Subject IndexThursday, January 29, 2009
Commitment to a Better Future for all Palestinians
Special Envoy Mitchell (Jan. 28): "President Obama has also underlined our commitment to a better future for all Palestinians whose legitimate aspirations for an independent and viable state should be met, lasting peace is our objective and the United States will sustain an active commitment to reaching the goal of two states living side by side in peace, stability and security." -Full Text -View Video
Date: 01/28/2009 Description: Special Envoy George Mitchell making a statement at the King David Hotel, Jerusalem. State Dept Photo by Matty Stern
U.S. Committed to Israel's Security
Special Envoy Mitchell (Jan. 28): "President Obama has said that the United States is committed to Israel’s security and to its right to defend itself against legitimate threats. The President has also said that the United States will sustain an active commitment for reaching the goal of two states living side by side in peace and security." -Full Text   -Photos
Date: 01/13/2009 Location: Washington, DC Description: Secretary of State-designate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC January 13, 2009, during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. © AP Photo
Secretary Clinton Talks About Foreign Policy and Diplomacy
Secretary Clinton (Jan. 27): "[W]e view defense, diplomacy, and development as the three pillars of American foreign policy. That’s not rhetoric. That is our commitment. That’s how we are proceeding. It was significant that the President and the Vice President came on my first day and their second day in office to reinforce that message."  -Full Text

In Other News

Date: 01/26/2009 Description: Secretary Clinton announces the appointment of Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern in the Ben Franklin Room of the State Department. State Dept Photo
Secretary Clinton Appoints Special Envoy for Climate Change
Secretary Clinton (Jan. 26): "[T]he President and I believe that American leadership is essential to meeting the challenges of the 21st century. And chief among those is the complex, urgent, and global threat of climate change. From rapidly rising temperatures to melting arctic icecaps, from lower crop yields to dying forests, from unforgiving hurricanes to unrelenting droughts, we have no shortage of evidence that our world is facing a climate crisis." -Full Text
Date: 01/23/2009 Description: Secretary Clinton addresses USAID employees. © AP Photo
U.S. Understands and Supports Development Assistance
Secretary Clinton (Jan. 23): "I wanted to come here today with a very simple message: I believe in development, and I believe with all my heart that it truly is an equal partner, along with defense and diplomacy, in the furtherance of America’s national security." -Full Text  -Video
Date: 01/23/2009 Description: Daily Press Briefing State Dept Photo
Emergency Aid to Gaza
Acting Spokesman Wood (Jan. 29): "[Secretary Clinton] is very concerned about the plight of ...the Palestinians in Gaza, and we’re going to look to see what more we can do in the coming days to help ...provide additional assistance to the people of Gaza."
 -Full Text -Video
Date: 01/26/2009 Location: Madagascar Description: Protestors gather in the Avenue de l'independence to listen to a mayoral address in the island's capital Antananarivo Monday, Jan. 26, 2009. © AP Photo
Madagascar Crisis
Acting Spokesman Wood (Jan. 29): "The United States is deeply concerned by the recent political violence in Madagascar. We call on Madagascar’s leaders and the Malagasy people to exercise restraint and avoid all further violence. We urge an immediate resumption of dialogue among the principal political actors and the government." Press Statement
Date: 01/22/2009 Description: President Obama, Secretary Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden Announce Special Envoy for Middle East Peace George Mitchell and Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke © AP Photo
High-Level Diplomats Named for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Middle East
Secretary Clinton (Jan. 22): "Today, we start the hard work to restore our standing and enable our country to meet the vexing new challenges of the 21st century, but also to seize the opportunities that await us." 
-Full Text  -Video
Date: 01/22/2009 Location: Washington, DC Description: Secretary Clinton addresses staff at the U.S. Department of State during her welcoming ceremony. State Dept Photo
Secretary Clinton Delivers Welcome Address
Secretary Clinton (Jan. 22): "President Obama set the tone with his inaugural address. And the work of the Obama-Biden Administration is committed to advancing America's national security, furthering America's interests, and respecting and exemplifying America's values around the world."
-Full Text  -Video 
Date: 01/26/2009 Description: Comments at the UN by U.S. Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice State Dept Photo
Ambassador Susan Rice at the UN
Comments at the UN by U.S. Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice on Aid to Gaza, the Threat of Iran's Nuclear Program and Presentation of Credentials.
Date: 01/20/2009 Description: A child fetches water at an improved water source in Kimatong, Eastern Equatoria, Southern Sudan. © USAID Photo
The Global Partnership Center
The GPC coordinates and stewards public-private partnerships between the State Department and businesses, foundations, NGOs, academia, and other groups. It encourages a collaborative approach to government by convening partnership leaders. 
-More
Date: 01/23/2009 Description: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greets Afghan women lawyers in Washington for program sponsored by the Department of State Public Private Program for Justice Reform in Afghanistan State Dept Photo
Secretary Clinton Meets Afghan Women Lawyers
The Secretary met with prominent Afghan women judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys. These jurists were in Washington to participate in a training program arranged by the Department’s Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan. -Full Text
Date: 01/23/2009 Description: An Afghan explosive ordnance disposal team leader stacks munitions at a controlled demolition site in Nangarhar Province State Dept Photo
U.S. Conventional Weapons Destruction Program in Afghanistan
The U.S. conventional weapons destruction program in Afghanistan aims to protect victims of conflict, provide life-saving humanitarian assistance, and help provide security and safety for the Afghan people. -Fact Sheet
Date: 01/13/2009 Location: Washington, DC Description: Secretary of State-designate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC January 13, 2009, during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. © AP Photo
Secretary Clinton Calls for Use of Smart Power
Secretary Clinton (Jan. 13): "Foreign policy must be based on a marriage of principles and pragmatism ...We must use what has been called "smart power." -Full Text   -Video
Date: 01/21/2009 Location: Washington, DC Description: Secretary Clinton was sworn-in as U.S. Secretary of State. State Dept Photo
Clinton Sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton was confirmed  by the United States Senate and sworn in as the 67th U.S. Secretary of State. Read the testimony at her nomination hearings.

