widely on Levinson in the past). Sen. Nelson said that if Iran wanted better relations with the US, releasing him would be a good place to start.

Clinton said “it was an extraordinary opportunity for Iran to make such a gesture,” and his release or Tehran allowing contact with him would “make it clear there is a new attitude in Iran, as there will be with the Obama administration.”

On Turf Battles
Senator George Voinovich, while praising the strong national security team chosen by Obama, voiced concern about “turf” battles and discussion about “who does what” to avoid stepping on toes.

Clinton didn’t answer that part of his question, choosing to focus on his comments on climate change.

On the Taliban
Later, in reference to Taliban sympathizers, Clinton said “they (Taliban sympathizers) want to maintain an attitude that keeps women, as I said in my testimony, unhealthy, unfed, uneducated. And this is something that results all too often in violence against these young women both within their families and from the outside.” This is not culture. This is not custom. This is criminal.”

“Diplomacy trumps ego”
Senator Barbara Boxer – who decimated current Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice four years ago in her confirmation hearing on the Bush administration’s record on the Iraq war, said Obama’s nomination of Clinton shows that “diplomacy trumps ego and politics and said to Clinton in accepting the post “you set your ego aside for world peace.”

On Darfur
And when the subject of Darfur came up in the hearing, Clinton said there is a “great need to sound the alarm again on Darfur.”

She called the current regime a brutal and corrupt government. “It’s important the world know we intend to address this in the most effective way, ” she said, noting the administration is undergoing a review and would be pushing the UN Security Council to act.

Clinton said she wants to push the early deployment of the African Union (AU) force. She said would speak about other options, like no-fly zones, and more sanctions.

“There is a lot under consideration,” Clinton added.

On Afghanistan
Clinton says Afghanistan is the “greatest priority for the President-elect.” She noted Obama’s “more for more” strategy – more US support must come with more NATO support, more support from the Afghan government and more political development.

She says there is a need to look at Pakistan and Afghanistan together and “imperative” to work with both of them.

Clinton praised the current Pakistani government, which she said is “much more aware that this is their fight, not just ours.”

She said that Obama administration will present “alternatives” to the current approach in the region. And “I anticipate having a civilian review and a civilian presence.”

On North Korea
Clinton said the Obama administration would move forward with multi-lateral diplomacy on North Korea through the Six Party Talks.

She said she had several lengthy conversations with Condoleezza Rice about about the status of the talks aimed at ending North Korean nuclear program. She called the talks “a framework the President-elect and I believe has merit,” but noted it also provided an opportunity for bilateral contact between North Korea and the US .

She said she and Obama believed the talks and the role China is playing, as well as South Korea and Japan offers “a vehicle for us to exert pressure on North Korea that is more likely to alter their behavior.”

“We are looking at all of the records of the negotiations up to this date,” she said. Clinton stressed the goal was not just to end the North Korean nuclear program but to stop Pyongyang’s role as a proliferator of its weapons and nuclear technology to other nations, pointing out North Korea’s likely cooperation with Syria and Libya, among other nations,

Clinton said she had “no illusions” about the challenge, which would take “tough reality-based diplomacy” and promised the Obama Administration would be mounting “a very aggressive effort to determine the best way forward.”