Foreign Policy Highlights


Special Envoy Mitchell
Special Envoy for Middle East Peace George Mitchell is traveling to the Middle East and Europe from January 26 to February 3.
Doors to Diplomacy Contest 
The 2009 Doors to Diplomacy award competition recognizes student-created Global SchoolNet web projects that teach about the importance of international affairs. 


 
Democracy Video Challenge
Create a video short that completes the phrase "Democracy is." Deadline: January 31. 
Policy Podcast
State Department officials discuss upcoming events and foreign policy issues. See the video collection and check this space for upcoming Podcasts.



Traveling?

Date: 05/18/2006 Location: Pisa, Italy. Description: Cyclist in front of the Tower of Pisa. © AP PhotoItaly
Europe's Renaissance period began in Italy during the 14th and 15th centuries. Literary achievements--such as the poetry of Petrarch, Tasso, and Ariosto and the prose of Boccaccio, Machiavelli, and Castiglione--exerted a tremendous and lasting influence on the subsequent development of Western civilization, as did the painting, sculpture, and architecture contributed by giants such as da Vinci, Raphael, Botticelli, Fra Angelico, and Michelangelo. 
 
- Full Text  

Date: 02/02/2001 Location: Fujiyoshida, Japan, Description: Mount Fuji in Japan
Japan
Japan, a country of islands, extends along the eastern or Pacific coast of Asia. About 73% of the country is mountainous, with a chain running through each of the main islands. Japan's highest mountain is the world famous Mt. Fuji (12,385 feet). Since so little flat area exists, many hills and mountainsides are cultivated all the way to the summits.
- Full Text  
 

Date: 04/11/2006 Location: San Carlos, Costa Rica Description: Swimming in river near San Carlos, Costa Rica. © AP PhotoCosta Rica
One-fourth of Costa Rica's land is dedicated to national forests, often adjoining picturesque beaches, which has made the country a popular destination for affluent retirees and eco-tourists despite increasing crime. Costa Rica used to be known principally as a producer of bananas and coffee, but pineapples have surpassed coffee as the number two agricultural export.
- Full Text 

Date: 12/19/2008 Location: Northern Ireland, U.K. Description: Shoppers at the continental market at Belfast City Hall during the festive season in Belfast City Center, Northern Ireland. © AP PhotoNorthern Ireland
By the mid-1990s, gestures toward peace encouraged by successive British governments and by then-President Clinton began to open the door for restored local government in Northern Ireland. Key elements of the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 include devolved government, a commitment of the parties to work toward "total disarmament of all paramilitary organizations," police reform, and enhanced mechanisms to guarantee human rights and equal opportunity.  - Full Text 

Date: 05/07/2004 Location: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Description: Vacationing Saudi Arabians are silhouetted at a public beach in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia near the Jeddah fountain, a landmark in the city. © AP PhotoSaudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia's current development plan focuses on economic diversification in addition to education and inclusion of women in society. The plan calls for establishing new universities and new colleges with technical specializations. Privatization as well as emphases on a knowledge-based economy and tourism will help in the goal of economic diversification.
 
- Full Text


Learn About...

The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department. External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.